3 comics in today's blog. I was trying to only do 2 at a time, but since it's Tuesday and there were more I wanted to talk about then days I blogged, I decided to do 3 of them today.
Voodoo #5 is a fantastic story as the first arc moved to a twist that I never saw coming. Voodoo is a daemonite (alien race and very evil) half-breed - the other half being human. She is being used by the daemonites to gather intelligence on the inhabitants of Earth as a precursor to invasion. In this issue, she flees to a daemonite ship in an attempt to upload her intelligence and complete her mission. When she gets there, she encouters a pure breed daemonite who is not fond of the hybrids (what the pure daemonites call the half-breeds) who tries to kill her before she can complete her mission. She wins the fight in a very brutal fashion and proceeds to upload her intelligence only to find out a very significant fact about herself (this is where the twist comes in).
Josh Williamson (writer) is doing an excellent job of telling the tale of Voodoo as she's been introduced into the mainstream DC Universe. At first, I wasn't sure how much I would like this story, since Voodoo is in actuality the bad guy of the story, but it has been a great read and a great way to introduce this former Wildstorm star to the DC universe.
Sami Basri (artist) does an awesome job depicting the story. The look of Voodoo is dead on with what she should look like in human form from the old Wildstorm days and the new form that she regularly takes when she shapechanges into her hybrid form is absolutely fabulous. The depiction of the scenes all around are fantastic and the look of the daemonite in this issue is wonderfully well-done as well as the whole fight scene between Voodoo and her daemonite brethren.
The Mighty Thor #10 continues the story of Thor after his death as well as the tale of Asgardia's new rulers (the All-Mother) to bring all of Asgardia together in a democratic rule. This story is working really well with the new status quo for Asgard since Fear Itself ended. Although, I have been waiting since Thor's death to see him finally return to his glory, which begins at the end of this issue. I am really liking the rule of Asgard under the all-mother versus the rule of Odin as the all-father. Their attempts to be benign and give more freedom to the residents of Asgardia than the previously iron-fisted rule of Odin is a brilliant contrast. The contrast also illustrates very well why Odin never allowed for democratic rule by his subjects, since the All-Mother has also been incredibly duped by the trolls of Asgard with Tanarus as the replacement Thor while no one remembers Thor and thinks Tanarus (who is actually Ulik the Troll in disguise) has always been the god of thunder.
Matt Fraction (writer) is doing a wonderful job of redefining Asgard and its denizens in the wake of Fear Itself. The story is well crafted and even the magnificent use of young Loki as the wayward hero adds to the tale.
Aquaman #5 starts the next arc of Aquaman, and I am looking forward to it as much as I did the first arc with the first issue of Aquaman. I am truly enjoying the way Geoff Johns (writer) is redefining Aquaman as a meta-human who is as powerful as Superman or Wonder Woman and truly deserves his place in the legends of the DC Universe. This arc starts with a mystery left behind by the end of the last arc, a mystery that seems to stretch to the early days of Atlantis before the fabled continent ever sunk beneath the waves of the ocean.
In all, I would definitely recommend going out and picking up these titles if you're not already - in the case of Aquaman and Voodoo, I would definitely say try to pick up the first 4 issues as well. In the case of Thor, I would say try to go back to the issue that started this arc at the end of Fear Itself. All three of these series are wonderful and deserve a read.
Thanks for reading.
These are my opinions of the omniverse. The omniverse includes many comic book multiverses, some MMO universes, and our own real universe (or at least mine - maybe yours is different). If you like comic book reviews, MMO's, Christian views, political opinions (these will be minimal but will happen from time to time), or just musings on society, you might like my blog. If you don't, you probably won't, but give it a try, you never know.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Alpha Flight #8 and Justice League Dark #5
Well, another limited series comes to an end after having been changed from a limited series to an ongoing series and back to a limited series. Also, the first arc of Justice League Dark comes to an end. Both were good reads, although I think I liked Justice League Dark more than the Alpha Flight series.
Alpha Flight #8 comes to an end with the final battle between Alpha Flight and The Master (anyone else think they stole his name from Dr. Who?). Heather even finally pulls it together when she realizes The Master will sacrifice her daughter to save himself or just to hurt Mac.
Van Lente (writer) did a great job on the series. The writing brought out the old Alpha Flight that I loved with these fan favorite characters (even if they can never sustain sales well enough to get an ongoing series again) and at the same time introduced some newness to them at the same time. Marinna as a goth punk alien was an awesome take on a character that I think had grown fairly staid by the time they killed her off in the older series. Additionally, the final breakdown and what may at last be a cure for Jeanne Marie / Aurora was a fantastic bit of writing. The only issue I took with the writing is that it became pretty evident early on that The Master was going to be behind the whole debacle - while this did not detract from the story, I do think a new villain would have made a better story here.
Greg Pak's artwork was impeccable and the character's looked spectacular as did the scenery around them. I always like Pak's work though.
If you missed the series, watch for the trade that will no doubt be released and pick it up. If you're an Alpha Flight fan, it's definitely worth it. If you're not an Alpha Flight fan, I still think you can enjoy the story and the villain will be fresh for you, so you may not fall into the same trap that I did of knowing who it was before the reveal - unless of course you just read this.
Justice League Dark #5 closes out the first arc of these new 52 title with a twist. If this were a normal super hero team book, this would be the issue where all the heroes come togehter finally to form a team and stand united at the end. Considering the nature of these characters and this series though, the arc closes with the world saved and John Constantine voicing the feelings of everyone in the group as he tells Mme. Xanadu to sod off and storms out; the rest of the "team" walks out right behind him. It's interesting to finally see the reason Madame Xanadu seemed to be working for the opposite side at the end of this tale. Apparently, there is a dark future she is trying to prevent, and to do so, she needs this mystical version of the Justice League to come together as a team and be prepared to do what it takes to stop that dark future. Too bad she's not the tactician that Batman is, the inspiration that Superman is, or the people person that Wonder Woman is. It will be interesting to see how this non-team comes back together again for the second arc or if Madame Xanadu's cards lead her to organize a different team to try and halt the dark future.
Peter Milligan (writer) did a wonderful job crafting this tale and capturing the essence of these newly remodelled characters personalities, while Mikel Janin (artist) did a spectacular job depicting this dark side of the new DC universe. The two worked well together to tell a tale that bordered the creepy and helps to redefine magic in the new DC universe with artwork that made you feel how nasty that dark world of magic is without heroes to shine some light into it. The fact that the story wraps back around to reverse what Madame Xanadu did originally to trigger the events of this arc just adds even more of a twist to the whole tale and the dark and twisted nature of Justice League Dark.
I definitely recommending going back and picking up the series or if they do a trade, which I think they should, go pick it up and read the whole tale at once.
Thanks for reading!
Alpha Flight #8 comes to an end with the final battle between Alpha Flight and The Master (anyone else think they stole his name from Dr. Who?). Heather even finally pulls it together when she realizes The Master will sacrifice her daughter to save himself or just to hurt Mac.
