Nova (2007 Series) #5

August 7, 2007

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Together (An Annihilation: Conquest tie-in)
Rating: T+

Rich is down – can a new Nova fight off the Phalanx?

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Additional Art: Brian Denham
Colors: Guru EFX
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Adi Granov
Publisher: Marvel Comics

His battle with the Phalanx has left Richard Rider near death. Now, to protect Nova Prime, the Xandarian Worldmind has chosen the stranded Kree medic named Ko-Rel to possess the power of Nova and fight off the Phalanx.

It’s getting so hard to review this book, because as much as I love it, I simply can’t ignore how much it feels like another science fiction superhero title out there. I’ve said it before, but this issue more than ever it feels like you may as well give Ko-Rel a power ring and have her recite an oath before she charges up. This isn’t necessarily a fault of the writers – the Nova Corps concept has always felt derivative of the Green Lantern Corps, but good grief and Sufferin’ Shad – this is about as blatant as you can get.

So it’s probably a testament to Abnett and Lanning that, despite feeling like I’m reading a comic from the wrong publisher, I still think this book is exciting, entertaining and his all the right buttons. Chen and Hanna’s artwork is fantastic, and the story is as fast-paced and energetic as anything else on the stands. The conclusion of this issue actually had me whistling and muttering, “man, how’re they gonna get out of this one?” under my breath.

But still.

Abnett. Lanning. Loving this book. But can you please find some sort of new twist to make this concept its own?

Rating: 8/10

Avengers Academy #14.1

June 11, 2011

Title: Peer Pressure

Writer: Christos Gage
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Colorist: Jeromy Cox
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover: Billy Tan & Leonardo Olea
Editor: Bill Rosemann       
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The Avengers Academy kids are sent out to take out a b-list villain called Ruby Thursday. When things don’t work out quite as they expected, they decide t check in with some of the students they beat out for their places in the Academy to see how the others transformed by Norman Osborn have made out.

I haven’t read many of Marvel’s “Point One” comics, but this is definitely one that actually seems to follow the plan for the project. This issue introduces us to the characters and the concepts in a way that any reader could understand, but then it goes one step further into dissecting the concept. We see what could have been for the Avengers Academy, and then we go into a really great stand-off. Christos Gage has had this book down to a science from the first issue, and it just gets better. I remember when the book launched, he made a statement that one of these Academy kids would ultimately turn into a villain. The further along we go, the less I’m sure which it could be. Every one of them has the potential, but as we get to know them and like them more and more, I don’t want to see any of them fall.

Sean Chen has been a solid, dependable artist for a very long time. He tells his story well, he gives us dynamic angles and energetic storytelling, and he’s expressive even with a character like Mettle, whose face is essentially a metal skull. It’s incredible, just how much emotion he puts into the eyes, something even the best artists can’t always pull off.

As always, a great issue.

Rating: 9/10

Nova (2007 Series) #4

July 10, 2007

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Alone (An Annihilation: Conquest crossover)
Rating: T+

As Nova heads into battle against the Phalanx, survivors of the Annihilation war make a startling discovery.

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Art: Sean Chen, Scott Hanna & Brian Denham
Colors: Guru EFX
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Adi Granov
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The latest distress call from Kree territory isn’t part of the Annihilation aftermath after all, but comes from an all-new threat. The techno-organic plague called the Phalanx has taken over the Kree Empire, and Nova is determined to rescue his allies from the plague. It may not be as easy as all that, though.

As I’ve come to expect from Abnett and Lanning, this story is put together really well. Nova’s desperation is palpable, and the threat not to himself, but to the Worldmind, is quite evident. The other Annihilation crossover from this week, Wraith, feels like a story using the Phalanx invasion as a backdrop. This issue feels much more like an actual continuation of the story that began in the prologue, and it’s all the stronger for it.

The B-plot this issue involves a few Kree survivors stranded on a dead world. The discovery here was probably inevitable, and actually works quite well, as it should help to progress Nova’s story in the next logical direction. (Although it doesn’t do much to help dispel perception of the Nova concept as being somewhat derivative of Green Lantern.)

Chen and Hanna handle most of the art this issue, with Brian Denham stepping in for a few pages. The transition is seamless – if the credits didn’t tell us which pages were Denahm’s, I never would have known the difference.

