Fantastic Four (1961 Series) #600

December 3, 2011

Title: Forever

Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Art: Steve Epting, Rick Magyar, Carmine DiGiandomenico, Ming Doyle, Leinil Francis Yu, Gerry Alanguilan, Farel Dalrymple
Colorist: Paul Mounts, Andy Troy, Jordie Bellaire, Javier Tartaglia, Jose Villarrubia
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Cover Artist: Gabrielle Dell’Otto
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Publisher: Marvel Comics

So after being FF for a year, this title is flipping back to Fantastic Four. And FF is continuing as a separate series. And stuff happens.

Good stuff, fortunately. Over in FF, a group of alternate-reality Reed Richards have been preparing a war that will hit the entire planet, the Future Foundation has rounded up the Avengers, X-Men and other guest stars to help in the fight, Annihilus is about to break into our universe, and the Inhumans and Kree are up to some assorted monkey business in space. The first chapter of this 100-page mammoth is about the battle for New York, followed by a chapter that’s too spoiler-tastic to get into in this review (even though most of you no doubt know what the spoiler is by now). From there, we see Black Bolt and Medusa pondering their place in the war, Galactus pondering his place in the universe, and Franklin and Leech pondering something else entirely.

If there’s anything about this issue that I find slightly disappointing, it’s that it isn’t actually the end of the story. After this much buildup, a 100-page giant anniversary issue seems like it would be the place for the story – or at least this stage of it – to conclude. Instead, it resolves one cliffhanger and takes us up to another one. It’s very well done, mind you – the opening fight sequence is wonderful, and the long second chapter is great for filling in the blanks of what’s been going on behind the scenes for these characters all year. But when I finished the book, I was most definitely left feeling a tad frustrated, knowing I’ll have to wait another month to find out what happens next.

Still, if you actually want to know what’s going to happen next, you can’t argue that the comic book hasn’t done its job. More excellent work by Jonathan Hickman and a big stable of artists.

Rating: 9/10

Black Panther (2005 Series) #30

August 26, 2007

Quick Rating: Fair
Title: Absolutely No Way To Win Part 3
Rating: Parental Advisory

Zombie Skrulls, Galactus Zombies… the Fantastic Four is in a tight spot.

Writer: Reginald Hudlin
Pencils: Francis Portela
Inks: Francis Portela
Colors: Val Staples
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Axel Alonso
Cover Art: Arthur Suydam
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Still in the Marvel Zombies universe, the new Fantastic Four find themselves being chased down by a zombie Skrull version of the original FF, which isn’t nearly as much fun as it sounds. As they do this, the Marvel Zombies continue their plan to turn the Skrull homeworld into a buffet, and one of them suggests they start using their new powers to the fullest.

While I’m not one of the ones crying that the Marvel Zombies are getting overexposed, I do think that perhaps they weren’t put to the best use this issue. By their very nature, the Zombies are a very dark, tongue-in-cheek concept, but some of their dialogue this issue (particularly Spider-Man and the Hulk) goes past simply tongue-in-cheek to simply absurd. The plot works well, the action works well, but the dialogue doesn’t work.

What does work is Portela’s art – his style almost perfectly mimics Sean Phillips’ designs for the Zombies from the original series, and the still-living heroes don’t clash at all with that vision.

Overall, this storyline has been surprisingly good. It just gets a bit too silly here at the conclusion.

Rating: 6/10

Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus #2

April 1, 2007

Quick Rating: Fair
Title: Afterburn & Brother’s Keeper
Rating: A

Interludes with Firelord and the Silver Surfer.

Writer: Keith Giffen
Art: Scott Kolins & Andrea DiVito
Colors: June Chung & Paul Mounts
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Andy Schmidt
Cover Art: Gabrielle Dell’Otto
Publisher: Marvel Comics

I passed up on most of Annihilation because of how disappointing the prologue issue was. This turned out to be a mistake, as it was definitely the better of Marvel’s recent events. It’s a shame, then, that the epilogue, like the prologue, was somewhat underwhelming.

This miniseries, in essence, shows the current whereabouts of Galactus’ heralds – past and present – after the Annihilation war. Issue one (which was actually very good) featured Terrax and Stardust, while this issue we check in with Firelord and the Silver Surfer. Firelord is hunting down the former Centurions of Annihilus’s elite strike force, tracking them to the planets they were given as rewards for their loyalty and dispensing justice. It’s okay, I guess, but a little on-the-nose, and I really dislike Firelord’s redesign. The intent seems to be to make him look more “cosmic,” but it really just makes him look like a Human Torch that someone is attempting to make “kewl.”