Van Lente (writer) did a great job on the series. The writing brought out the old Alpha Flight that I loved with these fan favorite characters (even if they can never sustain sales well enough to get an ongoing series again) and at the same time introduced some newness to them at the same time. Marinna as a goth punk alien was an awesome take on a character that I think had grown fairly staid by the time they killed her off in the older series. Additionally, the final breakdown and what may at last be a cure for Jeanne Marie / Aurora was a fantastic bit of writing. The only issue I took with the writing is that it became pretty evident early on that The Master was going to be behind the whole debacle - while this did not detract from the story, I do think a new villain would have made a better story here.
Greg Pak's artwork was impeccable and the character's looked spectacular as did the scenery around them. I always like Pak's work though.
If you missed the series, watch for the trade that will no doubt be released and pick it up. If you're an Alpha Flight fan, it's definitely worth it. If you're not an Alpha Flight fan, I still think you can enjoy the story and the villain will be fresh for you, so you may not fall into the same trap that I did of knowing who it was before the reveal - unless of course you just read this.
Justice League Dark #5 closes out the first arc of these new 52 title with a twist. If this were a normal super hero team book, this would be the issue where all the heroes come togehter finally to form a team and stand united at the end. Considering the nature of these characters and this series though, the arc closes with the world saved and John Constantine voicing the feelings of everyone in the group as he tells Mme. Xanadu to sod off and storms out; the rest of the "team" walks out right behind him. It's interesting to finally see the reason Madame Xanadu seemed to be working for the opposite side at the end of this tale. Apparently, there is a dark future she is trying to prevent, and to do so, she needs this mystical version of the Justice League to come together as a team and be prepared to do what it takes to stop that dark future. Too bad she's not the tactician that Batman is, the inspiration that Superman is, or the people person that Wonder Woman is. It will be interesting to see how this non-team comes back together again for the second arc or if Madame Xanadu's cards lead her to organize a different team to try and halt the dark future.
Peter Milligan (writer) did a wonderful job crafting this tale and capturing the essence of these newly remodelled characters personalities, while Mikel Janin (artist) did a spectacular job depicting this dark side of the new DC universe. The two worked well together to tell a tale that bordered the creepy and helps to redefine magic in the new DC universe with artwork that made you feel how nasty that dark world of magic is without heroes to shine some light into it. The fact that the story wraps back around to reverse what Madame Xanadu did originally to trigger the events of this arc just adds even more of a twist to the whole tale and the dark and twisted nature of Justice League Dark.
I definitely recommending going back and picking up the series or if they do a trade, which I think they should, go pick it up and read the whole tale at once.
Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Catwoman #5 and Lord of the Jungle #1
One really good comic book today and one that I didn't care for much even though I was in anticipation of the title.
Catwoman #5 was a wonderful read. This series has continued to impress me once the first and second issue were over, and Winick (writer) moved away from the need to turn Selina Kyle (Catwoman) into some little tart. The current arc has Selina once again caught in the middle of something she didn't expect to be in the middle of and dealing with while at the same time having demonstrated with extreme skill why this "non-powered" individual can hold her own in a world of super people. In the first few pages, Catwoman skillfully avoids plummeting to her death after being sent a mile into the air and falling towards the earth rapidly to become a human pizza. She then returns the favor to the super who did her the favor of sending her flying by quickly demonstrating that if you're not invulnerable like Superman, you probably should watch your back when a skilled street fighter is sneaking about. Just as rapidly, Catwoman also proves why she needs nine lives like a cat as she realizes that the extreme amount of cash she has just stolen from a drug dealer's courier actually belongs to dirty Gothcam City cops who send the whole force after her to get their money back.
Judd Winick continues to knock this title out of the park with his writing. While I was not impressed with the title early on, I'm glad I gave it a chance to progress past the tawdry tart Winick seemed to be making Selina into to illustrate that he just chose a poor way to tell that part of his tale. Granted, I know most of the red-blooded American male fan boys don't agree with me on that last part.
Guillem March's artwork on Catwoman continues to be spectaclular from the detail as we watch Selina rip her arm out of socket in this issue saving herself to popping it back in and the anger and surprise depicted over and over again throughout the title.
If you turned off on this title due to the first or second issue, I recommend picking it up now. It's a wonderful series at this point, and I hope it stays that way.
Lord of the Jungle #1 is a title I was in anticipation of - I even went out and read Tarzan of the Apes in anticipation of the comic book to ensure I could properly judge between the two. I'm sad that I did now, because this first issue was a disappointment to me. Granted, not as much of a disappointment as the previous Tarzan movies are to me now after reading the book and seeing how far they strayed from the books and crossed multiple books together in horrible fashion, but still disappointed.
This first issue gets through to the point where the she-ape, Kala, picks up little Lord Greystoke after her tribe has killed his father. The lack of very much dailogue or even captioning in the comics really detracts from the story of how Lord Greystoke and his wife, Lady Alice, ended up on the remote coast of Africa. While you see them being dropped off on the African coast by the mutinous crew of their ship, you never see the reasons for the crew committing mutiny or why they choose to spare Lord and Lady Greystoke. Also, the story brings in Mbonga's tribe of natives while Lord and Lady Greystoke are still alive and even has them note the little cabin on the beach, which is out of sequence iwth the actual book (not really detracting in and of itself, but worth noting with my other issues with the issue). I can only hope the title gets better and goes for a little more detail in the story with the next issue. Right now, I would say check this title out if you're a die-hard Tarzan fan and have been waiting to see him in comics or if you really enjoy Dynamite Entertainment's work.
I will say the artwork in the book is stunning for the genre and works well within the context, so kudos to Castro. I'm not sure who's decision it was to go light on the early part of the story, but having read the book now, I think it is invaluable information in many ways to understanding how the Greystokes ended up being dropped off on this remote coastland.
Thanks for reading!!
Catwoman #5 was a wonderful read. This series has continued to impress me once the first and second issue were over, and Winick (writer) moved away from the need to turn Selina Kyle (Catwoman) into some little tart. The current arc has Selina once again caught in the middle of something she didn't expect to be in the middle of and dealing with while at the same time having demonstrated with extreme skill why this "non-powered" individual can hold her own in a world of super people. In the first few pages, Catwoman skillfully avoids plummeting to her death after being sent a mile into the air and falling towards the earth rapidly to become a human pizza. She then returns the favor to the super who did her the favor of sending her flying by quickly demonstrating that if you're not invulnerable like Superman, you probably should watch your back when a skilled street fighter is sneaking about. Just as rapidly, Catwoman also proves why she needs nine lives like a cat as she realizes that the extreme amount of cash she has just stolen from a drug dealer's courier actually belongs to dirty Gothcam City cops who send the whole force after her to get their money back.
Judd Winick continues to knock this title out of the park with his writing. While I was not impressed with the title early on, I'm glad I gave it a chance to progress past the tawdry tart Winick seemed to be making Selina into to illustrate that he just chose a poor way to tell that part of his tale. Granted, I know most of the red-blooded American male fan boys don't agree with me on that last part.
Guillem March's artwork on Catwoman continues to be spectaclular from the detail as we watch Selina rip her arm out of socket in this issue saving herself to popping it back in and the anger and surprise depicted over and over again throughout the title.