This series continues to impress the heck out of me. Abnett and Lanning are telling the best Nova stories ever.

Rating: 8/10

Annihilation Saga #1

May 6, 2007

Quick Rating: Fair
Rating: A

Catch up on the Annihilation story before the Conquest begins!

Writer: Michael Hoskin
Based on stories by: Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Javier Grillo-Marxuach, Simon Furman, Christos N. Gage & Stuart Moore
Art: Mitch Breitweiser, Scott Kolins, Ariel Olivetti, Kev Walker, Rick Magyar, Renato Arlem, Gregory Titus, Jorge Lucas, Andrea DiVito, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Mike McKone & Sean Chen
Book Desinger: Patrick McGrath
Editor: Jeff Youngquist
Cover Art: Andrea DiVito & Laura Villari
Publisher: Marvel Comics

In general, I think Marvel’s Saga specials are a really good idea – a quick primer on a series that’s about to relaunch or enter a new stage, providing new readers a chance to get up-to-speed before the new jumping-on point. In practice, this is rather weaker than most of the Saga titles.

Usually, these books contain some sort of framing sequence – Runaways was disguised as Molly’s diary, Spider-Girl as Mayday’s scrapbook and so on. The lack of a sequence actually makes the book a bit less readable, less conversational. This is a strict, by-the-numbers account of the various Annihilation-related series, beginning with the Drax miniseries that retroactively became something of a prologue, right up through the first issue of the new Nova ongoing. All the information is there, all of the story is available, it’s just not quite as much fun to read in this form as it could have been.

The artwork is all plucked from the related titles, and as such, it varies wildly. Some of it is fantastic, some of it is just so-so. The same pretty much goes for the text. If you want to read Annihilation: Conquest and haven’t read the preceding comics, this book will get you up to speed. It just won’t be quite as much fun as it could have been.

Rating: 6/10

Nova (2007 Series) #3

June 10, 2007

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Home Truths
Rating: T+

Nova faces the Thunderbolts – and becomes reacquainted with an old friend.

Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Colors: Guru eFX
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Adi Granov
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Back home on Earth for a little R-and-R, Nova had a chat with Iron Man about joining up with the Initiative. Before his time to think it over ran out, though, he’s found himself throwing down with the Thunderbolts.

Again, this book makes itself work by defying convention. Last issue people were expecting a big Iron Man fight, and there wasn’t one. This issue… well, there is a Thunderbolts fight, but the conclusion isn’t what you’d anticipate. Abnett and Lanning have undeniable talent writing cosmic, science fiction stories, but even this down-to-Earth issue really rings true and helps flesh out Rich as a character. Abnett and Lanning even take the bold step of – gasp! – not painting Iron Man as a cartoon villain for a change, and they write what I am perfectly comfortable in declaring the only good scene ever written with “Penance.” Rich’s reaction to encountering his old teammate is not only spot-on perfect, but also evocative of how fans of the New Warriors have been feeling ever since Civil War #1.

Sean Chen’s artwork is just as good as the writing. His style is simple and classic, while style plenty dynamic during the fight scenes and extremely emotional when Rich and Robbie meet.

I’ve enjoyed every page of this book so far, and I can’t wait to follow the man called Nova into Annihilation: Conquest.

Rating: 8/10

Nova (2007 Series) #2

May 6, 2007

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Alienation (An Initiative tie-in)
Rating: T+

Richard Rider returns home to find a very different world than the one he left.

Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Colors: Guru eFX
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Adi Granov
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Here’s a novelty for you, friends – an Initiative tie-in issue that actually has something to do with The Initiative. Hoping a little R&R on Earth will help him recover from the stress of the Annihilation War, Nova returns home… only to find that his friends have been killed and the world’s superheroes have been torn apart by a Civil War.

Abnett and Lanning do quite a good job tying together Marvel’s two recent events here. Nova has come home intending to warn Earth’s heroes about the Annihilation Wave, only to learn that things on Earth are just as bad. The reunion with one of his few remaining friends is great, and his interaction with his family is handled wonderfully. And although Marvel seems to have gone out of their way to turn most of their audience into Iron Man haters, the logic behind the proposal he makes to Rich this issue is perfectly sound. (That’s right, guys – those gearing up for an Iron Man/Nova fight based on the cover will be somewhat disappointed.)

