Category Archives: Comics
The Top 6 Irish Comic Book Characters
Top o’th’mornin’ to ya, me bloggies! Or the afternoon. Or even Sunday, depending on when you’re reading this. Throw back a pint in the name of your favorite geek Internet blogger! I’ve got a little bit of Irish in me, and that sure comes in handy on this, the holiest of the green holidays! It’s St. Patrick’s Day!
Kiss him, he's an Irish superhero
And like all things, whether it be holidays or the judicial system, I like to attach superheroes to it! So here’s my list of the Top 6 comic book characters who also have a little Irish in them. Oddly enough, I couldn’t find any superhero named ‘Leprechaun’. Somebody get Marvel Comics on the phone! Have I got an idea for them!
Review: Scarlet Spider #3
Scarlet Spider continues to make me happy. I was worried about a third issue slump of some kind, but I’m pleased to say it did not happen. The quick introduction is over, and Scarlet Spider does not disappointed now that we’re into the meat of the series. It looks like it will stand on its own two legs now. After this issue, I have a lot more faith in writer Christopher Yost to give us a great series.
Scarlet Spider #3
It helps that Scarlet Spider is pretty damn badass in this issue.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good!
Oddly though, he still doesn’t have his ‘name’. Nobody calls him Scarlet Spider, especially not himself. That’s not a problem, just a little weird. But then ‘Scarlet Spider’ is definitely a more marketable comic book title than ‘Kaine’. Yost has a lot of fun building up the supporting cast this issue, and giving Kaine a new sort of spin on being a superhero – he’s not hiding his identity. All the friends he’s made so far know where he lives, know his name and know that he’s the Scarlet Spider. It’s kind of neat, actually, and used to great effect.
How exciting is it that the Scarlet Spider comic book is actually really good?
Much Robining to Come
In a move sure to please, well, me, the June issue of Batman and Robin is going to feature something called ‘a meeting of the Robins’! Solicitations came out today for Batman and Robin #10, and they’re quite giddy. All of the former Robins – Dick, Jason, Tim and Damien – will be coming together for…some mysterious reason! And it looks like Tim Drake is going to get into a fight with Damien Wayne, the current Robin. So woot!
A 'fighting' of the Robins seems more accurate
BATMAN AND ROBIN #10
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art and cover by PATRICK GLEASON and MICK GRAY
On sale JUNE 13 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T
• Someone calls a meeting of the ROBINS, but who and why? And will the exiled and egotistical RED HOOD answer the call?
• RED ROBIN learns of DAMIAN’S betrayal – but how long will the youngest ROBIN’S lack of discipline stand?
• Many of Gotham City’s villains blame BATMAN for their downfall, but what happens when they stand together in a pact to bring the DARK KNIGHT down?
Review: Ultimate Comics: All-New Spider-Man #8
Sara Pichelli is back and ain’t life grand! This is it folks, the first perfect grade Ultimate Spider-Man comic since I started reviewing the Miles Morales saga. This issue has everything! Some serious drama for Miles, a fun and funny fight with a super-villain, growing storylines, fantastic art and a random visit with Aunt May and Gwen Stacy! Even the cliffhanger is kind of exciting, even though it’s almost identical to last issue’s cliffhanger.
Ultimate Spider-Man #8
Still, this book is riding high on a plateau of pure awesome!
Comic rating: 5/5: Great!
Last issue’s cliffhanger with the sudden appearance of Uncle Aaron at Miles’ school does not disappoint, and writer Brian Michael Bendis gives us a wonderfully wicked wrinkle in Miles’ new life as a superhero. Not only does Uncle Aaron threaten Spider-Man, but he provides a double whammy with the possibility of shattering Miles’ personal life as well. These are serious stakes facing our hero, which are long overdue in this series. As I said in my last review, so far Miles has mostly just had a few easy fights with a couple of lame super-villains. Kangaroo? Omega Red? Please. Well now the Prowler is going to prove to be a real thorn in our hero’s side.
But that’s just one part of this stellar issue. Miles’ may have a lot on his mind when it comes to Uncle Aaron, but the whole rest of the world seems to be conspiring against him too. Bendis is playing quite the game of chess with this comic. Spoilers and synopsis after the jump!
Bring on an X-Men Gay Wedding!
So even though Avengers vs. X-Men hasn’t even started yet, Marvel decided to release a teaser today for a story set after the clash. The teaser pretty much speaks for itself:
Save the entire month of June? Why not!
Reading around on the Internet, it seems that everybody believes the two to be wed are Northstar and his boyfriend Kyle, who I don’t think is any kind of superhero. I haven’t been reading the comics that Northstar has appeared in lately, but I’m pretty sure Kyle has been an important reoccurring character. And there aren’t many other X-Men couples these days.
Gay and interracial? It's almost like Marvel is egging the protesters on
Plus gay weddings are all the rage, what with people freaking out that Kevin Keller from Archie got married. Seriously, some group called One Million Moms protested Toys R Us for selling the Kevin Keller comic because it featured a gay marriage. And to that I present to you this fantastic Gutters comic.
I don’t like to get political with my blog, but I’m just going to state my opinion: gay marriage is A-OK is my book. You’re more than welcome to oppose gay marriage for whatever reason you may have, but you are just plain wrong on the issue.
That being said, kudos to Marvel to try something like this. Maybe they’re only doing it for the publicity, but I highly doubt it. There have got to be more than enough homosexuals working in comics or at Marvel to want to do a legitimate story. Northstar was, after all, one of the very first openly homosexual comic book superheroes after all. Maybe it’s a case of little guy Archie comics getting all these bullies coming after them, so big guy Marvel decides to step in and support the little guy with their own gay marriage. I like that idea.
Personally, I’ve always been a Northstar fan. This is Northstar:
That logo on his side doubles as both a flash of light and a Canadian Maple Leaf
Debuting in 1979 as a member of the Canadian superhero team Alpha Flight, Northstar is a mutant with the ability to fly at super-speed. He’s also the twin brother of Aurora, who has light-based powers. Northstar was always gay, but the Comics Code Authority back in the day would not let comics have any openly gay characters. The Comics Code Authority has since been completely dropped after Marvel and DC comics decided just to ditch them. Anyway, Northstar came out in Alpha Flight #106 in 1992. It was a fairly controversial, but popular, move, and the comic sold out. Which was a pretty spectacular achievement for Alpha Flight.
Northstar became a much more important character starting in 2001, when he was recruited into a temporary team of X-Men. I read those issues, and they were my first real exposure to Northstar. He was pretty cool. Kind of arrogant, but a cool sort of arrogant. Northstar joined the X-Men full-time in 2002, and has been around ever since – though he has had a few returns to Alpha Flight. But these days he’s a full-time X-Man.
Unfortunately, the wedding is going to be taking place in Astonishing X-Men, the bastard stepchild of the X-Men universe. There are currently more than half a dozen X-Men comics being published. Uncanny X-Men and Wolverine and the X-Men are the two main titles, with stuff like Astonishing X-Men, X-Men: Legacy, New Mutants and more serving as auxiliary titles. Frankly, Astonishing has no reason to exist anymore. It’s kind of just hanging around for the heck of it after a strong debut by writer Joss Whedon a few years ago.
There are plenty of other comics to buy to get X-Men stories.
But there are only a few comics willing to tell a positive gay marriage story. So hooray Astonishing X-Men!
Henchman-4-Hire 