If you turned off on this title due to the first or second issue, I recommend picking it up now. It's a wonderful series at this point, and I hope it stays that way.
Lord of the Jungle #1 is a title I was in anticipation of - I even went out and read Tarzan of the Apes in anticipation of the comic book to ensure I could properly judge between the two. I'm sad that I did now, because this first issue was a disappointment to me. Granted, not as much of a disappointment as the previous Tarzan movies are to me now after reading the book and seeing how far they strayed from the books and crossed multiple books together in horrible fashion, but still disappointed.
This first issue gets through to the point where the she-ape, Kala, picks up little Lord Greystoke after her tribe has killed his father. The lack of very much dailogue or even captioning in the comics really detracts from the story of how Lord Greystoke and his wife, Lady Alice, ended up on the remote coast of Africa. While you see them being dropped off on the African coast by the mutinous crew of their ship, you never see the reasons for the crew committing mutiny or why they choose to spare Lord and Lady Greystoke. Also, the story brings in Mbonga's tribe of natives while Lord and Lady Greystoke are still alive and even has them note the little cabin on the beach, which is out of sequence iwth the actual book (not really detracting in and of itself, but worth noting with my other issues with the issue). I can only hope the title gets better and goes for a little more detail in the story with the next issue. Right now, I would say check this title out if you're a die-hard Tarzan fan and have been waiting to see him in comics or if you really enjoy Dynamite Entertainment's work.
I will say the artwork in the book is stunning for the genre and works well within the context, so kudos to Castro. I'm not sure who's decision it was to go light on the early part of the story, but having read the book now, I think it is invaluable information in many ways to understanding how the Greystokes ended up being dropped off on this remote coastland.
Thanks for reading!!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Batman #5 and Blue Beetle #5
I continue to be impressed with the New 52 from DC. The relaunch of the DC Universe just continues to do great things in the comic book world.
Batman #5 continues the tale of the Court of Owls vs Batman. According to legend, the Court of Owls is the unofficial guardians and rulers of Gotham City. Years ago, Batman investigated the Court of Owls and determined they didn't really exist, but if they do not exist, then who is sending a Talon (the trained assassin and agent of retribution of the Court) after Batman, and who is currently holding Batman captive.
Scott Snyder (writer) continues to impress with this tale weaving a new legend into Gotham City's mythos. The Court of Owls is as worthy an adversary for Batman as the League of Assassins has ever been and their agent, Talon, is more than formidable and has already fought Batman to a standstill once almost killing Bruce Wayne in the process.
The artwork by Greg Capullo is incredible and tells the tale as much as the words by Snyder. The darkness of Gotham fits the mythos of old. Batman continues to look the way he should dark and brooding, and in this issue, brooding while obviously drugged and trying to fight off the effects of the drugs.
Start reading Batman now if you haven't already. This is sure to be a tale for the ages of Batman and is as gritty and Gotham'esque as any tale has been in a very long time.
Blue Beetle #5 continues the origin story of Jaime Reyes. Blue Beetle is impressive and while I never read any of the previous series for this character, I definitely regret that at this point. I'm glad of the new 52, which has allowed me to jump in like new readers for the entire DC universe. I'm not sure if the previous incarnations of Jaime Reyes's Blue Beetle included the origin initiated in Smallville where the Blue Beetle scarab actually belonged to an alien race bent on conquest, but that addition in this series works wonders for the story. Not only is Jaime having to try to learn how to use the scarab, he also has to fight against the programmed orders of the scarab to use him as an agent of conquest of the planet earth (it helps that the scarab is damaged and malfunctioning at present).
This intent by the scarab to protect and continue its mission even though it is not totally sure what that mission is at the moment leads to Jaime actually stabbing his best friend right through the heart in this issue. Jaime forces a small construct out of the scarab armor to resuscitate and heal his friend Paco just in time to turn him over to EMTs. Afterwards, Jaime is invited to the house of the archvillain of the story and almost captured. The cliffhanger at the end of the story sets us up for an epic battle no doubt in the next issue.
Tony Beddard's writing continues to do justice to this often overlooked character and his series, while Ig Guara's pencils do more than justice to the organic nature of Blue Beetle's armor and the overall look of the LA barrio where Jaime lives. An excellent read and a great comic.
Two great titles that I reccomend highly for fans of Batman, Blue Beetle, and even fans of Iron Man.
Thanks for reading!!
Batman #5 continues the tale of the Court of Owls vs Batman. According to legend, the Court of Owls is the unofficial guardians and rulers of Gotham City. Years ago, Batman investigated the Court of Owls and determined they didn't really exist, but if they do not exist, then who is sending a Talon (the trained assassin and agent of retribution of the Court) after Batman, and who is currently holding Batman captive.
Scott Snyder (writer) continues to impress with this tale weaving a new legend into Gotham City's mythos. The Court of Owls is as worthy an adversary for Batman as the League of Assassins has ever been and their agent, Talon, is more than formidable and has already fought Batman to a standstill once almost killing Bruce Wayne in the process.
The artwork by Greg Capullo is incredible and tells the tale as much as the words by Snyder. The darkness of Gotham fits the mythos of old. Batman continues to look the way he should dark and brooding, and in this issue, brooding while obviously drugged and trying to fight off the effects of the drugs.
Start reading Batman now if you haven't already. This is sure to be a tale for the ages of Batman and is as gritty and Gotham'esque as any tale has been in a very long time.
Blue Beetle #5 continues the origin story of Jaime Reyes. Blue Beetle is impressive and while I never read any of the previous series for this character, I definitely regret that at this point. I'm glad of the new 52, which has allowed me to jump in like new readers for the entire DC universe. I'm not sure if the previous incarnations of Jaime Reyes's Blue Beetle included the origin initiated in Smallville where the Blue Beetle scarab actually belonged to an alien race bent on conquest, but that addition in this series works wonders for the story. Not only is Jaime having to try to learn how to use the scarab, he also has to fight against the programmed orders of the scarab to use him as an agent of conquest of the planet earth (it helps that the scarab is damaged and malfunctioning at present).
This intent by the scarab to protect and continue its mission even though it is not totally sure what that mission is at the moment leads to Jaime actually stabbing his best friend right through the heart in this issue. Jaime forces a small construct out of the scarab armor to resuscitate and heal his friend Paco just in time to turn him over to EMTs. Afterwards, Jaime is invited to the house of the archvillain of the story and almost captured. The cliffhanger at the end of the story sets us up for an epic battle no doubt in the next issue.
Tony Beddard's writing continues to do justice to this often overlooked character and his series, while Ig Guara's pencils do more than justice to the organic nature of Blue Beetle's armor and the overall look of the LA barrio where Jaime lives. An excellent read and a great comic.
Two great titles that I reccomend highly for fans of Batman, Blue Beetle, and even fans of Iron Man.
Thanks for reading!!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Opinions of the Omniverse: City On Our Knees
Opinions of the Omniverse: City On Our Knees: A break from the comic book world today. I started reading the book City on Our Knees by Toby Mac today. I've had the book for a while and ...