The artwork by Sean Chen and Scott Hanna is really good too. I’m still not a huge fan of Nova’s new costume – the spikes and weird helmet shape make it a little too busy in my opinion – but they draw it very well, and everything else looks great too.

The original Nova series was before my time. I tried both attempts at giving him his own ongoing in the 90s, and quickly dropped both. I think I’m safe in saying, just two issues in, this is probably the best solo title Nova has ever had. In fact, at present, I’d say it’s one of the best books Marvel is publishing.

Rating: 8/10

X-O Manowar: Birth HC

May 21, 2008

Quick Rating: Great
Collects: X-O Manowar #0-6

A warrior from a different time comes into possession of a weapon beyond imagining.

Writers: Jim Shooter, Steve Englehart, Bob Layton & Jorge Gonzalez
Pencils: Barry Windsor Smith, Sal Velluto, Mike Manley, Mike Leeke, Steve Ditko, Mark Moretti & Joe Quesada
Inks: Bob Layton, John Holdredge, Tom Ryder, Kathryn Bolinger, Ted Halsted, Ralph Reese & Jimmy Palmiotti
Original Colors: Jorge Gonzalez, Paul Autio & John Cebollero
Digital Colors: Rob Ruffolo
Letters: Jade, Ken Lopez & Sorah Suhng
Editor: Dinesh Shamdasani
Cover Art: Sean Chen, Bob Layton, Anthony Castillo, Chrysoula Artemis & Rob Ruffolo
Publisher: Valiant Entertainment

Back in the 90s, Valiant Comics were the hottest thing going. The company burned bright, put out some brilliantly innovative comics, then died a painful death when Acclaim bought them out and proved conclusively that making video games in no way qualifies you to run a comic book publisher. But the Valiant fans never died, and now Valiant Entertainment has bought the rights to these classic comics, and is beginning to bring them back to us – first with the Harbinger: The Beginning hardcover, and now with X-O Manowar: Birth.

Collecting the first six issues of the book, as well as the zero issue, this handsome volume introduces us to Aric of Dacia, a Visigoth who was kidnapped by an alien invasion force in the year 408 AD. Aric was one of many humans brought on a faster-than-light journey, delaying their aging as the Spider Aliens studied them in the hopes of using them to impersonate humans and infiltrate Earth society, until in 1991 the superhero called Solar, Man of the Atom, thwarted their invasion. During the battle, Aric escapes their clutches and manages to steal their most powerful weapon – the sentient X-O Manowar class armor that none of their people has been able to use without going insane.

Returning to Earth, Aric and the armor bond with one another – which will be necessary as the Goth tries to integrate himself into a society that passed him by over 1500 years ago. This was the second original Valiant title (following Harbinger), and was a fan favorite for obvious reasons. The elevator pitch for this book would be “Conan the Barbarian meets Iron Man,” but it’s so much more than that. Aric makes no effort to emulate the morals of a different time, clearly not understanding why his way of doing things is no longer acceptable, and his relationship with the “Wizard” named Ken helps to flesh out and enrich the character, while still giving the reader someone more contemporary to help view the story. Likewise, his armor is much more than anything Tony Stark ever creating – it’s living, it’s sentient, and in many ways it’s much more of a guide to Aric than Ken is. Everything in this book is rich, layered and as entertaining today as it was 15 years ago when most of these issues were first printed.

Valiant Entertainment has done something interesting with the artwork. Unable to work from the originals, they instead scanned the printed pages, removed the color and re-colored them digitally, using the original colors as a guide. The result is a book that has much more vibrant, exciting colors than any of the originals did, but also occasionally includes a page where the scan wasn’t quite sharp enough, resulting in slightly fuzzy linework. It’s not a big problem, and most of the time it isn’t even noticeable, but there are occasionally pages that make it clear just how they were done.

The book also includes the zero issue, which showed Aric’s pre-abduction life for the first time, and greatly expanded the story of his escape. This chapter, penciled by a young up-and-comer called Joe Quesada, particularly benefits from the new colors.

