Pull List Review (12.5.2012)

Avengers #1 (Marvel Comics)

This is the release everyone has been waiting for and it’s finally here. Originally, I wasn’t going to get this because a team with 20+ superheroes sounded like overkill but I set that aside and gave it a chance. While it’s a good issue, it wasn’t as epic as some people are saying it is, at least not in my opinion. I don’t have much experience with Jonathan Hickman’s writing so I wasn’t sure what to expect and I’m not the biggest Jerome Opena fan either. Both managed to impress me on this issue, however. Hickman did a pretty nice job with the writing and narrative flow in this issue and I felt Opena was the right choice for this particular series. I openly admit I’m not that knowledgeable when it comes to the Marvel history so that had something to do with what I thought of this issue. The set up was good, now let’s see how Hickman manages this super huge cast.

4.0 out of 5.0

All New X-Men #3 (Marvel Comics)

I couldn’t wait for this issue. Luckily, I only had to wait a week. In this issue, we get present-day Cyclops on an Emma Frost rescue mission. We learn the Phoenix Force has messed up his mutant powers and we get a lot of blame defection from Cykes. If you read this issue, you might have forgotten it was All New X-Men because the Original 5 don’t appear until the last (awesome) page. That last scene was worth the entire issue. I would have preferred more of the Original 5 because I’m sure I’ll get plenty of Cyclops and his Mutant Revolution when Uncanny X-Men is released. This issue wasn’t as great as Issue #2 but still enjoyable and a killer cliff-hanger that made me want #4 RIGHT NOW.

4.0 out of 5.0

I Love Trouble #1 (Image Comics)

Decided to go pick up something different this week and this title caught my eye. Felicia is a thief on the run, who mysterious develops super powers (the power of teleportation). Fun little title, art by Mark Robinson was different and refreshing. Writing could have been better, story-wise, though. Overall, if you’re looking for something different and don’t want to commitment to an ongoing, this 5-issue mini-series could do the trick.

3.0 out of 5.0

RECOMMENDATION OF THE WEEK

If you aren’t reading All New X-Men, you should. The writing and art is top-notch and each issue makes you wanting more by the time you’re done. I’ve been reading the issues multiple times and I hardly ever do that. Great build-up for Issue #4.

Make sure you check out my video reviews where I go into a little more detail and be sure the check out my special message at the end! You won’t be sorry!!

Rapid Reviews: Instalment #1

Welcome to another new feature here at comics, please! In addition to the weekly titles I buy and video review each week, there are also some others that I don’t regularly follow. Rapid Reviews will be my quick reviews feature where I talk a bit about those titles and whether they impress me enough to get added to my pull list. This week for my first segment, I’ll be looking back at some new Marvel NOW! titles that were recently released and some other titles from the last couple of months that caught my interested but I wasn’t too sure about.

Captain America #1

Captain America #1 (Marvel Comics, released: 11.21.2012)

I’m not the biggest John Romita, Jr. fan. In fact, his art kind of turns me off of titles. It just looks too rushed and lacks the detail I like. Because of that, I was hesitant to give this issue a chance. But I like to think of myself as an open-minded person so art be damned, I read Issue #1. Overall, I did enjoy it. The start didn’t appeal to me with the scene from 1926 and his fight with The Green Skull felt like filler material. But the second half of the issue grew on me. I enjoyed his scenes with Sharon Carter and his capture/escape from Arnim Zola had me paying attention. That, combined with the ending, is what is putting Issue #2 on my pull list. I am interested to read what happens next. Oh, and while I was reading this issue, I didn’t even remember JRJR was on art. It was better than some of the previous stuff I’ve seen him do. Maybe it has to do with not having SO many characters to draw in every issue. If his art stays like this, I can tolerate it.

Indestructible Hulk #1

Indestructible Hulk #1 (Marvel Comics, released: 11.21.2012)

I was debating whether I wanted to buy this issue. On one hand, I’ve been opening up to trying to enjoy some Hulk material. On the other hand, I’ve always thought of Hulk as the self-loathing anti-hero that smashes stuff and hates himself. So when they described this title as one where Hulk is no longer trying to cure himself and is content with what he is and putting his efforts into making the world a better place, I was intrigued. After reading this issue, I can say I’m pleasantly entertained with how it went. I enjoyed the initial meeting between Bruce Banner and Maria Hill (I can’t stop picturing her as Cobie Smulders after watching The Avengers movie) and how they established Banner as no longer trying to find a cure but to put his efforts into “doing as much good for mankind as possible.” I also enjoyed the second half where Hulk battles Thinker. The art by Leinil Francis Yu is pretty good, although there were some pages where maybe less detail would have been better (although that could be an issue I have with the colourist, Sunny Gho, as opposed to Yu). I’m adding this one to my pull list but I’ll be putting it on short leash.