City On Our Knees
A break from the comic book world today. I started reading the book City on Our Knees by Toby Mac today. I've had the book for a while and only just now got around to starting it. I listen to K-LOVE radio, and I had previously heard some brief snippets of the stories shared in this book on there.
I had to share the very first story that I read though on this blog today. The one thing you need to know about me is it generally takes a lot to make me get broken up emotionally. I don't cry at sad movies and stuff like that, so something I read has to be pretty emotional in nature to touch me. This story did. I'm sure some of you have even read this story already since it got press when it was going on I guess back in 2002.
The story was about this young girl who was diagnosed with a form of cancer called neuroblastoma. Before she had turned one year old, she had to endure a 12 hour surgery to remove cancerous tumors from her body which left her paralyzed at the time from the chest down. Doctors said she would be unable to even feel her legs again even if her cancer went into remission. Two weeks later, she wiggled her leg with some coaxing from her mom and dad. By two she was crawling around her house albeit with leg braces at that time. Eventually, she even was able to walk on her own without the braces. Her cancer was not gone, however, and by four she was in the hospital receiving intense chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant.
This is where the story really begins to touch the heart though. While recovering from that procedure, she shared an idea she had with her mom about opening a lemonade stand (you know one of those little childhood stands that you see occasionally) in order to donate the money to her doctors to help them find a cure for childhood cancers like hers. Her mother assumed they would probably get a small amount of donations from the stand. This little four year old girl wrote up her little plan and with the help of her big brother, they made $2,000 with her little lemonade stand that summer. The story progressed and by 2004, her little lemonade stand had grown into a nationwide charity event that raised over $1 million to fund cancer research. The little girl didn't live to the end of 2004, but her dream lives on even today in Alex's Lemonade Stands which have raised more than $30 million for more than eighty cancer-related projects that sek cures and treatments.
That story alone means I will be reading this book through the weekend to find more inspiration for my life and what I should be doing to help others, because if a 4 year old little girl can do something like this, what can the rest of us do.
The book overall is a book of inspirational stories like this to show how people have shared love with others throughout the world at different times. If this one story is any indication of the inspiration that can be drawn from this book, everyone should read it. We all need to learn to stop looking out just for ourselves and consider the impact we could have on the world around us.
I recommend this book to everyone even though it is written by a Christian artist to illustrate how we can share the love of Christ. I think anyone who has a heart can benefit from reading this book.
Thanks for reading.
I had to share the very first story that I read though on this blog today. The one thing you need to know about me is it generally takes a lot to make me get broken up emotionally. I don't cry at sad movies and stuff like that, so something I read has to be pretty emotional in nature to touch me. This story did. I'm sure some of you have even read this story already since it got press when it was going on I guess back in 2002.
The story was about this young girl who was diagnosed with a form of cancer called neuroblastoma. Before she had turned one year old, she had to endure a 12 hour surgery to remove cancerous tumors from her body which left her paralyzed at the time from the chest down. Doctors said she would be unable to even feel her legs again even if her cancer went into remission. Two weeks later, she wiggled her leg with some coaxing from her mom and dad. By two she was crawling around her house albeit with leg braces at that time. Eventually, she even was able to walk on her own without the braces. Her cancer was not gone, however, and by four she was in the hospital receiving intense chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant.
This is where the story really begins to touch the heart though. While recovering from that procedure, she shared an idea she had with her mom about opening a lemonade stand (you know one of those little childhood stands that you see occasionally) in order to donate the money to her doctors to help them find a cure for childhood cancers like hers. Her mother assumed they would probably get a small amount of donations from the stand. This little four year old girl wrote up her little plan and with the help of her big brother, they made $2,000 with her little lemonade stand that summer. The story progressed and by 2004, her little lemonade stand had grown into a nationwide charity event that raised over $1 million to fund cancer research. The little girl didn't live to the end of 2004, but her dream lives on even today in Alex's Lemonade Stands which have raised more than $30 million for more than eighty cancer-related projects that sek cures and treatments.
That story alone means I will be reading this book through the weekend to find more inspiration for my life and what I should be doing to help others, because if a 4 year old little girl can do something like this, what can the rest of us do.
The book overall is a book of inspirational stories like this to show how people have shared love with others throughout the world at different times. If this one story is any indication of the inspiration that can be drawn from this book, everyone should read it. We all need to learn to stop looking out just for ourselves and consider the impact we could have on the world around us.
I recommend this book to everyone even though it is written by a Christian artist to illustrate how we can share the love of Christ. I think anyone who has a heart can benefit from reading this book.
Thanks for reading.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
DC Universe Online Legends #21
Another week of new comics. I only got one read today though, and it was this one. I am not a fan of the DC Universe Online MMO - I haven't even played it since the Beta. I found their desire to use console style controls and play-style to be detracting. Lots of cool concepts that they had in their game versus other superhero genre MMO's like Champions Online or City of Heroes/Villains like being able to climb walls or "glide" out with acrobatics, but just not as versatile or as robust overall as the others in my opinion for customization, etc.
On the other hand, the backstory for the game is fabulous from the first trailer I ever saw for the game at San Diego Comic-Con 2 years ago, I loved it. This comic book series is all about that back story and has been awesome from the beginning until now. The surprise to me is that it wasn't worked on by Geoff Johns or Jim Lee - the two people who probably did the most work on the game from DC, but has been written by Marv Wolfman (who I think is an oft-under-utilized writer) with art by Bruno Redondo. These guys have done an awesome bringing this story to life and keeping it true to the game that I saw in Beta (and in current from all that I have heard from friends who still play).
The most awesome scene in this issue is the point where current Batman meets future Batman. Current Bats reaches out to touch his future self as Lex Luthor stands by watching in anticipation. After the proximity gets too close the Roche limit takes place and future Batman disappears in a temporal feedback (either he's slungshot back to the future or he's disintegrated - Lex proposes either as a possibility). The fact that Lex knew it would happen due to the Roche limit and does nothing to stop it angers current Batman of course. (For those of us who aren't time travelling nerds, according to Luthor, the Roche limit is the minimum distance a person from two different times can reach before they are destroyed - apparently the effect that occurred was not what the theory proposed according to Luthor though.)
Anyway, for those who aren't familiar, the story is based on Brainiac having made a deal with Lex Luthor to take over the earth. The results is supposed to allow for Lex to finally kill Superman and allow Lex to look like he has saved the earth and thus become the hero he always wanted to be. The problem is Brainiac really just wants to destroy the earth, and he's been using Lex as a patsy. In the future, Brainiac has all but succeeded and Lex travels back in time to ignite super powers in as many people across the earth as possible using the nanites that Brainiac has been using to steal the super powers of all the heroes and villains across the DC Universe. The alliance of earth's heroes and villains to combat Brainiac starts there.
In all, this series has been great. I recommend it to anyone who wants to go look for the back issues, or I recommend if you haven't been reading, when the trade paperback or hardcover comes out go pick it up.
Thanks for reading.