The book is topped off with “The Rise of Lydia,” a new 8-page story by original series creators Bob Layton and Mike Leeke. This short story, like the new story in the Harbinger hardcover, feels sort of like a “Secret Files” story to me. It’s not essential to understand the story, but it adds another dimension to one of the primary villains of the tale and fills in a lot of the blanks of her past.

If you’ve never read these stories before, if you were too young for Valiant in the first go-around, this is your chance to get on board. If you were a fan the first time, you owe it to yourself to revisit these classic stories. We can only hope that these hardcover books are merely harbingers of big things to come.

Pun intended.

Rating: 9/10

(2010 Note: Sadly, two years later only this and two other hardcover collections of Harbinger and Archer and Armstrong have come from the people at Valiant Entertainment.)

Sensational Spider-Man (2006 Series) #33

December 19, 2006

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Wounds (A “Spider-Man Unmasked” Crossover)
Rating: A

With Spider-Man unmasked, May Parker’s cross grows heavier.

Writer: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Colors: Dan Kemp
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Warren Simons
Cover Art: Clayton Crain
Publisher: Marvel Comics

When Peter Parker comes home brutally beaten after a battle with the Rhino, May Parker finds herself remembering all the times in the past she’s dressed his wounds. This is really a spotlight issue for Aunt May, something that has become much more interesting since she found out the truth about her nephew. Here, she spends half the issue tending to him and the other half remembering the first time her beloved boy ever broke a bone. As a character portrait, it works pretty well.

The story helps accentuate how much more dangerous the Parkers’ lives have become since he unmasked, and again since he went on the run. Thing is, we also cover similar ground over in this week’s Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Granted, these two stories are very, very different, butt there’s only so many angles they can take on this concept, so hopefully things will settle down to a new status quo soon.

The story is pretty good. The artwork, I’m sorry to say, not so much. Sean Chen and Scott Hanna have both done really stunning artwork in the past, so I can’t really understand why this issue falls so flat. The characters often seem posed awkwardly, with stiff faces and identical expressions across many of the faces. I have to assume this is an aberration, or perhaps a simple example of the two men have uncomplimentary styles, because they’ve both done much, much better work than this in the past.

If you’re looking for a quick done-in-one story about Peter’s life on the run, this is a good place to look.

Rating: 7/10

Nova (2007 Series) #1

April 10, 2007

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: What’s Next
Rating: T+

With the fallout of the Annihilation War still causing havoc around the universe, is the last Nova pushing himself too far?

Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Sean Chen
Inks: Scott Hanna
Colors: Guru EFX
Letters: Cory Petit
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Cover Art: Adi Granov
Publisher: Marvel Comics

I forget if this is round four or five for a solo Nova series, but it doesn’t really matter, as this is perhaps the strongest such series yet. In the 70s, he was just another random superhero without much personality. In the 90s (both tries), he was the New Warrior gone solo. Here, he has more of an identity than either of those titles – the last member of the Nova Corps, trying to do the job of an entire army by himself.

With hundreds of worlds devastated and many still battling the remnants of the Annihilation Wave, Nova is racing from planet to planet, protecting as many people as he can, not even allowing himself time to rest, eat or drink. He now carries within him the power of the entire Nova Corps, and with it, their responsibility. Oh – and one other thing… the Xandarian Worldmind. Richard Rider keeps pushing himself harder and harder, trying to do the job of hundreds, but the Worldmind is worried. If Rich dies, the entire collective wisdom of Xandar and the entire power of the Nova Corps dies with him.

The biggest problem with the Nova Corps concept, historically, is that it’s always come across as being derivative of the Green Lantern Corps. This version honestly takes it one step further – Richard Rider is becoming derivative of Kyle Rayner, a character he precedes by over a decade, and that’s not good. But as much as the concept feels familiar, the story and the execution is good enough that I’m willing to look past it. Abnett and Lanning do sci-fi superheroes extremely well, and they’re a great fit for this character.

Sean Chen and Scott Hanna, handling the art chores, are also very well suited for the book. Humanoids, aliens, spacescapes – it all looks really good in this issue. They’re a perfect match.

This is a very strong launch issue, even if some of the elements feel a bit too familiar. Hopefully, for once, the human rocket will be allowed to enjoy a nice, long run.

Rating: 8/10