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Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 2/1/14
Happy Groundhog’s Day Eve, everybody! Are you all ready for the groundhog to pop his head out of the hole to look for his shadow? Do you international readers celebrate Groundhog’s Day? It sounds terribly American. Nonetheless, it’s happening, and I’m excited. I might even break out my Groundhog’s Day pennant that I don’t actually own.
It also feels like there’s something else important going down this weekend, but I can’t put my finger on it…
At any rate, let’s talk comics! This week, I picked up new issues of Aquaman, Spider-Man and Thor, and decided to take another peek at Red Lanterns. Feels like I haven’t checked in with them in awhile. But all of those titles were blown away by the latest Annual issue of Batman and Robin. Peep your eyes on this one, Robin fans, it might be the greatest Robin love letter we’re ever going to get from DC Comics. It easily wins Comic Book of the Week.
Especially if they kill off Dick Grayson, those meanies!
Comic Reviews: Aquaman #27, Batman and Robin Annual #2, Red Lanterns #27, Superior Spider-Man #26, and Thor: God of Thunder #18.
New Amazing Spider-Man 2 Trailer is Pretty Spectacular!
Check out the new trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and try to spot all the great Easter Eggs and general awesomeness!
This was definitely one of the best superhero trailers I’ve seen in a long time. The action is superb, the characters look fantastic, and the focus is clearly on Spider-Man and the trails he faces in the new movie. Electro, Rhino and Green Goblin all look brilliant, and did you catch the quick cameos from he Vulture and Doctor Octopus? It was just their gear in display cases, but still!
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 looks great so far. I cannot wait for this film!
Higher Quality Spider-Man 2 Picture
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 poster from last week has been officially released online with crystal clear images of Rhino and Green Goblin.
Click to enlarge
Rhino looks mostly awesome, for what he is. I’m not sold, yet, on the idea that he’s a literal robotic rhinoceros instead of a guy in a big suit, but I’m keeping an open mind. The Green Goblin, however, looks stupid. It’s the hair, the hair looks ridiculous. There’s a reason why the Green Goblin in the comics doesn’t have hair. That’s the reason. Right there.
Also, here’s the official plot synopsis:
We’ve always known that Spider-Man’s most important battle has been within himself: the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker finds that a greater conflict lies ahead.
It’s great to be Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield). For Peter Parker, there’s no feeling quite like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and spending time with Gwen (Emma Stone). But being Spider-Man comes at a price: only Spider-Man can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable villains that threaten the city. With the emergence of Electro (Jamie Foxx), Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he. And as his old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, Peter comes to realize that all of his enemies have one thing in common: OsCorp.
I think I am most looking forward to seeing Rhino in this movie.
First Leaked Look at Rhino and Green Goblin in Amazing Spider-Man 2!
The internet being what it is, some industrious Twitterer found a poster in a movie theater for Amazing Spider-Man 2 that features both Rhino and Green Goblin. The two villains have never before been seen by the public! So this is pretty awesome.
With great box office, comes better costuming
Buuuuut just in case you don’t want to get spoiled, I’ve posted the pictures after the jump. You can find them there!
Good Guy Green Goblin: Why the Little Guy Matters in Comics
I don’t remember how or why I came to possess a copy of Green Goblin #1 in 1995, I only remember the joy I felt flipping through its pages. I can remember marveling at the artwork by Scott McDaniel, possibly the first time I ever actually appreciated comic book art. I can remember haphazardly scouring the comic book shops and supermarkets in Central New York searching for all the follow-up issues, before I ever even knew that comic books come out on Wednesdays. And I can remember waiting 10 years, well into adulthood, before I finally managed to track down the final issue online, and how reading it after all those years was like stepping back in time. The series was just as good as I remembered – if a little dated.
With the Green Goblin series in the mid-90s, Marvel Comics was trying desperately to reach out to both youth culture and longtime fans by mixing a semi-familiar brand name with a slacker protagonist. Green Goblin was a blatant cash-grab. It only lasted 13 issues.
But those 13 issues may be the very reason why I’m such a big comic book fan today. Green Goblin was my ‘gateway drug’. And Phil Urich is my hero.
He’s a funny guy
Some of you reading this have probably never even heard of Phil Urich. He’s no Peter Parker or Bruce Wayne, that’s for sure. But nevertheless, Phil Urich came along at just the right time to hook me into comic books. Green Goblin wasn’t the first comic I had ever read, but it was the first series I ever started collecting on my own. And when all 13 issues were over, I kept reading and I kept looking for more new comics. It was a fun little series with a lot of energy and some cool ideas.
After it was cancelled, one would reasonably expect never to see Phil Urich again. His story hadn’t sold, it was cancelled; shouldn’t that be the end of it?
Nope! Apparently not! And that’s why Phil Urich is such a fascinating character. Phil kept coming back. New writers like Brian K. Vaughn and Dan Slott came long with new ideas and new roles for Phil to play. And through their work, Phil Urich’s story continues to be told, even after all these years. And that’s one of the things I love about comics: through unexpected teamwork, through new writers and new ideas, even the little guys get their own stories. Phil will never be as popular as Spider-Man or Batman, but he’s got a story nonetheless.
Join me after the jump if you’d like to hear it.
Henchman-4-Hire 