On the other hand, the backstory for the game is fabulous from the first trailer I ever saw for the game at San Diego Comic-Con 2 years ago, I loved it. This comic book series is all about that back story and has been awesome from the beginning until now. The surprise to me is that it wasn't worked on by Geoff Johns or Jim Lee - the two people who probably did the most work on the game from DC, but has been written by Marv Wolfman (who I think is an oft-under-utilized writer) with art by Bruno Redondo. These guys have done an awesome bringing this story to life and keeping it true to the game that I saw in Beta (and in current from all that I have heard from friends who still play).
The most awesome scene in this issue is the point where current Batman meets future Batman. Current Bats reaches out to touch his future self as Lex Luthor stands by watching in anticipation. After the proximity gets too close the Roche limit takes place and future Batman disappears in a temporal feedback (either he's slungshot back to the future or he's disintegrated - Lex proposes either as a possibility). The fact that Lex knew it would happen due to the Roche limit and does nothing to stop it angers current Batman of course. (For those of us who aren't time travelling nerds, according to Luthor, the Roche limit is the minimum distance a person from two different times can reach before they are destroyed - apparently the effect that occurred was not what the theory proposed according to Luthor though.)
Anyway, for those who aren't familiar, the story is based on Brainiac having made a deal with Lex Luthor to take over the earth. The results is supposed to allow for Lex to finally kill Superman and allow Lex to look like he has saved the earth and thus become the hero he always wanted to be. The problem is Brainiac really just wants to destroy the earth, and he's been using Lex as a patsy. In the future, Brainiac has all but succeeded and Lex travels back in time to ignite super powers in as many people across the earth as possible using the nanites that Brainiac has been using to steal the super powers of all the heroes and villains across the DC Universe. The alliance of earth's heroes and villains to combat Brainiac starts there.
In all, this series has been great. I recommend it to anyone who wants to go look for the back issues, or I recommend if you haven't been reading, when the trade paperback or hardcover comes out go pick it up.
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Peanuts #1 and Artifacts #13
One of my favorite comic strips from when I was a kid was Peanuts by Charles Schulz. Some of my favorite television cartoon specials were the Peanuts specials as well. So, for me seeing the Peanuts gang in print again with new stories is great. It's like finding an old friend on Facebook and realizing that you missed that person and used to have a lot of fun just hanging out together. The new Peanuts comic is a collection of short stripes written by different people and is being published by BOOM! Entertainment unders its children friendly imprint, kaboom!
Intermixed in the comic are new strips which are being collaborated on with the Charles Schulz foundation/family to ensure they are Peanuts worthy as well as classic strips from Schulz. The new strips I found to be as funny and delightful as the classic strips I remember. The couple of classic strips that were published in this first issue were much as I remembered the strips being. While I'm not a child anymore, I still enjoyed this comic for the delightful and humorous strips that it contained. It was also nice to see something for children that wasn't speckled with innuendo and things that lead our children to adult hood far too quick again.
I loved the first issue and will probably continue to pick up the series for the entertainment quality it brings as well as the childhood memories it invokes in me. I highly recommend this comic to anyone with small children who wants a lighthearted cartoon strip for them to read or to read to/with them. It's very family friendly and will probably even bring a smile to the children in all of you (us).
Artifacts #13
The final issue of what was originally the limited series re-defining the Top Cow Universe has come and gone, and while I enjoyed it, it was a bit of a let-down. The grand finale and defeat of the antagonist actually has him win but not win. The Survivor (or the Curator as most of us originally knew him) is missing from his end of the world plans as his goal of destroying the Top Cow Universe in order to remake his universe (the previous universe before the current universe) has been achieved, but alas the Darkness was able to stop him from making the journey into oblivion in order to remake the universe. Instead, three people make it into oblivion to remake the universe - Sara Pezzini (Witchblade), Jackie Estacado (The Darkness), and their daughter Hope (the survivor entity for the current universe). With no hope of rescuing the universe other than to sacrifice Hope to remake the universe, Witchblade does exactly that despite the protests of The Darkness.
The Top Cow Universe is reborn, but as is indicated by Tom Judge at the end of this issue, something is not quite right. Even Estacado knows it. This sets up the on-going Artifacts series as well as the new status quo for the Witchblade and Darkness ongoing series from Top Cow. What's not quite right, well, we get a brief view of it as we see where the 13 artifacts have ended up and realize that they are not all where they were before. Some are, but some aren't. Also, we are quickly shown that Jackie Estacado's life, which had previously been one of tragedy and sorrow is now the life he always wanted including having his childhood sweetheart, Jenny, as a wife and a duaghter named Hope with her.
While I recommend the series for the story and for the story to come, I just felt this was kind of a cop out to everything. I would have preferred seeing the universe remade by the survivor and watching a series where the protagonists are trying to figure out what's wrong that they can't quite place their fingers on or them having just stopped him in a more epic finale. At this point, there is of course, the very real possibility that he still exists out there somewhere to come back and try again despite The Darkness slaughtering the Curator at the end of the issue. Hopefully, the rest of the fans feel different about the ending - I haven't had a chance to read any reviews on it yet.
The other thing that has disappointed me with the conclusion of the original limited series (now, the first arc of the ongoing series) is that I think Top Cow has missed an opportunity to capitalize on expanding their line of books. While I appreciate this from a finanical perspective, I was hoping that we would finally get a new ongoing Cyberforce title and possibly even a few other ongoing series in the Top Cow Universe featuring Necromancer, Aphrodite, and any of the many other characters that appeared in this series. Instead, we are getting a single new series which I imagine will utilize a rotating roster of these characters depending on where the continuity is in the direction for the overall story of the Top Cow Universe, which I like, but there were just some characters I were really hoping would graduate to their own series again.
I still recommend the series, Ron Marz (writer) did an amazing job with these first 13 issues despite my let down, and I look forward to seeing his plans for the Top Cow Universe continuing forward in Artifacts now that he has left Witchblade. Check it out if you haven't already.
Thanks for reading!
Intermixed in the comic are new strips which are being collaborated on with the Charles Schulz foundation/family to ensure they are Peanuts worthy as well as classic strips from Schulz. The new strips I found to be as funny and delightful as the classic strips I remember. The couple of classic strips that were published in this first issue were much as I remembered the strips being. While I'm not a child anymore, I still enjoyed this comic for the delightful and humorous strips that it contained. It was also nice to see something for children that wasn't speckled with innuendo and things that lead our children to adult hood far too quick again.
I loved the first issue and will probably continue to pick up the series for the entertainment quality it brings as well as the childhood memories it invokes in me. I highly recommend this comic to anyone with small children who wants a lighthearted cartoon strip for them to read or to read to/with them. It's very family friendly and will probably even bring a smile to the children in all of you (us).
Artifacts #13
The final issue of what was originally the limited series re-defining the Top Cow Universe has come and gone, and while I enjoyed it, it was a bit of a let-down. The grand finale and defeat of the antagonist actually has him win but not win. The Survivor (or the Curator as most of us originally knew him) is missing from his end of the world plans as his goal of destroying the Top Cow Universe in order to remake his universe (the previous universe before the current universe) has been achieved, but alas the Darkness was able to stop him from making the journey into oblivion in order to remake the universe. Instead, three people make it into oblivion to remake the universe - Sara Pezzini (Witchblade), Jackie Estacado (The Darkness), and their daughter Hope (the survivor entity for the current universe). With no hope of rescuing the universe other than to sacrifice Hope to remake the universe, Witchblade does exactly that despite the protests of The Darkness.
