Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt #1

June 18, 2011

Title: Youth in Revolt Part One

Writer: Sean McKeever
Art: Mike Norton
Colorist: Veronica Gandini
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Cover: Giuseppe Camuncoli & Paul Mounts
Editor: Lauren Sankovitch          
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The Gravity creative team of Sean McKeever and Mike Norton reunite for this Fear Itself spin-off. With the Raft split open and Hammers falling to Earth, the Avengers are being stretched to the limits. So Steve Rogers recruits Prodigy of the Slingers to lead a team of former Initiative members to help keep the peace.

There’s a good line-up in this book – Red Nine and Stunt-Master aren’t all that well known, but having Gravity and Firestar back in action is always good, and mixing up Thor Girl, Ultragirl, Komodo and Cloud 9 with Hardball creates some definite tension. Although Prodigy is our viewpoint character for most of the issue, it’s Thor Girl who really gets the best stuff, falling headfirst into one of the worst situations a hero – especially a young hero – could possibly get into during the thick of all this.

The story’s solid, but Mike Norton’s artwork is just great. I really love seeing him on these characters, particularly returning to Gravity. As he’s proven on multiple projects over the years, he has a knack for these young characters that few other artists can match.

I liked this book. It’s a nice side-angle to the whole Fear Itself storyline that shows off some characters we haven’t seen in a while, and a few others who recently lost their spotlight. I want to see more of them, and this is a good start.

Rating: 8/10

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (2001 Series) #34

September 25, 2004

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Bad Moon Rising Part One

With Hawk out of the fight, who will lead G.I. Joe?

Writer: Brandon Jerwa
Pencils: Tim Seeley
Backgrounds: Jason Millet
Inks: Cory Hamscher
Colors: Brett R. Smith
Letters: Dreamer Design
Editor: Mark Powers
Cover Art: Tim Seeley
Publisher: Devil’s Due

General Hawk, leader of the G.I. Joe team, is paralyzed. He has retreated into himself, into a state of depression, and someone else needs to step up and take the reigns. Although the replacement isn’t who any of us would have expected, it’s an elegant solution and one that I expect to make for some interesting stories.

This issue picks up on several threads from previous storylines. With Cobra Commander captured by the Joes, Destro makes a move to claim leadership of Cobra – with the help of a new friend. A Joe team heads out to Colorado to investigate a Cobra front that they’ve had under surveillance for some time (since issue #14, actually), and the new Joe leader has to face down the Jugglers, the shadowy group responsible for the Joe team, yet for some reason, openly hostile towards it.

This issue, by design, is somewhat all over the place. It advances several storylines without devoting much time to any single one, so as a result it’s not quite as tight as the series can be during a more focused story arc. Still, each story is advanced of its own right, there’s no filler in this issue. Nothing superfluous.

Tim Seeley always does a fine job on the artwork. He doesn’t have quite as much action as usual, but he manages to work in a couple of exciting scenes. His skills aren’t limited there, though, he handles the “talking heads” aspect of most of the issue with equal skill. He also provides us with a great cover that deftly summarizes the mood of the entire issue.

G.I. Joe, the core title, is still one of the best bets every month for fans of the old series. Even though the property, in this incarnation, is over 20 years old, there’s still a lot of room to grow.

Rating: 8/10

The Flash (1987 Series) #210

May 22, 2004

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Reconnected

The Flash hangs out with his oldest friend, while some of his oldest enemies put schemes into motion.

Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils: Howard Porter
Inks: Livesay
Colors: James Sinclair
Letters: Pat Brosseau
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover Art: Michael Turner
Publisher: DC Comics

The Flash continues his whirlwind “Sorry I got your memory erased, here’s my real identity” tour, this month paying a visit with the Teen Titans and Nightwing. No matter what identities the two heroes are wearing, the Wally West/Dick Grayson friendship is one of the classic comic book pairings. Johns makes a comparison in this issue that I’d never thought of, but that sums it up perfectly – their relationship is like that best friend you never see anymore, the one you grew up with, the one you try to keep in touch with, but whose path doesn’t cross yours as much as you like. That’s really what these two have evolved into, but when they do get together, they’re a fantastic team.

Between a flashback scene of the two as youngsters sneaking into the Batcave and a modern-day scene of them sneaking into the Flash Museum you see what these two mean to each other and what they’ve meant from the beginning. If that sort of characterization doesn’t do it for you, their conversations also add a few tidbits that seem to indicate where Johns will go with the upcoming Green Lantern relaunch – not as blatant as the seeds he’s planting in JSA, but the clues are definitely there.

As Wally and Dick get a little male bonding time, the bad guys are all on the move. Ashley Zolomon has a heart-to-heart with her ex-husband, Zoom, several former enemies who have signed on with the FBI prepare to take out a current rogue, a few baddies hook up with an antagonist from Gotham City and a recent sparring partner of Nightwing drops by for a surprise visit. There are a lot of villains in this issue, but rather than feeling crowded, Johns manages to balance them against each other, showing how different each of them is but still making them all seem threatening.

Howard Porter still shines on the art for this book. He’s got a great handle on all of the heroes, and light inking by Livesay on the flashback sequence, as well as the scene with the Titans, help to set off those segments, visually indicating that this is a different part of our hero’s life. The coloring could be stronger – in bright scenes Sinclair’s colors look somewhat faded, whereas in darker scenes he foes not quite monochromatic. Both techniques can and have worked well in the past, but don’t quite cut the mustard in this issue.

This continues to be one of the best-written superhero comics on the stands, and it ends with a great cliffhanger that promises plenty of action next issue. There’s no doubt, this is a book you should be picking up every month.

Rating: 8/10