Iron Man #1

Iron Man #1 (Marvel Comics, released: 11.07.2012)

There’s some characters I love, some characters I’ll tolerate, some I don’t care for, and some I just don’t like at all. Iron Man seems to fall into that last category. I didn’t watch any of the Iron Man movies when they first came out (I just watched them recently because I was going to watch The Avengers) and I don’t read any of his comics. I just don’t find the character entertaining. But I was hoping this issue would change my perception of Tony Stark for the better. Sadly, it did not. He’s still an arrogant, cocky playboy. In this issue, we see Maya Hansen get killed and Extremis being auctioned off to the highest bidder. The Extremis storyline is regarded as one of the best Iron Man stories (so says Wikipedia) but I don’t know much about it. But apparently, now four people have the Extremis kit and that means bad news for Iron Man. Sorry, maybe it’s my distain for the Tony Stark character, but this issue didn’t do it for me. Writer Kieron Gillen gave Stark way too much internal dialogue and when he was speaking aloud with other characters, I really couldn’t stand him. Suffice to say, I won’t be continuing with this title. I hope Iron Man doesn’t mess up Indestructible Hulk #2, where he is supposed to guest star next month.

Nowhere Men #1

Nowhere Men #1 (Image Comics, released: 11.28.2012)

I had no interested in this title whatsoever but some folks had been giving this new issue high marks so I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. Having read this issue, I can say I don’t see it. The story is about a group of scientists who are the rockstars of the world, scientifically speaking. Why? I don’t know, they don’t tell us that in the first-third of the issue. Because that’s all we’re given of them, just the first-third. The rest of the issue introduces us to a bunch of people who are supposedly infected with some virus. What kind of virus? Again, I don’t know because they don’t tell us that either. What we do know is that they are all quarantined on some great, big carrier in space and no one knows they are there. There was nothing in this issue that hooked me in or made me care for any of the characters and I have no clue what is going on. I didn’t like this issue at all and I will definitely not continue reading this.

Thor: God Of Thunder #1

Thor: God Of Thunder #1 (Marvel Comics, released: 11.14.2012)

This was another title that got really good reviews so I wanted to give it a chance. I’m not very fond of stories of gods and heavens and mysticism so my hesitation towards this title can be explained. But give it a chance I did and I found it not half-bad. I wasn’t sure how the three timelines were going to interact but Jason Aaron made it work and it wasn’t confusing at all. I like how Aaron gave each timeline version of Thor a different personality and demeanor. Young Thor was brash and cocky, Present-Day Thor was still brash but more mature, and Ancient Thor was weathered, tired, yet still proud. However, this all would have been for naught if there wasn’t an interesting story to go with it. Fortunately, we have that here. Someone is killing the gods and Thor is next. Was it enough to make me want to buy subsequent issues? Read my rapid review of Issue #2 to find out.

Thor: God Of Thunder #2

Thor: God Of Thunder #2 (Marvel Comics, released: 11.28.2012)

So Issue #1 set up each version of Thor and in Issue #2, the focus is mostly on Young Thor, who does battle with the God Killer. The writing continues to be good and the narrative flows well. Aaron even manages to throw in a fourth timeline, albeit it’s one Young Thor is remembering through internal dialogue while he’s fighting. I’m still liking what I’m reading here however at this time, I won’t be adding it to my pull list and I’ll tell you why. While I did enjoy the issue more than I thought I would, at the end there is write-up to the reader by Jason Aaron where he talks about the direction he wants to talk this series. The three timelines will be a recurring theme throughout the series and I’m not sure I’m totally on board with that. That, combined with the genre of this title makes me want to leave this off my list for now. I’m continue to pay attention to where it goes and maybe down the road, I’ll pick it up, but for now, it’s with regret that I leave this off my pull list.

So there you have it, my first instalment of Rapid Reviews. Let me know what you thought of these comics in the comments below and if there’s any title you want to suggest, let me know!