Category Archives: Reviews
Review: X-Factor #244
It’s Banshee’s turn at the plate in Breaking Points, and she knocks it out of the park with a touching, personal look at her character. The mysterious ‘guest’ she’s been hiding the past few issues is revealed, and by the end of the issue, her status quo is changed in a very significant way. It’s a sad change, but still cool in its way. Part of me thinks it’s a little too easy, and a little too apropos of nothing, but it definitely works. Throw in some good art and some strong appearances by the rest of the cast and you’ve got yourself a very nice issue of X-Factor.
X-Factor #244
Who could ask for anything more?
Comic rating: 4/5: Good!
For the most part, writer Peter David has been doing an acceptable job of cleaning house in X-Factor. I know that X-Factor is going to remain relatively untouched in Marvel NOW!, but that doesn’t mean he might not give it a fresh coat of paint or something. Ditching a few members of the bloated cast is a great idea, in my opinion, and he’s been doing a fine job in figuring out what to do with these guys. PAD takes a strong, hard look at Banshee in this issue, and the emotions that drive her, but he does so with a character he created only a few issues ago, a character that doesn’t have the history or the impact to be such a big deal in Banshee’s life, in my opinion. But it works. PAD shakes things up, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
PAD also manages to work his magic with Havok and Polaris, two characters who have definitely suffered from being suddenly, unceremoniously dropped into this comic. There are some continuity conflicts with Avengers vs. X-Men, but who cares? I’m curious to see if PAD will play any part in preparing Havok for his upcoming leadership position in Uncanny Avengers. He seems to be doing a nice job of preparing Polaris for her stay in X-Factor.
But more on that later. Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review!
A classic action platformer gets some new moves and a new look
A hard-hitting, two-fisted 80s arcade classic returned last week to rave reviews, and this is one of them. Available on Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network, the Double Dragon franchise comes back with a new look and a host of new moves, and its kung fu is good.
Review: Scarlet Spider #9
Hot damn! A rip-roaringly fun adventure was had by all as Scarlet Spider and the Rangers teamed up to take down a giant, rampaging electricity demon! It had character growth, it had interesting villains, and it had teases towards future adventures. I’d say that makes for a pretty stellar superhero story, don’t you? Not much in the way of personal stuff for Kaine, but that’s more than made up for with his in-costume craziness as the Scarlet Spider.
Scarlet Spider #9
I daresay our favorite hued hero is turning out to be a pretty good superhero.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good!
It’s times like these that I wish I graded with decimals or fractions. This is definitely one of the best issues of Scarlet Spider so far, but it doesn’t quite reach the levels of greatness that I try and save the perfect score for. There’s nothing so amazing as to warrant such a score, but there is a lot of great stuff in this issue. Plus writer Christopher Yost is doing a pretty good job of setting up future characters and villains. That’s a good sign, though it doesn’t necessarily guarantee a book’s longevity. Still, it’s good to know the man is planning ahead.
This issue is almost entirely fight, with a couple short epilogues at the end. Scarlet Spider and the Rangers work well together, it would seem, and the electricity monster provides a solid adversary considering the storyline. So everything comes together quite nicely in a darn good superhero story.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Review: Avengers vs. X-Men #11
Now that was a pretty damn awesome issue. I’m happy to say that the big finale to Avengers vs. X-Men looks like it’s going to be both epic and cool, with this penultimate issue really setting up what should be a bombastic showdown. This issue has got great action, some wonderful character moments, awe-inspiring art and a brilliant cliffhanger that I’m kind of ashamed I did not see coming. But that just means it took me by one hell of a surprise! However, despite all this well-deserved praise, anyone who has been reading my reviews knows that I have one really big BUT when it comes to Avengers vs. X-Men…and this issue continues to emphasis that same glaring flaw.
Avengers vs. X-Men #11
The story is incredibly wishy-washy on just how much of a villain it wants Cyclops to be. At a time when it needs him to be a mustache-twirling Snidely Whiplash, this comic still goes to great lengths to make Cyclops sympathetic.
Comic rating: 5/5: Great.
My major gripe with Avengers vs. X-Men is that it does not have a solid answer to two important questions: What has Cyclops done wrong? And was it Cyclops who did it, or was it the Phoenix acting through Cyclops? Unfortunately, this issue continues to flip back and forth on the issue. And from someone who sympathizes with Cyclops, it just makes all the so-called heroes out to be huge assholes. One moment they are talking about having to stop Cyclops because he cannot control this evil power, and the next they are blaming Cyclops for everything. The comic has made it very clear that the Phoenix is the reason the PhoeniX-Men started turning evil, that these people were possessed by an evil force and it eventually took over. Yet never do any of the Avengers or X-Men say that they need to save Cyclops from the Phoenix. They all act like it’s Cyclops himself who is behind all of this, and not that their friend has been possessed by this evil force.
To me, that kind of makes them jerks. They don’t want to help Cyclops and stop the Phoenix. They just want to kill Cyclops and be done with it.
Despite that glaring issue, this is still a great comic. The action is fantastic, with a lot of high-stakes superheroics. But rather than just boring action, all of it is spliced with some really meaty character moments as everyone tries to reason with Cyclops while simultaneously trying to kill him. The art by Olivier Coipel is also phenomenal, giving these moments the epic feel that really makes them stand out.
Also, a very important character dies this issue, but it does not have the impact that Marvel probably hoped it would. I’ll spoil the death when we get to it in my synopsis, so if you want to know right now, just click the jump and scroll down. Otherwise, how about we get on with the fully synopsis and more review!
Review: Ultimate Comics: All-New Spider-Man #14
Yep, Brian Michael Bendis wants absolutely nothing to do with the ‘Divided We Fall’ crossover taking place in the rest of the Ultimate Universe. The crossover banner may be emblazoned on the cover, there may be a map in the beginning of the comic detailing the current chaotic state of the country, but you wouldn’t have any idea what the heck is going on based on this issue of Ultimate Spider-Man. This is entirely self-contained. Honestly, reading Ultimate Spider-Man #14, it’s as if nothing has changed anywhere else in the Ultimate Universe.
Ultimate Spider-Man #14
And I am perfectly fine with that! To hell with the rest of the Ultimate Universe and its stupid crossover!
Comic rating: 4/5: Good!
Apparently Captain America went into hiding in the wake of Peter Parker’s death. You wouldn’t know it based on this comic. Cap is a major guest star this issue, but there’s no indication that he left or that his return is a big deal. He’s written exactly as he would have been written had he not taken a major sabbatical. And better yet, Aunt May, Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson are all written the same too. Nobody seems to know or care that the United States doesn’t exist anymore, and that’s great! As long as Miles Morales’ fantastic story isn’t disrupted due to the rest of that crap, I couldn’t be happier. Bendis is writing good comics here. The origin and early adventures of Miles Morales are going to be important for a long time. ‘Divided We Fall’ isn’t even flavor of the month. Nobody’s talking about it. Nobody cares. It’s a dying gasp from a past-its-prime universe.
Give me more of this issue, where Miles finally has a real heart-to-heart with Peter Parker’s supporting cast. Give me dialogue and characterization like this. I’ll take the story of Miles’ first attempt at web-swinging over some dumb, overblown crossover any day of the week.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review! And Miles’ first web-swinging!
Henchman-4-Hire 