The Top Cow Universe is reborn, but as is indicated by Tom Judge at the end of this issue, something is not quite right. Even Estacado knows it. This sets up the on-going Artifacts series as well as the new status quo for the Witchblade and Darkness ongoing series from Top Cow. What's not quite right, well, we get a brief view of it as we see where the 13 artifacts have ended up and realize that they are not all where they were before. Some are, but some aren't. Also, we are quickly shown that Jackie Estacado's life, which had previously been one of tragedy and sorrow is now the life he always wanted including having his childhood sweetheart, Jenny, as a wife and a duaghter named Hope with her.
While I recommend the series for the story and for the story to come, I just felt this was kind of a cop out to everything. I would have preferred seeing the universe remade by the survivor and watching a series where the protagonists are trying to figure out what's wrong that they can't quite place their fingers on or them having just stopped him in a more epic finale. At this point, there is of course, the very real possibility that he still exists out there somewhere to come back and try again despite The Darkness slaughtering the Curator at the end of the issue. Hopefully, the rest of the fans feel different about the ending - I haven't had a chance to read any reviews on it yet.
The other thing that has disappointed me with the conclusion of the original limited series (now, the first arc of the ongoing series) is that I think Top Cow has missed an opportunity to capitalize on expanding their line of books. While I appreciate this from a finanical perspective, I was hoping that we would finally get a new ongoing Cyberforce title and possibly even a few other ongoing series in the Top Cow Universe featuring Necromancer, Aphrodite, and any of the many other characters that appeared in this series. Instead, we are getting a single new series which I imagine will utilize a rotating roster of these characters depending on where the continuity is in the direction for the overall story of the Top Cow Universe, which I like, but there were just some characters I were really hoping would graduate to their own series again.
I still recommend the series, Ron Marz (writer) did an amazing job with these first 13 issues despite my let down, and I look forward to seeing his plans for the Top Cow Universe continuing forward in Artifacts now that he has left Witchblade. Check it out if you haven't already.
Thanks for reading!
Friday, January 6, 2012
Avengers X-Sanction #2 and Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist #2
So, I'm an Avengers junkie, hence the Avengers: X-Sanction limited series. I picked up the Flash Gordon limited series because I've liked what Dynamite did with The Bionic Man and other titles of old they've revamped in comic book form. Both books are worth a look at for different reasons.
Avengers: X-Sanction #2 continues the story started last month. Cable is alive once more and only has 24 hours to live before the techno-organic virus ravaging his body finally takes its toll and maybe finally claims his life. Before he returned to the current time in the Marvel Universe though, we learn that his old friend Blaquesmith has told him in a far flung future of total devastation that the Avengers killed his adopted daughter Hope (the so called mutant messiah having been the first mutant baby born after M-Day). Cable being the warrior and loving father he is, journeys to the current time to stop it from happening before he finally succumbs to the techno-organic virus. Yes, ultimately, this is a big hero vs. hero book so far with lots of fight scenes, but the things that have me reading are that first of all, I'm an Avengers fan, but second of all, as I recall, the last time we saw Blaquesmith, he wasn't the altruistic person everyone thought he was and he was also killed (by Cable IIRC).
This leads me to the question, can Blaquesmith be trusted and why does Cable trust him again if my memory is correct about the last time we saw Blaquesmith. Issue 2 drives home my belief that Blaquesmith is not to be trusted or just that the future point Cable saw is not the current time line. At the end of issue 2, Cable is fighting Red Hulk and reveals that Talbot has lost to Cable every time they've fought - Cable has checked all possible timelines for this fact apparently. The problem, as anyone familiar with the Red Hulk storylines knows, is that the Red Hulk is not Glenn Talbot but Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. This indicates in a very stark (no pun intended considering Iron Man is the other Avenger captured in this issue by Calbe) way that Cable is not in the timeline of that future he saw or that he is being manipulated by someone. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all turns out in a couple more issues.
Jeph Loeb is writing this series and although I haven't liked a lot of the work he's done at Marvel since his departure from DC and complete shift into the Marvel stable, the writing on this series is spot on for what a fight between Cable and the Avengers should look like. Ed McGuinness's pencils are fantastic for portraying the imagery of a "war" between Cable and the Avengers. His take on the techno-organic portion of Cable is a little more brutal looking than past versions of Cable, but then the virus is supposed to be in its final stages for Cable, so it makes sense.
Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is a fabulous series as it reimagines the classic sci-fi hero. The story is reminiscent of the campy Flash Gordon movie from 1980 but is far from that campiness. This is more the hero of the original Alex Raymond work from the 1930's and the comic is set firmly in that time as it should be. There is no re-imagining to a modern age, but a re-imagining for the modern reader looking back. Ming is seen not only as seeking to destroy the Earth in his attack on the planet, but is actually reminding his human pawn that he should bow to Ming's power and submit to him as originally agreed.
Being set in the 1930's, you might wander who would be willing to sell out the human race to an alien conqueror for power and the allowance to be the vassal to rule over the Earth in Ming's name. Writer, Eric Trautmann, draws from our own bloody history for this villain, and Adolf Hitler fits the role of this villain in the story perfectly. Other than that, your favorite characters are still here in the series, Flash Gordon, Dale Arden, Hans Zarkoff, Klytus, Aura, and all the princes of Mongo. The story is enhanced in a way that only makes it classic and more epic. Daniel Indro does the art for the series and his work captures the appearance of everyone in a way that there is no doubt who is who as they appear if you're familiar with the older works or event he movie from 1980.
Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is an excellent comic from Dynamite Entertainment, and I highly recommend it. You'll be hooked from the first line of the first issue when Ming once again states, "Klytus, I'm bored."
Thanks for reading!
Avengers: X-Sanction #2 continues the story started last month. Cable is alive once more and only has 24 hours to live before the techno-organic virus ravaging his body finally takes its toll and maybe finally claims his life. Before he returned to the current time in the Marvel Universe though, we learn that his old friend Blaquesmith has told him in a far flung future of total devastation that the Avengers killed his adopted daughter Hope (the so called mutant messiah having been the first mutant baby born after M-Day). Cable being the warrior and loving father he is, journeys to the current time to stop it from happening before he finally succumbs to the techno-organic virus. Yes, ultimately, this is a big hero vs. hero book so far with lots of fight scenes, but the things that have me reading are that first of all, I'm an Avengers fan, but second of all, as I recall, the last time we saw Blaquesmith, he wasn't the altruistic person everyone thought he was and he was also killed (by Cable IIRC).
This leads me to the question, can Blaquesmith be trusted and why does Cable trust him again if my memory is correct about the last time we saw Blaquesmith. Issue 2 drives home my belief that Blaquesmith is not to be trusted or just that the future point Cable saw is not the current time line. At the end of issue 2, Cable is fighting Red Hulk and reveals that Talbot has lost to Cable every time they've fought - Cable has checked all possible timelines for this fact apparently. The problem, as anyone familiar with the Red Hulk storylines knows, is that the Red Hulk is not Glenn Talbot but Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. This indicates in a very stark (no pun intended considering Iron Man is the other Avenger captured in this issue by Calbe) way that Cable is not in the timeline of that future he saw or that he is being manipulated by someone. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all turns out in a couple more issues.
