Category Archives: Reviews
Review: Ultimate Comics: All-New Spider-Man #9
A switch in focus from Spider-Man to Prowler brings with it a dip in quality in the latest issue of Ultimate Spider-Man, but only because Miles Morales has become so entertaining. We don’t know much about Uncle Aaron quite yet, so he just didn’t make as compelling a protagonist this issue. Still, it’s a good idea to flesh out the supporting cast and play up the danger of new villain, the Scorpion. So this was an important tale, just not as entertaining.
Ultimate Spider-Man #9
And sadly, what little we did get of our young hero, wasn’t very interesting.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good.
We get another new fill-in artist this issue, David Marquez, but his style is very similar to regular artist Sara Pichelli, so I didn’t even know there was a change until I was more than halfway through the issue. So the art is quite good. But as I said, the bulk of this issue is a fight between Prowler and Scorpion. It’s a pretty standard fight, and moderately entertaining. It serves to flesh out both characters a little bit more, while setting up the eventual cliffhanger and conflict for this story: Uncle Aaron is going to try and get his nephew Spider-Man to help him fight Scorpion.
At least that sounds like it’s going to be very exciting! Join me after the jump for a synopsis and more.
Review: Teen Titans #7
Holy crap, does this issue suck. I have rolled my eyes at this comic’s various flaws before, but suddenly they’ve come together in a massive, brain-straining menagerie of winded dialogue, cringe-worthy banter, twists that fall pathetically flat, sudden changes in story that come out of nowhere, and the seemingly random and awkward introductions of several new, never-before-seen villains. What had been a relatively tightly paced series has suddenly exploded into a nearly incomprehensible mess.
Teen Titans #7
And it definitely doesn’t help that half the story takes place in an issue of Superboy that hasn’t even come out yet.
Comic rating: 1/5: Terrible!
Everything Teen Titans has been building towards just seems to fall apart with this issue. The only saving grace, perhaps, is the teamwork between the Titans. But their battle against N.O.W.H.E.R.E. just collapses in a big mess as the Titans attack their foes at their evil lair. Whereas before, N.O.W.H.E.R.E. was just a general evil organization, we’re now all of a sudden introduced to various super-villains with names and powers. Their appearances mean nothing because we’ve never seen them before. So the fights with the Titans mean squat. Not to mention the fact that the fights last only a page or two.
But worst of all is the dialogue. Characters not only talk too damn much, but they explain things that are happening in the same panel, as if we didn’t understand. The Titans are also constantly trying to tell jokes, but all of them fall thuddeningly flat.
Join me after the jump as I tear this comic book a new one.
A Totally Unbiased Review of Mimic and the X-Men #1
I love the Mimic. This obscure, Z-list superhero nobody is one of my all time favorite comic book characters. And for the first time in years, Marvel Comics is finally putting him back into the spotlight with the launching of the fantastically awesome Mimic and the X-Men #1 (also commonly known as X-Men: Legacy #264). I have no doubt that this issue flew off the shelves with all the popularity of chocolate chip pancakes at your local comic book store. We’re talking Watchmen levels of awesome here, folks. This issue, written by Christos Gage, flips the entire X-franchise on its head with what may be the most spectacular Mimic appearance ever.
Mimic and the X-Men #1
Move over Wolverine, there’s a new king X-Man in town. And his name is Mimic.
Comic rating: 10/5: Fantabularious!
Some of you may be thinking that I’ve gone off the hyperbolic crazy train. But you clearly haven’t read this issue. It’s like the chocolate devil’s food cake (with chocolate frosting) of comic books. It’s just so richly moist and flavorful, telling a compelling story featuring an underused superhero – who I just happen to think is a cross between James Bond, Elvis and Superman. Mimic is the kind of character that all the other characters wish they could be, with badass powers, a sweet new costume and appearances so rare that he’s like a fine diamond. If we ignore the rest of the clutter of this issue, like the plot and the other characters, we can see that Mimic was born to headline a comic book. The X-Men franchise is in for a revolution!