“Brother’s Keeper,” the Silver Surfer story, is a little better, if for no other reason than because Andrea DiVito is doing the art. The Surfer is sent to do battle with some of the greater cosmic forces in an attempt to prove his renewed loyalty to Galactus, and the only way to defeat them may well result in his own destruction. The way the battle concludes is my real problem with this issue. Giffen seems to have taken the character’s name way too literally, resulting in an ending that’s… well, there’s no other way to say it: cheesy.

This miniseries is really just an interlude before the Annihilation sequel hits, but the second issue is really kind of disappointing.

Rating: 6/10

Stan Lee Meets Silver Surfer #1

December 3, 2006

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Stan Lee Meets Silver Surfer and other stories
Rating: T+

Galactus has a bone to pick with Stan the Man.

Writers: Stan Lee, Paul Jenkins & Jacob Chabot
Pencils: Mike Wieringo, Mark Buckingham, Jacob Shabot, John Buscema
Inks: Sean Parsons, Dan Adkins
Colors: Chris Sotomayor, Pete Pantazis
Letters: Dave Lanphear, Sam Rosen
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Cover Art: Mike Wieringo
Publisher: Marvel Comics

For the most part, I’ve pretty much enjoyed these Stan Lee Meets… specials. The only problem is when they start to get a little self-indulgent, which this one does.

In the main story, written by Stan Lee, Galactus kidnaps the comic book legend to pick a bone with him. Galactus sends Stan on a trip with the Silver Surfer, forcing him to confront what he has afflicted the devourer of worlds with – an overly-verbose herald. It works very well until the very end, where Stan starts to get preachy about – of all things – preaching.

“The Magician,” by Paul Jenkins, is another plainly autobiographical piece. A young boy in England meets the legendary Stan Lee, and Stan starts to critique the child’s comic book, and explain the wonders of the imagination. Like the first story, it works right up until the end, where Jenkins gets self-indulgent about one of his own creations. The artwork by Mark Buckingham is absolutely beautiful, though, and he does a great job of aping the style of the artists that co-created Marvel’s top stars with Stan.

Jacob Chabot supplies us with a very funny two-page story about Stan neglecting to invite the villains to his party, and the book finishes up with a reprint of Silver Surfer (Vol. 1) #14, in which the Surfer battles Spider-Man. Aside from the fact that it’s two Stan creations battling each other and that Stan Lee wrote it, I’m not really sure why this particular issue was chosen. There’s nothing wrong with it, it’s just an odd choice.

Perhaps its odd to complain about self-indulgent stories in a comic called Stan Lee Meets Silver Surfer, but it’s the truth. It’s only those brief moments that keep this from being a much better comic book.

Rating: 7/10

Black Panther (2005 Series) #29

July 24, 2007

Quick Rating: Good
Title: From Bad to Worse Part 2
Rating: Parental Advisory

The Marvel Zombies overwhelm the Skrull Empire – can the Fantastic Four save the day?

Writer: Reginald Hudlin
Pencils: Francis Portela
Inks: Francis Portela
Colors: Val Staples
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Axel Alonso
Cover Art: Arthur Suydam
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Some fans are, understandably, starting to go into Zombie overload – seems like the Marvel Zombies are everywhere these days. But if you aren’t overwhelmed, this follow-up to the first Marvel Zombies miniseries is actually chugging along quite well.

The Black Panther and the rest of the new Fantastic Four have been tossed into another universe, one where many of their friends have been turned into flesh-eating zombies, stolen the power of Galactus and are now gobbling up the Skrull Empire. As they join forces with the Skrulls, it seems escape may be their only option… but in doing so, they may be opening the door to a much greater danger.

Francis Portela’s art does a good job of mimicking Sean Philips’s style from the original miniseries, and he’s got a good grasp on the FF as well. His Ben Grimm is particularly good. Some people, I know, aren’t happy about this storyline – which essentially creates a bridge in the multiverse from the Ultimate Universe to the 616 Marvel Universe. Doesn’t bother me, though, so long as those two universes themselves don’t collide any time soon. I’ve been enjoying this title as what it’s become – the secondary Fantastic Four book – because this is the sort of weirdness the FF was made for, but may be a little too weird to address in their comic proper.

Rating: 7/10

Mini-Marvels: Secret Invasion TPB

February 13, 2009

Quick Rating: Great
Title: Conspicuous Invasion and Other Stories
Rating: All Ages

The Skrull invasion of Earth – Mini-Marvels style!

Writers: Chris Giarrusso, Marc Sumerak, Sean McKeever, Paul Tobin & Audrey Loeb
Pencils: Chris Giarrusso
Inks: Chris Giarrusso
Colors: Chris Giarrusso
Letters: Chris Giarrusso
Editors: Nathan Cosby & Warren Simons
Cover Art: Chris Giarrusso
Publisher: Marvel Comics

There are few things in comics right now that are more entertaining than Chris Giarusso’s Mini-Marvels. What began as a short newspaper-style strip that ran on the Bullpen page has become an eagerly-anticipated back-up feature that can show up in any Marvel comic at any time, lampooning current events or telling brand-new stories, and always stealing the show.

