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Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 5/28/16
I’m a little late to the party, but I had a busy week and couldn’t get up a quick anything about all the comic book controversy. What have they done to Captain America?! What the heck have they done now to the DC Universe? Read on to get my reviews!
Part of me was just planning to review the big two controversial issues and leave it at that. But this week also saw the release of some of my favorite comics, and quite honestly, each issue kind of serves as the anti-thesis of DC: Rebirth and the new Cap twist.
So in an unprecedented move, Comic Book of the Week goes to three of my favorite comics, all of which released perfectly pleasing issues in this crazy week: Ms. Marvel, Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and Patsy Walker a.k.a. Hellcat.
Good advice
This week’s Hench-Sized Reviews is about as big a statement on comics as I may ever be able to make. I’m quite pleased with myself, and really enjoyed some of these reads.
Comic Reviews: Captain America – Steve Rogers #1, DC Universe – Rebirth #1, Ms. Marvel #7, Patsy Walker a.k.a. Hellcat #6 and Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #8.
Review: Captain America: Civil War
It doesn’t get much better than this. And I say that fully believing that Marvel can go even bigger, better and more exciting. If after more than ten movies deep into their film slate, Marvel can still produce something as amazing as Captain America: Civil War, then the future remains as bright as ever. This is the epic, spectacular, big bombast superhero movie that Marvel has been building towards all these years.
Movie Rating: 9/10 – Great.
Captain America: Civil War is a glorious mix of spectacle and drama, combining some of the most touching and important character work in the entire franchise with quite possibly the greatest bout of superhero action to ever grace the silver screen. The centerpiece ‘war’ between heroes at the abandoned airport is worth the price of admission alone. It’s worth of price of admission to every Marvel movie we’ve seen so far, building on almost each and every film to instill real emotional heft to these characters and their punches.
When Captain American, Iron Man and their allies face off in Civil War, there is real history behind it. We’ve seen the previous movies. We’ve seen the friendships and rivalries grow and build and strain. We’ve seen Steve Rogers and Tony Stark get testy in The Avengers. We’ve watched Black Widow’s character arc from the sidelines of other movies. We’ve seen Ant-Man consider calling the Avengers for help. This has been a journey.
Civil War is a movie for Marvel fans, for the people who have seen all their movies and probably held mini-marathons to gear up for this new one. It’s not ashamed of that focus, and it shouldn’t be. Marvel is producing a masterpiece on a scale never before imagined, and they’re pulling it off with such skill and excitement that I almost feel bad for other movies.
Like, do any of the previous Spider-Man movies even matter anymore? Batman v. Superman surely doesn’t.
Join me after the jump for the full review. There will be SPOILERS for Captain America: Civil War.
By the Way, Steve Rogers is Coming Back as Captain America
Announced a few days ago, it looks like Steve Rogers will once again be Captain America in the comics. He’s getting a new costume to boot, designed by artist Daniel Acuna. I think he looks pretty great.
Go America!
Obviously, Steve is getting back in the saddle because he has a new movie coming out in the Spring. That’s fine by me. He’s done a lot as an old man, and I’m sure his new series will be a lot of fun. The comic will be written by Nick Spencer, who is doing great on Astonishing Ant-Man, with art by Jesus Saiz.
Meanwhile, Sam Wilson will also remain as a Captain America, and will get to keep the iconic shield. Marvel is gonna try dueling Captains for awhile, possibly to reflect the near 50/50 split between liberals and conservatives in our country. Or maybe Marvel just wants a bunch of Captain Americas.
Should be fun either way! And like I said, I’m digging the new costume. What do you henchies think?
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6 Reasons Why I Think ‘Civil War’ is Perfect for the Marvel Movieverse
I liked Mark Millar’s Civil War. It wasn’t perfect, there were parts I didn’t like, and it left a bad taste in a lot of fandoms’ mouths, but overall, and especially in hindsight, I liked Civil War. I’m not ashamed to admit it, nor am I embarrassed to have read it. Civil War was a pretty insane comic book endeavor, but it’s also probably the best Marvel Big Event of the past decade.
So when Marvel Studios announced that Captain America 3 was going to be Captain America: Civil War, I was absolutely thrilled!
Captain America probably wasn’t too thrilled
I hope I’m not the only one. But reading around the web, I see a lot of people freaking out over the choice of Civil War. I understand that a lot of comic book fans apparently hated the story. By all means, everybody’s entitled to their opinions. But hating a comic book that came out nearly a decade ago and worrying that Marvel Studios is making a mistake are two very different things. I think Civil War is the perfect storyline going forward, and if you’ll join me after the jump, I’ll tell you why.
Review: Captain America: The Winter Soldier
You can’t see it right now, what with the computers in the way, but I am saluting the flag. I feel an overwhelming swell of patriotism growing inside me, having taken in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. This is a damn fine country and it produces some damn fine movies about damn fine superheroes. How many does this make for Marvel? How many amazing action movies have they produced so far? The Avengers was one of the biggest movies of all time, and all three superhero follow-ups have been dynamite, with Captain America 2 probably the best of the bunch. This movie has everything. This movie is everything.
It makes me proud to be an American.
Movie Rating: 9/10 – Great.
Not that American patriotism is the driving factor of The Winter Soldier, I just needed a good opening. This movie is actually about SHIELD and the secrets it keeps, and how Steve Rogers may be the only honest man left who can get to the bottom of the mysteries that lie at the heart of the organization. SHIELD has been the glue that binds all of the Marvel movies so far. Heck, Marvel went ahead and based a whole TV show around them. But something inside SHIELD is starting to crack, and Captain America is just the sort of hero we need to save the day. He’s not flashy like Iron Man or Thor. He’s not at war with himself like the Hulk. Steve Rogers is just a man, for the most part. He’s determined and honest, and a lot tougher than most. But he’s a man who wants to do the right thing, and has the strength to stick with it when the odds seem overwhelming.
Plus he’s brought along a bunch of neat friends. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is almost as much of an ensemble film as The Avengers, and it works just as good.
In terms of sheer spectacle and excitement, The Avengers is still the best. But The Winter Soldier is of the same caliber and quality. The action and danger are very real, with ties to both The Avengers and Captain America’s first film. The characters are true to themselves, and grow beyond what we’ve seen before. And, as always, that signature Marvel wit just saturates the film. The dialogue is delightful, the banter is beautiful, and the film knows exactly when to sprinkle in the humor.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is everything we’ve come to expect from the Marvel Movie Machine. Once again, Marvel raises the bar for action movies and superhero movies everywhere.
Join me after the jump for the full review. I’m going to try to keep SPOILERS to a minimum.
Henchman-4-Hire 