Category Archives: X-Men
Review: X-Factor #234
In which two members do some soul searching while everyone else enjoys a much deserved group hug. And that’s mostly it. This issue of X-Factor had a few certain story beats it wanted to hit, so it did. Everything else is just kind of fun, generally moving a few different plots along while taking care of the ‘Madrox is back from the dead!’ angle. It’s not the big, emotional scene of awesome I was hoping for, but it’s definitely some good team bonding. We also have Madrox and Havok start butting heads, so that was fun. Though I hope we see some more of this team drama in the issues that come.
X-Factor #234
This issue also featured one of the most adorable superhero group hugs ever.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good.
This issue is also book-ended by the Isolationist’s story, as the mysterious woman is finally revealed in full. But their little segments add absolutely nothing to the overall threat they’re trying to convey, and I find myself rolling my eyes at them even more than last week. They are not threatening, they are not interesting and I have little to no desire in seeing them eventually face off against X-Factor. This book’s greatest strength is when its characters can act like real people, and deal with grounded, street-level adventures. The idea of them facing off against two far-out super-villains seeking world domination just doesn’t interest me in the least.
Fortunately, this issue mostly focuses on the good characters and what their lives are like together. So that’s a plus.
Review: Avengers vs. X-Men #2
And lo, it was on like Donkey Kong! The epic battle of the Avengers vs. the X-Men has begun! Friend against friend! Husband against wife! Hero against hero! And with that, I’ve pretty much summed up the entire comic. The two teams come to blows very quickly in this issue, and it’s a little bit disappointing. I realize all of these characters are superheroes, and so fighting just comes natural to them. But holy cow does every single character just jump straight into a big brawl without a moment’s hesitation. All of the motivation behind the fighting seems to have dried up.
Avengers vs. X-Men #2
This is just a big, dumb fight issue with far too many characters to keep track of any of them. Though this comic tries its hardest. No wonder Marvel is also publishing a spin-off title that is nothing but fights – because none of them actually happen in this issue.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good.
But none of that is to say this was a bad issue. It’s still a very entertaining comic, and the end reveals that maybe we won’t just have 12 issues of boring fisticuffs. Because quite honestly, if this is all we can expect from the fights for this series, then count me out. This’ll be the most boring Big Event comic ever. Very little of the characters’ histories with one another are touched upon when they come to blows, and most of the fights happen off panel – or in that other comic book. And I’m not even sure if that spin-off comic is even out yet.
So basically what we get here are a few very short vignettes about fights that don’t happen in this comic, and then a medium-sized twist for the ending to catapult us into next issue. Cyclops and Captain America have another discussion during the fighting, but it’s not as good as the one last issue that kicked off the fight. But then this comic has a new scripter, so that could explain it.
That would also explain the silly purple prose found throughout the issue…Join me after the jump for a full synopsis, spoilers and more hot Avenger on X -Men action!
A New Gambit Series for People Who Really Like Gambit
Another announcement from C2E2 this weekend is that of a new Gambit comic book series, also starting in August. So apparently Marvel is big on books starring solo white guys doing their own thing. Unfortunately, just like Hawkeye, I’ve never been a big Gambit fan. So I don’t have much interest in the comic – but maybe you do!
The latest in a long line of Gambit solo series
The series is going to be written by James Asmus and drawn by Clay Mann. Apparently Gambit is going to break away from the X-Men, and instead of focusing on all the classic Gambit stories (like the Thieves Guild), the book will feature Gambit as the ultimate thief, exploring the Marvel Universe to steal awesome items.
Here’s what Asmus and others had to say, according to ComicBookResources.com:
“This book focuses on the two most important aspects of Gambit: #1 that he’s sexy, and #2 that he’s the preeminent bad ass thief of the Marvel Universe,” the writer said. He explained that the book will feature Gambit broken away from the X-Men, stealing wild items from across the Marvel U in locations like space, places with Kirby monsters and more. “It lets us refresh and do new things with the crime capers involving our classic bad ass.” He also joked that “We got rid of the head sock” in describing Mann’s art as “Sexy.”
Overall, the book will build a “dangerous series of events” that pull Gambit into a “territory of mixed morality.” Asmus also noted that he wanted to make the book as accessible for everyone including fans of the ’90s “X-Men” cartoon and longtime readers who have been asking for Gambit to return in a major way.
Editor Ketchum said that he didn’t want to revisit the same stories that have been told with Gambit a thousand times with Bella Donna and the Thieves Guild in New Orleans. Instead, this will be like a Gambit movie that reintroduces the character in an all-new way.
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.
Henchman-4-Hire 