This second digest collection of Mini-Marvels adventures begins with Giarrusso’s parody of Secret Invasion. The Skrull invasion of Earth goes somewhat differently in this universe, as the Skrulls’ initial attempt to discredit the Fantastic Four doesn’t work as planned. Can even the amazing Super-Skrull turn the tide? And is he really more invisible than the Invisible Girl?

Mark Sumerak handled the writing on the Civil Wards storyline. Fired from the Daily Bugle after Iron Man got him to reveal his identity to the world, Spidey takes a job babysitting the Power Pack kids. The job turns dangerous, however, when he tries to find them a place to play, only to get caught up in a struggle between Iron Man and Captain America over whether kids should have to register to use the playground. The story is a great little parody, and the way Spidey gets his identity back under wraps in this issue is about a thousand and twelve times more logical – and more entertaining – than the way it happened in the real Marvel Universe.

We get a series of shorts by other writers next – a wonderful Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends story by Sean McKeever, a few Hulk/Power Pack gags by Paul Tobin, and the really funny “Green Hulk/Red Hulk/Blue Hulk” pages by Audrey Loeb. All of these have their moments, and fit just fine in Giarusso’s universe.

The next – and most recent – story in the book is “Welcome Back Thor,” a reprint from this week’s Thor #600. Giarusso gives his take on the resurrection of Thor, from the beginning of J. Michael Stracszynski’s run right up to the most recent developments, and he’s funny as heck as he does it. “World War Hulk : The Final Showdown” wraps up that storyline as well. This is the one slightly incongruous bit in the book – the rest of the World War Hulk parody appeared in the first digest, Rock, Paper Scissors. I’m not quite sure why they felt the need to break it up.

The last story in the book is “Hawkeye and the Beanstalk,” a great series of gags that begins with Hawkeye trying to borrow the weapons of his teammates and concludes with him trying to save Earth from the appetite of Galactus! Giarusso’s version of Hawkeye, is enormously entertaining, second only to his Spidey, so it’s great to see him get a starring role.

The digest wraps up with a series of one-page gags and older strips from the original run of this series. There’s a ton of great stuff here, all funny, all sweet, and all a lot of fun. This is that rare comic that kids will read and enjoy, and that adults will read and laugh for a whole different set of reasons. It’s an awesome, awesome series, and I hope Giarusso gets to keep doing it for a very long time.

Rating: 9/10

Marvel Zombies 2 #1

October 16, 2007

Quick Rating: Great
Rating: Parental Advisory

Forty years later, will the Marvel Zombies return to Earth?

Writer: Robert Kirkman
Art: Sean Phillips
Colors: June Chung
Letters: Rus Wooton
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Arthur Suydam
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Forty years after the Marvel Zombies ravaged Earth, stole the power of Galactus and took to the stars, they find themselves faced with a universe with almost nothing left to eat. Their entire world has been totally ravaged, and they make a fateful decision that sends them back to their homeworld. Meanwhile, however, some of the zombies – both in space and back on Earth – make a discovery that may change everything.

This issue surprised the heck out of me. Like many people, I was skeptical about following up on the admittedly fun Marvel Zombies series. I didn’t see where Kirkman could take the story without just repeating himself. By the end of the first scene, though, it was quite clear that this would be a very different story than the first, and that Kirkman does, in fact, have a direction to take this story beyond just another bloodbath full of parodies of Marvel characters.

Sean Phillips’s artwork is as great as ever, and he does a really nice job with a few cosmic scenes this issue before getting to the more “down-to-Earth” stuff. Although you’d think someone would have mentioned to some of the few remaining human characters just how silly they look in spandex at their age.

People who are planning to skip this miniseries, who don’t think there’s a new story to tell, should really think twice. This isn’t just another retread. Against all odds, Kirkman has succeeded in creating something new.

Rating: 9/10

Black Panther (2005 Series) #28

June 26, 2007

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Hell of a Mess Part 1
Rating: Parental Advisory

The new Fantastic Four faces the Marvel Zombies!

Writer: Reginald Hudlin
Pencils: Francis Portela
Inks: Francis Portela
Colors: Val Staples
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Axel Alonso
Cover Art: Arthur Suydam
Publisher: Marvel Comics

After the Black Panther’s magic golden frogs shunt the Fantastic Four into another dimension, they find themselves facing off with a swarm of Marvel Zombies sharing the power of Galactus!

That may be the single silliest sentence I’ve ever typed.

Despite that, the issue isn’t bad. For fans of the first Marvel Zombies miniseries, this story picks up right where that left off, with the Zombies descending on a Skrull planet with the intention of devouring the population. Hudlin taps into a few of the more logical questions one would have to ask with such an existence, although the dialogue for some of the Zombies (particularly Luke Cage) goes beyond being charmingly campy to being outright ridiculous.

