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October is Going to Be A Big Month for Me and Marvel Comics
The solicitations for the first month of Marvel NOW have hit the web – and things look pretty damn cool! Marvel plans on launching a new #1 issue every week, and the first one will be Uncanny Avengers #1, which I already told you guys about. So there aren’t any more fancy new comics to tell you about. But there are still dozens of other post-Avengers vs. X-Men comics coming out in October, and apparently Marvel has geared a lot of them towards some of my favorite characters. Weird! But awesome!
You can read all of the solicitations here, but I’m going to be going through a few of my favorite titles.
X-Factor #245
X-Factor #245: Starring Multiple Man, my all-time favorite comic book character, it seems that the book is getting a pretty big shake-up. We already know that Havok is leaving the team to join the Uncanny Avengers, but who else?
“BREAKING POINTS” Conclusion!
• In the last of five issues that will change the face of X-FACTOR forever, two characters find their lives irrevocably altered.
• When the smoke clears, the team’s roster will be nearly halved…
Finally! I’ve been complaining about the size of X-Factor’s cast for a long time now. It’s about time writer Peter David trimmed the fat and made the team more manageable. It’ll make for a much better series. I hope he keeps Multiple Man, Strong Guy and Wolfsbane for sure. The rest can come or go as he sees fit. Based on an interview I read about Marvel NOW, one of the Marvel head honchos said that X-Factor is going to be largely unaffected by the relaunch. On the one hand, that’s too bad. But on the other hand, I’m glad it will be sticking around in a version that’s similar to what I’ve been enjoying for years. X-Factor doesn’t sell very well, but it has a very loyal fanbase, myself included. So I’m glad it’s not going to have its feathers ruffled too much by this relaunch.
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Secret Avengers #33
Secret Avengers #33: I’ve written a bit before about Eric O’Grady, the Irredeemable Ant-Man! He’s been a member of the Secret Avengers for awhile now, but most recently, he was ‘killed’ and somehow brought back to life by the bad guys. Well in October, it looks like he’s going to become a full-on villain!
THE RISE OF THE DESCENDANTS part 1
• THE RISE OF THE DESCENDANTS BEGINS HERE! The event that will devastate the lives of the Secret Avengers!
• Descendants siege on Avengers Lighthouse station!
• Father launches his invasion. Can the Marvel Universe survive the plague of contagious robotic evolution?
• A terrible new Avenger’s foe is born: Beware the bite of The Black Ant!
I can’t say as how I really like this change, because I was a big fan of O’Grady’s perverted, jerkass version of a superhero. He had a lot of potential as a member of the Avengers. But I suppose he could make an interesting villain, maybe. Though aren’t red ants far more evil and dangerous than black ants? But then the superhero Ant-Mans usually dress in red, so I guess he needed to dress differently. We’ll see where this goes.
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Hobgoblin Fight!
Amazing Spider-Man #695 & 696: Writer Dan Slott is finally getting around to doing something awesome with Phil Urich, the new Hobgoblin! Though it looks like Phil might be in the crosshairs, because the solicitation sounds like a former Hobgoblin is going to be coming back and gunning for Phil. That makes sense, considering Phil had to kill the previous Hobgoblin to take over. And nobody stays dead in comics.
ISSUE #695 – DANGER ZONE Part 1
• Dark times are coming for Peter Parker and change is closer than you even fear.
• As we aim headlong to ASM #700, The Kingpin ‘s latest plan turns one of Spider-Man’s greatest strengths against him.
• Hobgoblin is back…but his days may be numbered as the past sharpens its blades.
32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99
ISSUE #696 – DANGER ZONE Part 2
• GOBLINS GO TO WAR…and Peter Parker is caught dead-center!
So I’m worried that Phil would make for an easy death. He’s not as established as the previous Hobgoblin, and hasn’t exactly proven himself to be all that great. Since he became Hobgoblin, Phil became a total jobber, thrown into books like Venom and Spider-Girl just to be beaten, to make the heroes look good. Not to mention the fact that he hasn’t beaten Spider-Man. Though of course I hope Phil’s days aren’t numbered. Maybe he’ll become a good guy again! That would make my life.
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But the October solicitations are not all good news! The solicitation for Uncanny Avengers #1 mentions “the funeral of one of Marvel’s greatest heroes!” So it looks like Cyclops is going to bite the big one after all at the end of Avengers vs. X-Men. And it appears that X-Men: Legacy is getting cancelled only a handful of issues after writer Christos Gage made the Mimic an X-Man again. Mimic barely got to do anything! So I guess from now on I just have to hope that he shows up somewhere else…I must hold on to hope!
And finally…where’s the Scarlet Spider comic?
Review: X-Factor #239
Forgive me for saying this, oh great comic book gods, but I think X-Factor is starting to show its age. If we take into account the renumbering, this current volume of X-Factor has published roughly 90 issues since 2005, and that’s not including the excellent MadroX miniseries that serves as an introduction. And all 90 issues have been written by the great Peter David. But after 90 issues starring essentially the same team members doing essentially the same thing, I’m starting to think this series is running a bit thin. Why do I say this? Because this one-off issue about Havok and Banshee teaming up to fight a real Banshee doesn’t really offer a whole heck of a lot.
X-Factor #239
Sure there is action and peril, but where is the character depth? Where is the exploration of the relationship between Havok and Banshee? Or more appropriately, where is the heart and soul of the comic?
Comic rating: 3/5: Alright.
