Category Archives: Marvel
I’m Glad I Wasn’t Drinking Anything When I Found Out the Slingers Were Returning
Because there would have been spit-takes for days!
Holy heck, you guys! The Slingers are returning to Marvel Comics in September! What a neat idea! I’m a Slingers fan from way back in the ’90s, when they were actually around. And I’ve patiently followed the individual characters’ exploits in the decade since their comic was cancelled. Did you know Prodigy was the first superhuman arrested under the Superhuman Registration Act in the first Civil War? Yep!
Anyway, writer Peter David, himself a fan of the 90s, is bringing the Slingers back in the pages of his pro-90s comic, Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider!
According to the issue solicitation, which came out today, there’s someone going around in costume as a new Hornet in Las Vegas (the original died). The Slingers head to Vegas to get to the bottom of it, with Scarlet Spider caught in the middle. How many Slingers are even still around? Prodigy and Ricochet are still active, but is Dusk? I think so…
Anyway, I think it’s super neat that Peter David is going to bring them out of the mothballs for a comic book adventure! I only hope he doesn’t kill them all over the course of the story, or turn them into villains. It still stings what happened to Phil Urich…
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Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 6/17/17
I need to read more DC Comics. There’s no getting around it. This week saw an overflow of Marvel Comics that I read, but I only found time to review one DC Comic. It’s shameful! To say nothing of my apparent inability to read any indie comics. I’m not trying to be a Marvel Zombie! I’m not!
But Marvel delivered both the best and the worst this week. For reasons I wish I had an answer for, the new Hulk series seemed to implode this week, undoing everything that made this series special. Meanwhile, Ms. Marvel kicks off a new story with everything I love about this comic, so I’m rather pleased to award it Comic Book of the Week!
What a perfectly cromulent throw
Secret Empire had a weird little issue this week. The idea that Captain America and HYDRA have completely conquered the United States has shrunk in scope to a race between two super-teams to get pieces of the broken Cosmic Cube. It makes for a fun enough comic as the two teams get treated to a family dinner from Ultron Pym.
Also, Batman has kicked off a rather continuity-heavy, mind-erasing bit of big story at DC. Gotta get caught up on that!
Comic Reviews: Defenders #1, Detective Comics #958, Generation X #3, Hulk #7, Ms. Marvel #19, and X-Men Blue #5.
Rictor and Shatterstar Have Grown Big Gay Mustaches
Look, I know LGBT issues can be a sensitive topic for some people, and I totally respect that. I’m pro-LGBT all the way, and as a straight male, I’m probably in no position to comment on this or really stomp my feet about this issue. I just think it’s worth mentioning. In case nobody else on the Internet picks up on this and says something, I just want to put this out there for everybody to see.
The last time we saw Rictor and Shatterstar in an X-Men comic, they came out as a gay couple in the pages of X-Factor. Their first kiss back in 2009 was the first ever on-panel male-to-male kiss in the pages of Marvel Comics. It was a big deal.
Then X-Factor came to an end in 2013 and I don’t think we’ve seen either of them since. Rictor and Shatterstar disappeared into the same comic book limbo that claims most B and C-list mutants.
Until this week! Both heroes make their spectacular return in Secret Warriors #3, set during the whole Secret Empire debacle. And, well…as my headline implies…
First there’s Rictor.
Outshining Quake
And then both of them show up on the final page. You’re going to have zoom in for this one, but it’s as plain as that mustache on both of their faces.
Click to embiggen
Look, anybody and everybody is more than welcome to have whatever kind of facial hair they want. But you cannot tell me that those are not stereotypical big gay mustaches. Those are clearly Freddie Mercury mustaches.
I’m not making any judgement calls here. I’m just throwing it out there that I think it’s a little weird that when two of Marvel Comics’ most popular openly gay men make their long-awaited return to comics, they’re both sporting stereotypically gay facial hair.
Someone somewhere clearly made that active decision.
Also, while we’re here, the Strong Guy Watch continues!
Strong Guy also shows up in Secret Warriors #3, and he is still as silent as the grave.
He’s also apparently wearing a giant, badass chain draped off his belt
He appears in several panels, beyond just this big team shot, but he doesn’t say a word. It’s like whatever edict is putting Strong Guy in these comics also states that he must not utter a word. This is fascinatingly weird.
Also, oddly enough, that was totally Strong Guy reacting when Rictor and Shatterstar had their first kiss! Comics are cyclical!
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My 6 Favorite Comic Book Marriages
Batman and Catwoman are getting married! Batman proposed in the latest issue of his solo series, and even though I don’t think Catwoman has given him an answer yet, I hope they go all-out with the superhero wedding. I want Nightwing as the best man, the Robins as the groomsmen, Harley and Ivy as the bridesmaids and Ace the Bathound as the ring bearer. I want the seats filled with Justice Leaguers and Outsiders!
Who doesn’t love a superhero wedding?
Such romance
There have been tons upon tons of superhero relationships over the years. Once upon a time, they were the bread and butter of superhero comics. Clark Kent and Lois Lane are the standard bearer. Everybody knows about them! But what about marriage? How often do these classic superheroes actually tie the knot with their live interests? Lois and Clark did it. Who else?
Join me after the jump to celebrate with my six favorite comic book marriages!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 6/10/17
Good news, everybody! My time is my own again and the bonus Wednesday is out of the way, so I’m back to buying and reading an entire pile of comics! But bad news, too! Because as has been the case with me and comics, all of my favorite comics come out in one week, and there’s no way I can get to them all.
So this week sees new issues of Amazing Spider-Man, Batman, Hawkeye and Nova! But I had to pass on new issues of Harley Quinn and Unstoppable Wasp, just for time! Fortunately, I made room for the Comic Book of the Week: Iceman #1! He’s my favorite
X-Man and he’s finally got a solid solo comic!
Don’t ask me!
Speaking of comics I read but didn’t review, the new issue of Harley Quinn is pretty nifty! We learn the secret origin of Red Tool, even though I didn’t know he had a secret origin! I’m gonna do a write up on it next week in case you want the fully skinny.
Comic Reviews: Amazing Spider-Man #28, Batman #24, Hawkeye #7, Iceman #1 and Nova #7.