On the other hand, he’s doing a fairly good job dealing with the new team, and taps into several facets of Fantastic Four history in the process. In fact, it would be quite easy to forget that this is ostensibly the Black Panther’s solo title – this reads much more like an issue of Fantastic Four, and fans of the Panther by his lonesome may be upset by that.

Francis Portela’s artwork is good – his style with the Zombies is nicely evocative of Sean Phillips’s work in the miniseries, and meshes just fine with his work on the FF and the Skrulls.

This book may be a disappointment for Panther fans, but if you’re reading it because you like the Fantastic Four or the Marvel Zombies, you should be satisfied.

Rating: 7/10

Fantastic Four (1961 Series) #546

May 22, 2007

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Reconstruction Chapter Three: Aw, That’s Just Crude (an Initiative tie-in)
Rating: A

The Fantastic Four and Gravity face the Heralds of Galactus!

Writer: Dwayne McDuffie
Pencils: Paul Pelletier
Inks: Rick Magyar & Scott Hanna
Colors: Paul Mounts
Letters: Rus Wooton
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Cover Art: Michael Turner
Publisher: Marvel Comics

In deep space, the Fantastic Four stands poised to save the cosmic being called Epoch from the hunger of Galactus. But the FF is a man down – the Black Panther has bolted! Not to fear, though, they have a fourth – the newly-resurrected Protector of the Universe… Gravity!

This fourth issue of Dwayne McDuffie’s run is actually the first one I feel is a little bit of a letdown. I’ve very much enjoyed everything he’s done so far, and enjoyed most of this issue as well. He uses the Black Panther’s connections very logically, very well (c’mon, you guys didn’t actually think he was just running away last issue, did you?), and the banter between Ben and Johnny is spot-on. I also really like what he’s doing with Reed and Sue, who – even while on an extended vacation to rebuild their marriage—can’t seem to get away from danger. Much of what we’re reading here seems to be a distant tie-in to Annihilation, which is just fine with me. I’ve enjoyed most of Annihilation so far, and I think crossing it over into books like this one that already have clear links with Marvel’s cosmic corners is a smart move.

The only thing that kind of disappoints me is the ending. I thought McDuffie was setting up a big status quo shift (not for this title, but for the Marvel Universe in general), but at the end, he seemed to hit a reset button. Again, I’m forced to wonder if this wasn’t something that was done with Annihilation in mind, but taken on its own, I wish he had gone in another direction.

Paul Pelletier is one of my favorite sci-fi superhero artists, and he proves why this issue. He does fantastic outer space scenes and his weird tech is second to none. There’s an apparatus used by one of the characters in this book that looks like it leapt right off Jack Kirby’s sketchboard.

I’m still enjoying this book and I think McDuffie was the right choice to take over. I’m going to assume the things that bummed me here were just a bump in the road.

Rating: 7/10

Annihilation #5

December 26, 2006

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Ascension
Rating: T+

With Thanos dead, can anyone free Galactus?

Writer: Keith Giffen
Art: Andrea DiVito
Colors: Laura Villari
Letters:Cory Petit
Editor: Andy Schmidt
Cover Art: Gabrielle Dell’otto
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Drax has killed Thanos, supposedly the one being with the power to free Galactus – and only Galactus has the power to stop Annihilus on his path of destruction through the universe. As Drax and Moondragon seek a new way to free the devourer of worlds, Nova’s team plans a last stand and Ronan and the Super-Skrull go to war with the Kree Empire.

Keith Giffen really has done a masterful job with this storyline, weaving the sort of war story combined with action combined with an air of last-stand desperation that really makes for an exciting cosmic event. What’s more, in the process he’s refined characters like Ronan the Accuser, who in the past have been little more than plot devices to make things a little more difficult on the Avengers, and turned them into people to root for. The same goes for the likes of the Super-Skrull and Blastaar. Meanwhile, we see a real evolution of Nova – he’s become much more than the teen superhero he used to be – now he’s a genuine general, and it’s a role that suits him in this book.

Mixed in with a strong story is some truly wonderful artwork. Andrea DiVito has long been one of the best traditional artists in Marvel’s stable, but his style is particularly well suited for this sort of space opera. There’s a lot of superhero style in here, but he mixes it with the sort of aliens and sci-fi energy effects (no doubt aided by Laura Villari’s fantastic colors) to give the book just the right look.

Ronan’s final scene is perhaps what puts this book over the top for me. It’s one of those final moments that really tugs at you, which is something that a character like Ronan never would have been able to pull off prior to this story. That’s a pretty good summation, in fact, as to what makes this issue good.

Rating: 8/10

(2010 Note: I later went back and got the hardcover Annihilation collections. They were well worth the money.)