Peter David is a master of character work. The early issues of this volume of X-Factor are a glorious examination of the Multiple Man character and the new headspace that David created for him. Not to mention all the twists, turns and relationships of the rest of the cast. Peter David is hailed as a genius for the character work he did with Quicksilver back in the now legendary X-Factor #87 from the 1993. And when Peter David is at the top of his game with this cast, he’s turned out some fantastic single issues. I was in stitches that time Multiple Man took the team to Las Vegas, because it was just such a fun and funny issue.
But after the last few issues, and especially this one, I’m just not feeling it anymore. They’re goods reads, I suppose. I enjoyed myself. But this issue is as bland as bland can get – except for a small scene between Strong Guy and Monet that captures that Peter David genius I’ve been talking about. That scene is stellar. But everything with Havok and Banshee is just boring. Maybe it’s the characters. It’s not like Havok and Banshee have any kind of history to draw on together. But as the writer, it’s Peter David’s job to provide an interesting relationship between these two characters, to make me care about them teaming up like this. And unfortunately, in that regard, he fails.
Full synopsis and more review after the jump!
Review: X-Factor #238
Last issue was a wonderful character-based story where a several members of X-Factor let their hair down, had a good time and settled the darkest demons of their soul. It was great. This issue is very similar, being an entirely character-based story which sees the members of X-Factor acting and interacting like real people instead of superheroes. While definitely a good read, this issue lacks the spark of energy and excitement that the last issue had.
X-Factory #238
Still, any issue where Multiple Man and Strong Guy banter about getting special jackets for their ‘Deathbeaters’ club is a good issue to me!
Comic rating: 4/5: Good!
This is more of a transition issue than anything else, moving characters around to continue with the various stories being told. I wouldn’t say the issue suffers from being a transition issue, it mostly just suffers from mediocre writing and less-than-stellar art. Basically, all of the various members of X-Factor bump into each other and have little chats about what they’re up to and what stories they’re a part of, not all of which are connected. They make jokes, there is some humor, but mostly it’s just light, standard chatter. This issue is another example of why the cast of this book is just too big. With so many people making appearances, they only get a few panels and a few lines to make an impression. It doesn’t work for all of them.
Unfortunately, the art also takes a step back this week with new artist Paul Davidson. The characters are OK, and you can tell them apart thanks to their costumes, but it just looks a little amateurish. The art is just not very good.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more!
Review: X-Factor #237
This! This is what I’ve been talking about! X-Factor #237 is writer Peter David at his finest, writing his characters as people first and superheroes second. Forget the interdimensional super-villains, the Mojoverse and whatever other crazy plots PAD has in store for X-Factor. This is what I want from this comic. The issue starts with a few of his female characters going on a character-building road trip together, and ends with one of them having a huge personal break through. This issue is comic gold.
X-Factor #237
X-Factor doesn’t need costumes, super-villains or an Avengers vs. X-Men tie-in to make for an amazing comic book.
Comic rating: 5/5: Great!
I wish more of PAD’s issues were like this one. But instead he seems to sprinkle these character-based issues throughout his run. They have always been a highlight of X-Factor. And I suppose they’re made all the better because of how rare they are. Plus, having issues like this makes the action issues better, because we come to care more about the characters. Polaris has been a ghost in this series since she joined, so she desperately needed a story like this.
Unfortunately, this issue is far from the best character-based story that PAD has written for X-Factor. After nearly 100 issues writing this volume, his grip on the characters and their personalities is slipping. I chalk this up to having just too many characters and plots to contend with. Back at the beginning he had everything under control. But that’s not to say this issue isn’t great. The dialogue and humor are fun, the characters are written very well and the art is absolutely gorgeous.
And thank the heavens, Polaris has finally changed out of that stupid green costume Thank you for that, PAD!
Review: X-Factor #236
I am not a fan of reality television, but the rest of the world is clearly in love. Ordinary people are turned into TV stars in shows like Ice Road Truckers, Pawn Stars or Hoarders. Programs focus on the day-to-day of real jobs or real lives more so than scripted television. Viewers are enthralled by every minute detail of the Kardashian family or the Real Housewives of Wherever for no other reason than the cult of celebrity. There is a show where Steve Urkel and other Z-list “celebrities” dance for our amusement, and a show glamorizing unwed, 16-year-old mothers – and both shows are incredibly popular. Jersey Shore!
X-Factor #236
We are living in the Mojoverse and we don’t even realize it.
Comic rating: 3/5: Alright.
Writer Peter David throws that bomb at our feet in this issue, and I for on am absolutely blown away. Whereas once upon a time the villainous Mojo’s TV-obsessed world was a parody of sleazy studio executives and bad taste, it has now become the stark, cold reality of our own television programming. We may not have real live gladiatorial combat yet, but how long until it’s here? How long until people are maliciously hurting one another for our amusement on reality TV?
The idea of Mojo being behind the nation’s love of the Kardashians would make a great story. How would our heroes fight against pop culture’s seemingly endless obsession with trashy TV?
Unfortunately, this brilliant idea is wasted and buried in an issue that amounts to little more than an extended fight scene between Shatterstar and the new villain Scattershot, who himself is a parody of trashy comic books. The fight’s OK, if you’re into extended fight scenes. But this issue has little else going for it, with barely any appearance of anyone else from X-Factor. The fight itself is lacking any deep character conflict, with Scattershot being one-dimensional and Shatterstar just showing off his fighting skills. There are a few hints towards Peter David’s larger plans for the series, but those hints continue to be so vague that I just don’t care anymore. So all in all, this is an issue that just doesn’t amount to much.
Other than that amazing Mojoverse idea!
Henchman-4-Hire 