Jeph Loeb is writing this series and although I haven't liked a lot of the work he's done at Marvel since his departure from DC and complete shift into the Marvel stable, the writing on this series is spot on for what a fight between Cable and the Avengers should look like. Ed McGuinness's pencils are fantastic for portraying the imagery of a "war" between Cable and the Avengers. His take on the techno-organic portion of Cable is a little more brutal looking than past versions of Cable, but then the virus is supposed to be in its final stages for Cable, so it makes sense.
Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is a fabulous series as it reimagines the classic sci-fi hero. The story is reminiscent of the campy Flash Gordon movie from 1980 but is far from that campiness. This is more the hero of the original Alex Raymond work from the 1930's and the comic is set firmly in that time as it should be. There is no re-imagining to a modern age, but a re-imagining for the modern reader looking back. Ming is seen not only as seeking to destroy the Earth in his attack on the planet, but is actually reminding his human pawn that he should bow to Ming's power and submit to him as originally agreed.
Being set in the 1930's, you might wander who would be willing to sell out the human race to an alien conqueror for power and the allowance to be the vassal to rule over the Earth in Ming's name. Writer, Eric Trautmann, draws from our own bloody history for this villain, and Adolf Hitler fits the role of this villain in the story perfectly. Other than that, your favorite characters are still here in the series, Flash Gordon, Dale Arden, Hans Zarkoff, Klytus, Aura, and all the princes of Mongo. The story is enhanced in a way that only makes it classic and more epic. Daniel Indro does the art for the series and his work captures the appearance of everyone in a way that there is no doubt who is who as they appear if you're familiar with the older works or event he movie from 1980.
Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is an excellent comic from Dynamite Entertainment, and I highly recommend it. You'll be hooked from the first line of the first issue when Ming once again states, "Klytus, I'm bored."
Thanks for reading!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Swamp Thing #5 and Animal Man #5
Swamp Thing and Animal Man make up a portion of the darker side of the new DCU. Their mythos have been retold to make them a part of something greater than just being a couple of "odd" heroes. Swamp Thing is now defined as an avatar of the Green; a name for the web of life that connects all plants across the planet. Animal Man is defined as having a connection to the Red; a name for the web of life that connects all animals across the planet. Together they are headed into the battle to save the world against the other side of animal and plant life, a force known as the Rot representing the forces of disease and destruction, possibly even death.
Swamp Thing or Alec Holland, since currently Alec is not the Swamp Thing, has been moving towards a confrontation with the latest avatar of the Rot. The problem is that Alec remembers having been the Swamp Thing once before, but in truth it was just his formerly dead body being animated by the Green. In that previous incarnation, Alec had a relationship with a young lady named Abby; she was his true love. That wouldn't be so bad except Abby's family is the bloodline for the Rot's avatars and her brother has embraced his role as the latest avatar. Worse is that the Rot is still calling out for Abby. As this issue moves to its finish, it seems that Alec and Abby are going to win out against her brother William as Alec calls upon the Green to hold William fast in a tree. He and Abby then share a kiss as their relationship begins to bloom new with the now living Alec which leads to the conclusion where the Rot gains a foothold to corrupt the Green through the kiss.
Scott Snyder (writer) is truly weaving an awesome story in Swamp Thing, reminiscent of the old days of Swamp Thing within the Vertigo line of titles. While the series is not quite as adult oriented as much of the Vertigo line is today, it is definitely a dark read for more mature readers who aren't prone to the nightmares that could come from a slaughterhouse of dead animals being animated by the Rot. Yanick Paquette's artwork in Swamp Thing fits the title well. The darker imagery is perfect for the darker edge of this title. I had originally not intended to read the Swamp Thing at all, but Snyder and Paquette have trapped me with their impeccable combination of art and words as they weave what I think will be a classic Swamp Thing tale in the future.
Animal Man is fighting the Rot from the animal side while Swamp Thing is fighting it from the plant side. Buddy Baker (Animal Man) is being redefined with this relaunch much like Swamp Thing and is a darker title than I ever imagined for this character. Like Alec, Buddy's fight is made more problematic by a girl, in this case his daughter, Maxine, who is even more powerful in control of the Red than her father. While Buddy is connected to the Red and can borrow the abilities of animals, his daughter is destined to be the avatar of the Red. This makes her a valuable target for the Rot, who wants to corrupt Maxine and through her corrupt the Red.
The Rot has sent three hunters to face off against Buddy and his daughter, and they have been slowly losing ground to Animal Man and Maxine. Animal Man faces off against the last of the hunters in this issue while Maxine remains safely behind with her mother and a guardian from the Red. Animal Man is all but defeated when his daughter demonstrates her control over the Red to send several animals to rescue her dad. The rescue turns ugly though and gives the Rot a victory that leaves the guardian (in the form of a talking cat named Socks) stating that only the Swamp Thing can save them now. Too bad we already saw what's happening in that title this month too.
Jeff Lemire writes Animal Man and the story is well written given that it is re-defining Animal Man in a genre where he hasn't been before. Previously Animal Man was a B-list hero at best who often served as a fill-in for the Justice League. Now, he's firmly entrenched in the darker corners of the DCnU fighting against a power that can truly destroy the entire world. This is something we were more used to seeing with Vixen than Animal Man, but it's a pleasant and surprising believable turn for Animal Man with the writing of Lemire. Travel Foreman's artwork (with a little help from Steve Pugh this issue) creates some amazingly dark imagery in this book much like Paquette's in Swamp Thing. While I don't like the art style on the normal humans of the DCnU in the book, it is still well drawn for the imagery I believe the writer and the artists want to invoke. Again, I wouldn't let young ones prone to nightmares read this comic, but I do recommend it for those mature enough to recognize the imagery for the fiction it is.
Together these two series are rapidly heading for the new 52's second crossover (maybe first depending on if Teen Titans and Superboy get to their crossover first or not) and the obvious next step of the rebuilding of the DCU as the DCnU as characters outside the Justice League books start to meet and interact with each other to face threats together.
I am really enjoying these two series and recommend them to anyone who is a fan of comics with a darker edge or of Animal Man or Swamp Thing. So far, they are great reads and the story has been building well. Definitely two of the surprise hits of the DCnU.
Thanks for reading!
Swamp Thing or Alec Holland, since currently Alec is not the Swamp Thing, has been moving towards a confrontation with the latest avatar of the Rot. The problem is that Alec remembers having been the Swamp Thing once before, but in truth it was just his formerly dead body being animated by the Green. In that previous incarnation, Alec had a relationship with a young lady named Abby; she was his true love. That wouldn't be so bad except Abby's family is the bloodline for the Rot's avatars and her brother has embraced his role as the latest avatar. Worse is that the Rot is still calling out for Abby. As this issue moves to its finish, it seems that Alec and Abby are going to win out against her brother William as Alec calls upon the Green to hold William fast in a tree. He and Abby then share a kiss as their relationship begins to bloom new with the now living Alec which leads to the conclusion where the Rot gains a foothold to corrupt the Green through the kiss.