So join me, won’t you, for what is sure to be the highest selling comic book of the past decade.
Review: Avengers vs. X-Men #1
Apparently my local comic book shop didn’t get the memo that Avengers vs. X-Men #1 was being shipped a week early so that stores could prepare for any launch day events on the scheduled release date of April 4. So while this week most of the comic book reading world only got to buy the prologue, Avengers vs. X-Men #0, this plucky young blogger got his hands on the first issue of Marvel’s Big Summer Event Comic! I bought it legally, fair and square. There were no back room dealings or shady bribes. My comic shop put it out on the shelf and I bought it. I asked them if they knew about the embargo, but they didn’t seem to have a clue. Not my problem.
Avengers vs. X-Men #1
So how is issue #1? This event is being billed as one of the biggest in Marvel history, with their two signature teams duking it out in a no-holds barred fightfest of epic proportions! The very fate of the world may be at stake!
Avengers vs. X-Men #1 actually pretty good. The story is told rather straightforward, introducing us to the threat that’s going to put the two teams against each other, introducing the main characters and their stakes in the fight, and finally ending with the ‘optic blast heard ’round the world’. And the reasoning behind why the two teams would fight one another is actually handled quite well. I can definitely believe that these heroes would come to blows in this situation, which definitely adds to the credibility of such a Big Event.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good.
On a personal level, this issue didn’t grab me, and the overall plot does nothing for me. The story is focused around the character of Hope Summers, who I’ve just never cared for. And considering how quickly her solo series, Generation Hope, was cancelled, I doubt I’m the only one. So to have such a Big Event riding on Hope is a misstep, in my opinion. But Marvel, and scripter Brian Michael Bendis, wisely leave the fisticuffs to Captain America and Cyclops, the leaders of the two teams. The conversation between the two of them at the end of the issue is brimming with ego and tension, and it works perfectly to kick off this epic battle. I’m definitely on board for this whole series now.
The only problems with the issue, in my opinion, are the art and the lack of any big badass moments. Artist John Romita Jr. is a god among comic artists, one of my all-time favorites. But his work in this issue comes off as sloppy and rushed. Characters who should be big and imposing are instead lumpy and hastily drawn. Faces are sometimes quite ugly. This is far from his best work. And as for big moments, there simply aren’t any. At least none we haven’t seen before. In order to get the reader up to speed on the plot, there doesn’t appear to be time for any edge of your seat excitement.
Hopefully that will change with future issues. Join me after the jump for a full synopsis with spoilers and deeper analysis.
Review: Mythbusters: Behind the Myths Tour
Can two phone books with their pages interlaced support the weight of a pasty TV personality in glasses? How did robot-on-robot combat lead to one of the best TV shows of the past decade? Can a medieval suit of armor stand up to a barrage of paintballs fired from a massive gun turret? These questions and more can be answered at the Mythbusters ‘Behind the Myths’ live stage show, which I had the pleasure of viewing at the OnCenter in Syracuse, NY, Wednesday night. I’m a huge fan of the show Mythbusters, and it was a blast (sometimes literally) to see the stars Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman on stage joking and performing for the audience. Their star power really sells their live tour.
Unfortunately, the name is a little misleading. Whereas I was hoping for a real science-based spectacle full of anecdotes and stories about working on Mythbusters, the performance was actually more geared towards wacky hijinks and silly, but simple, science demonstrations. Little of it would actually qualify as peeking ‘behind the myths’, as it were.
Show rating: 4/5: Good.
If they had brought that much anger to the stage, it would have been a very different show
That’s not to say the live performance by Savage and Hyneman was not entertaining. The two-hour show was often very funny, and the two stars were obviously having fun on stage. They interacted well with the audience, both those who joined them on stage and those who remained seated. But on a TV show dedicated to weighty scientific pursuits, I was hoping for more of the same to sink my teeth into. I wanted more science and less silliness.
Join me for more after the jump.
