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Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 4/5/14

Busy week, my friends. Between seeing the new Captain America film, a dentist appointment and spending some time with my parents, I didn’t have time to get to all the comics I wanted. There are so many cool and interesting books coming out these days, but I had to cut my review list short, because The Winter Soldier wasn’t going to wait for any man! Neither were those fillings, ouch!

I decided to shake things up a little bit this week by paying a visit to Action Comics. I haven’t touched that series since about mid-way through Grant Morrison’s disappointing run – probably only disappointing to me. I know most people love that guy. But how poorly has Superman had it in the New 52? It’s depressing. But I think that writer Greg Pak is at least doing something fun with Action Comics.

A slew of Marvel’s new comics hit the stands this week, but I was only able to get to a few of them. The new Magneto is pretty good, but I really didn’t like the first issue of Inhuman. I’m afraid Marvel’s Next Big Thing is a bit of a dud from the get-go. But maybe you thought differently. What I do know is that Moon Knight won Comic Book of the Week almost on art alone!

He is…not quite the night

Comic Reviews: Action Comics #30, Aquaman and the Others #1, Inhuman #1, Magneto #2 and Moon Knight #2.

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‘Inhumanity’ is Marvel’s Next Big Thing

Hey Inhumans fans, your time will come this fall, because Marvel’s next big seismic status quo shift is going to star the Royal Family of Attilan!

Called ‘Inhumanity’, the event is not so much a series as it is just a new status quo. Like Dark Reign or Heroic Era. According to the announcement at Entertainment Weekly, something is going to unleash the Terrigen Mists on Earth, and anyone with some Inhuman DNA in them is suddenly going to sprout super-powers! Could be neat. Though isn’t that just a different kind of mutant?

The event comes with this nifty new picture starring several important characters:

Oh the inhumanity!

Let’s see…we’ve got Black Bolt, Medusa, Silver Surfer, Angela, Thor, Black Widow, the Winter Soldier…all typical. Most noteworthy are Spider-Man in his Peter Parker costume, a new costume for Wolverine and apparently Nightcrawler in the background. Is he going to be brought back from the dead? Maybe!

A new comic called ‘Inhumans’ will also ship, written by writer Matt Fraction, who is one of my current favorite comic book writers. So it’s probably safe to say the series will be good.

Here’s how Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso, who compares this event to Game of Thrones, describes everything:

 “The effect on the Marvel Universe will be seismic,” says Alonso. The Terrigen Mists affects all Inhumans differently, granting powers that typically reflect one’s personality, like a hyper-specific Sorting Hat. So “Inhumanity” opens the possibility for a fascinating array of new characters. “You might learn that your new self is fantastic, beautiful, filled with immense power,” says Alonso. “By the same token, you could turn around and find out that you’re nothing. You’re a blob. You have no powers. You can create a little flame out of your pinkie.”

Likewise, Fraction had this to say:

 “Our focus characters are drawn into the palace intrigue of this shattered Inhumans Royal family,” says Fraction. “It becomes a superhero story and a mythical story, all revolving around turning the world into a world full of superheroes.” Fraction stresses that the event will appeal to casual readers who might not know their Karnak from their Lockjaw. “It’s giving us a chance to get back to a classic Marvel metaphor of alienation,” he explains. “We’re telling science-fiction stories, but really it’s about race, gender, sexual equality. It’s a very relevant, pertinent metaphor.”

So yeah, I don’t know what to think at this point. It sounds like they have some big ideas, and Matt Fraction is awesome, so maybe it’ll be good. But I’ve never been big on the Inhumans, nor am I very interested in the general idea of Earth becoming an entire planet of superheroes. But we’ll see! What does everybody else think?