Scott Snyder (writer) is truly weaving an awesome story in Swamp Thing, reminiscent of the old days of Swamp Thing within the Vertigo line of titles. While the series is not quite as adult oriented as much of the Vertigo line is today, it is definitely a dark read for more mature readers who aren't prone to the nightmares that could come from a slaughterhouse of dead animals being animated by the Rot. Yanick Paquette's artwork in Swamp Thing fits the title well. The darker imagery is perfect for the darker edge of this title. I had originally not intended to read the Swamp Thing at all, but Snyder and Paquette have trapped me with their impeccable combination of art and words as they weave what I think will be a classic Swamp Thing tale in the future.
Animal Man is fighting the Rot from the animal side while Swamp Thing is fighting it from the plant side. Buddy Baker (Animal Man) is being redefined with this relaunch much like Swamp Thing and is a darker title than I ever imagined for this character. Like Alec, Buddy's fight is made more problematic by a girl, in this case his daughter, Maxine, who is even more powerful in control of the Red than her father. While Buddy is connected to the Red and can borrow the abilities of animals, his daughter is destined to be the avatar of the Red. This makes her a valuable target for the Rot, who wants to corrupt Maxine and through her corrupt the Red.
The Rot has sent three hunters to face off against Buddy and his daughter, and they have been slowly losing ground to Animal Man and Maxine. Animal Man faces off against the last of the hunters in this issue while Maxine remains safely behind with her mother and a guardian from the Red. Animal Man is all but defeated when his daughter demonstrates her control over the Red to send several animals to rescue her dad. The rescue turns ugly though and gives the Rot a victory that leaves the guardian (in the form of a talking cat named Socks) stating that only the Swamp Thing can save them now. Too bad we already saw what's happening in that title this month too.
Jeff Lemire writes Animal Man and the story is well written given that it is re-defining Animal Man in a genre where he hasn't been before. Previously Animal Man was a B-list hero at best who often served as a fill-in for the Justice League. Now, he's firmly entrenched in the darker corners of the DCnU fighting against a power that can truly destroy the entire world. This is something we were more used to seeing with Vixen than Animal Man, but it's a pleasant and surprising believable turn for Animal Man with the writing of Lemire. Travel Foreman's artwork (with a little help from Steve Pugh this issue) creates some amazingly dark imagery in this book much like Paquette's in Swamp Thing. While I don't like the art style on the normal humans of the DCnU in the book, it is still well drawn for the imagery I believe the writer and the artists want to invoke. Again, I wouldn't let young ones prone to nightmares read this comic, but I do recommend it for those mature enough to recognize the imagery for the fiction it is.
Together these two series are rapidly heading for the new 52's second crossover (maybe first depending on if Teen Titans and Superboy get to their crossover first or not) and the obvious next step of the rebuilding of the DCU as the DCnU as characters outside the Justice League books start to meet and interact with each other to face threats together.
I am really enjoying these two series and recommend them to anyone who is a fan of comics with a darker edge or of Animal Man or Swamp Thing. So far, they are great reads and the story has been building well. Definitely two of the surprise hits of the DCnU.
Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Superman #4
Well, long time, no blog. My apologies for that, I've been moving. I'm finally settled down into a new temporary place (my dad's house) until I can find an apartment to rent or something to buy.
Just to start again, I thought I'd talk briefly about Superman #4. I really did not plan on reading any of the new Superman titles with the New 52 relaunch on a regular basis. I'm not a big fan of Superman as I've said before. He's a hero that has grown so large in his title that really they is no way to give him a reasonable adversary without constantly upgrading old supervillains or creating new ones - in my opinion, this was the whole point in the creation of Doomsday back in the early '90s was to finally create a supervillain that could challenge the Man of Steel.
Grant Morrison's writing of Superman in Action Comics proved that DC had seen the same problem I had seen. And they seem to be trying to correct the issue somewhat in the Superman title as well, although Superman is as powerful in this version (which is set 5 years after the storyline currently going on in Action). Here, they seem to be trying to base the threats more in line with Superman and his own ret-continuity of the New 52. The current threat in the Superman title seems alien and as we learn in this most recent issue may have even been created by Superman himself, although he apparently doesn't remember doing so. The slow progress of Lex Luthor in the pages of Action Comics also shows that they intend to redefine why Lex Luthor may still be Superman's archenemy in the New 52.
I'm really enjoying reading this current stoyline in Superman simply because he is being forced to find ways to fight against his enemies other than sheer force, which we all know he can do. I keep thinking I will stop after one more issue, but to date, I continue to want to see what happens next in this storyline. There is no doubt in my mine that DC has seen the need to re-define Superman as a hero who has to deal with his inability to just beat everything up - he can't be a hero that defines himself by his strength because we all know he is the strongest hero in the DC Universe (other than possibly Captain Marvel (Shazam to neophytes) but that's a different story).
I look forward to the ending of this storyline and how DC will ultimately define Superman for the New 52.
Thanks for reading and sorry this one was brief and not quite a full review. Like I said, just returning to the blog and reacquaintaing myself with the habit again. :)
Just to start again, I thought I'd talk briefly about Superman #4. I really did not plan on reading any of the new Superman titles with the New 52 relaunch on a regular basis. I'm not a big fan of Superman as I've said before. He's a hero that has grown so large in his title that really they is no way to give him a reasonable adversary without constantly upgrading old supervillains or creating new ones - in my opinion, this was the whole point in the creation of Doomsday back in the early '90s was to finally create a supervillain that could challenge the Man of Steel.
Grant Morrison's writing of Superman in Action Comics proved that DC had seen the same problem I had seen. And they seem to be trying to correct the issue somewhat in the Superman title as well, although Superman is as powerful in this version (which is set 5 years after the storyline currently going on in Action). Here, they seem to be trying to base the threats more in line with Superman and his own ret-continuity of the New 52. The current threat in the Superman title seems alien and as we learn in this most recent issue may have even been created by Superman himself, although he apparently doesn't remember doing so. The slow progress of Lex Luthor in the pages of Action Comics also shows that they intend to redefine why Lex Luthor may still be Superman's archenemy in the New 52.
I'm really enjoying reading this current stoyline in Superman simply because he is being forced to find ways to fight against his enemies other than sheer force, which we all know he can do. I keep thinking I will stop after one more issue, but to date, I continue to want to see what happens next in this storyline. There is no doubt in my mine that DC has seen the need to re-define Superman as a hero who has to deal with his inability to just beat everything up - he can't be a hero that defines himself by his strength because we all know he is the strongest hero in the DC Universe (other than possibly Captain Marvel (Shazam to neophytes) but that's a different story).
I look forward to the ending of this storyline and how DC will ultimately define Superman for the New 52.
Thanks for reading and sorry this one was brief and not quite a full review. Like I said, just returning to the blog and reacquaintaing myself with the habit again. :)
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