Recent Reviews: August 17 Releases

So what’d I review over at CX Pulp in the last seven days? Here’s the list…

• Avengers Academy #18
• Batman #713
• Darkwing Duck #15
• DC Retroactive: Batman-The 90s #1
• DC Retroactive: The Flash-The 90s #1
• DC Retroactive: Wonder Woman-The 90s #1
• Fables #108
• Fear Itself: Fearsome Four #3
• Flashpoint: Abin Sur-The Green Lantern #3
• Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies #3
• Green Lantern Corps #63
• Justice League of America #60
• Power Girl #27
• Superboy #11
• Tiny Titans #43
• The Walking Dead #88
• X-Men: Schism #3

Fear Itself: Fearsome Four #2

August 2, 2011

Title: Stranger Bedfellows

Writer: Brandon Montclare
Art: Simon Bisley, Ryan Bodenheim, Ray-Anthony Height, Don Ho
Colorist: Simon Bisley, Tony Avina
Letterer: Nate Piekos
Cover Artist: Michael William Kaluta
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publisher: Marvel Comics

She-Hulk, Nighthawk, and Frankenstein’s Monster have teamed up with Howard the Duck to stop the rampaging Man-Thing, being fed by the copious amounts of fear floating around thanks to that whole thing that’s happening over in those other comics. After being temporarily swapped with alternate reality versions of themselves, the team gets a recap of Frankenstein’s origin for some reason, then stroll off to face the enemy responsible for Man-Thing’s rampage: Psycho-Man.

And it’s just… a… mess.

The story is all over the lace, the heroes are together for the thinnest of reasons, and the chain of logic is virtually nonexistent. The frequent artistic changes don’t help. While all of the artists working on this book are perfectly competent, their styles are so different from one another that you keep feeling live you’ve spiraled into an entirely different comic book. With the love I have for many of the characters in this book, I was really looking forward to sort of an offbeat Fear Itself tie-in. Halfway through, I’ve felt nothing but disappointment.

Rating: 6/10

Recent Reviews: June 8 Releases

As you may or may not know, in addition to the tons of reviews I post here at the Back Issue Bin, I also write reviews of new comics over at CX Pulp.com. I thought I would start making it a habit to link BIB readers over to those other recent reviews on Tuesdays… y’know… when I remember. And have time. And feel like it.

Anyhoo, here are the comics released on June 8 that I’ve reviewed over at CX. These links (as well as all of my CX reviews) can be found right here on the archive page as well.

• Doctor Who: A Fairytale Life #3
• Donald Duck #367
• Echo #30
• Fear Itself: Fearsome Four #1
• Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown #1
• Green Lantern Movie Prequel: Kilowog #1
• Green Lantern Movie Prequel: Tomar-Re #1
• Love and Capes: Ever After #5
• Morning Glories #10
• Space Warped #1
• Supergirl #64

The Last Defenders #1

March 11, 2008

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Destiny Falls
Rating: T+

Nighthawk leads the new… or rather, the last Defenders!

Writers: Joe Casey & Keith Giffen
Breakdowns: Keith Giffen
Pencils: Jim Muniz
Inks: Cam Smith
Colors: Antonio Fabela
Letters: Albert Deschesne
Editor: Stephen Wacker
Cover Art: Steve McNiven
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Nighthawk has always been one of my favorite C-list Marvel characters, which perhaps is why he’s always been linked in my mind with the Defenders, a C-list team if ever there was one. Yeah, he’s not one of the founding four, but he’s often served as the heart of the team. Now, with the 50-state Initiative in gear, he convinces Tony Stark to resurrect the Defenders. Stark agrees, but with the caveat that he pick the team… and the membership definitely has room to grow.

I’m really tired of every Marvel book dripping with that subtext of “what’s Iron Man’s big scheme?”, but once you get past that, this is a fun issue. It’s got some whimsical moments without drifting into slapstick, and the inclusion of both She-Hulk and Colossus make a good deal of sense the way they’re presented here, and even the location of the team is a smart way to set things up. What’s more, there are hints in here that make it seem like Casey and Giffen are working to give the Defenders more prominent placement and a real place in the Marvel Universe, which is a good thing.

The art team does good work here too – Giffen, of course, is the king of layouts, and the rest of the crew manage to transfer the energy of his thumbnails into an energetic page.

It’s not great, not yet, but it’s good, and it’s got the potential to get even better.

Rating: 7/10

The Thing (2006 Series) #3

February 1, 2006

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Playing For Keeps (Fun ‘n Games Part Three)

Can the Thing get his pals free from Arcade?

Writer: Dan Slott
Art: Andrea DiVito
Colors: Laura Villari
Letters: Dave Lanphear
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Cover Art: Andrea DiVito
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The first arc of the new Thing series comes to a close, and I must say, it was pretty much everything I hoped for. Dan Slott has taken my favorite Marvel character and given him a title full of old-fashioned superhero slugfests, a smattering of angst, a healthy dose of lighthearted humor and a lot of fun.

Trapped on an island by Arcade, the Thing leads a group of kidnapped millionaires in an attempt to free themselves. Tony Stark (minus his Iron Man armor) is making a play for the villain’s headquarters, while the superhero called Nighthawk and the villain called Constrictor bat clean-up for ol’ Benjy. I don’t want this to become a title about guest-stars, but all of these characters (plus an appearance by Daredevil) work really well in this issue. I particularly like the interplay between Nighthawk – a reformed villain – and Constrictor – a villain who is starting to see the appeal in fighting for the other side.

Like in his acclaimed She-Hulk run, Slott doesn’t shy away from referencing past continuity in this title, like the Thing’s friendship with the Sandman before the reformed villain un-reformed and went back to villainy. But rather than making the story inaccessible, the way Slott uses the past is part of this title’s charm. It give the book more of a timeless feel while still relying on the status quo of the Marvel Universe to create his backdrop.

DiVito’s artwork is second to none here. He draws one of the best Things I’ve seen in recent memory (and he proves he can do many incarnations of the character in one sequence), and flawlessly segues between normal comic book stomping grounds like New York City to the lush tropical island where most of the issue takes place. Like the writing, both the artwork and the page layouts have a timeless quality. Were it not for the very modern coloring style of Laura Villari, this comic could have been published 20 years ago. (This is not a knock against Villari, however, far from it – she does as spectacular a job as the rest of the creative team.)

In just three issues, this has become one of my favorite Marvel titles. But I’ve come to expect that from Dan Slott. There are few people in comics today capable of giving us an old-fashioned superhero tale as well as him.

Rating: 8/10

The Thing (2005 Series) #2

December 29, 2005

Quick Rating: Great
Title: Abusement Park (Fun ‘n Games Part Two)

Trapped on Arcade’s island, the Thing and his pals fight for their lives!

Writer: Dan Slott
Art: Andrea DiVito
Colors: Laura Villari
Letters: Dave Lanphear
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Cover Art: Andrea DiVito
Publisher: Marvel Comics

I love Dan Slott. I mean seriously. Had my chromosomes been only slightly differently aligned, I would seriously consider bearing his children. And the reason is this: the man knows how to tell a good old-fashioned superhero story – and more importantly, how to have fun – better than just about anyone in comics. First, his fantastic She-Hulk run, then the hysterical GLA miniseries – and now his Thing is a breath of fresh air for my favorite Marvel hero.

Last issue, Ben Grimm and the guests of a party he was attending were abducted by Arcade and placed on his newest Murderland, a deadly island in the South China Sea. Along with the Thing are the ex-Defender (and potential Thunderbolt) Nighthawk, the reformed villain Constrictor, and an armorless Tony Stark, plus a bunch of very confused civilians. Each of the heroes and the ex-villain set out towards a promised “immunization spot,” trying to protect the others from the deathtraps along the way, but when Constrictor sets out on his own and Ben runs into robot duplicates of his buddies and teammates, it may prove to be too much.

Slott’s Thing isn’t as slapstick or tongue-in-cheek as his She-Hulk series, but he still manages to convey a sense of fun and humor that far too many comics these days lack. He manages to work in kitschy elements like an army of life-sized toy soldiers or a machine gun-toting beaver without getting so over-the-top as to be unbelievable, and even his incidental characters show a degree of independence and intelligence that a lot of comic book supporting characters lack.

Andrea DiVito is a really solid choice for this comic’s artwork. With clean lines and wonderful colors by Laura Villari, this issue has a look to match its writing – old-school style storytelling with a decidedly modern flair. We get dynamic layouts and great fight scenes, and I don’t know what else you could ask for. It looks great.

Two issues in and this is already one of my favorite Marvel comics, one that I hope finds its audience. I’ve long felt that the Thing was Stan and Jack’s greatest creation and he deserves a fine spotlight. This is a title that does that creation justice.

Rating: 9/10