Man, this past week, I pissed off Batfans with my CBR reviews. Funny thing: it didn't even occur to me that I was reviewing three Batbooks until my review for Red Hood and the Outlaws #3 garnered a "Nevett strikes again!" reaction on the CBR forums. My favourite part is the hate mail and the chance to respond with absolute literalism. That's always fun. But, I did want a break from comics a little, so I took Tuesday off from Random Thoughts. I went shopping in Detroit instead. I've long blasted the States for its lack of potato chip flavours, but, this time, it countered with many different M&M flavours not found here. I'm loving these dark chocolate M&Ms -- because, clearly, dark chocolate is the superior chocolate. Anyway, let's get to some new comics...
Annihilators #3: Damn, this comic is reading like the big event book Marvel should have pushed to the forefront instead of Fear Itself. It's pretty easy to see how this could have been made 'bigger,' especially the Magus taking over a third of the US population -- throw in an issue where it's the Avengers vs. a bunch of heroes and villains that are part Magus and you could kill plenty of time. Instead, it's a nice little mini-series mostly ignored. Ah well. [***1/2]
Captain America & Bucky #624: As always, gorgeous, fantastic art from Samnee and Breitweiser. The story is less a story than some fragments shoved together, especially the end of the issue with Bucky's sister. [***1/4]
Justice League Dark #3: What's so crazy about recruiting Mindwipe? I'm not familiar with the character... I'm enjoying this book, but think I would have been better off tradewaiting it. It's moving at such a slow pace across so many characters that it's hard to get too enthused over each new issue. [***]
RASL #12: DANGER DANGER HIGH VOLTAGE! Lots more Tesla talk and I'm completely okay with that. An interesting issue -- and an educational one! [***1/2]
Scalped #54: We keep walking towards our death... [****]
Vengeance #5: No Russian supersoldiers during World War 2... because the Red Skull killed them all in a camp during the war. Everything is connected and we move towards Latveria... we all know who Z is, of course. The way that Casey blends together all of his work in this series is fantastic -- same with the arrogance and self-doubt of youth he captures so well. Miss America calls She-Hulk a 'puta' rather than accept a ride home from the sixth dimension... goddamn, this is just some good comics, son. [****1/4]
Wolverine and the X-Men #2: I don't know why, but I'm a little bothered that this is the first time Iceman tried that trick and it works perfectly. Still, nice to see Jason Aaron actually pushing things a bit. Just some crazy fun this comic... Bachalo captures the manic chaos better than almost anyone else. [***3/4]
Later
Showing posts with label marc andreyko. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marc andreyko. Show all posts
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Sketch Reviews (October 27 2011)
I bought comics yesterday and read most of them while waiting in the car while Michelle taught a class at the gym and, then, the rest in a mall food court while she was at some meeting related to teaching glasses at the gym. When we got home, we watched TV and went to bed. So, that's why this post is going up today instead of yesterday. Plus, there were a lot of comics to read. Giant week.
'Breed III #6: The progression throughout the issue of Stoner looking down on everyone to eventually realising that he's a punk bitch next to the likes of Dreadstar and Darklon was pretty funny. That the cover to this issue is a reference to Dreadstar #1's cover is awesome. Jim Starlin knows what people want. [***1/2]
Butcher Baker, the Righteous Maker #7: Speaking of homage covers... that's a lot of shaded cock at the end of this comic. [****]
Captain America & Bucky #623: Decent issue. Samnee's art is gorgeous. Honestly, more looking forward to next issue and leaving behind World War II... though, ending with a concentration camp... what do you say about that? [***1/4]
Daredevil #5: The line "Send six." made me laugh. The art is wonderful and the villains are evil, but their secret plan that the blind translator came across is right up there with the evilness of the bad guys in The Phantom Menace. When criminals become too much like businessmen, they stop being entertaining. You may as well read the business section. But Marcos Martin is amazing and Waid's peppy/smart writing grabs. [****]
Incredible Hulk #1: My gut said that this wouldn't be for me, but I just had to give it a shot. My gut was right. My gut is always right. I knew I'd hate the art, so that wasn't it. Jason Aaron's writing was not to my taste. Dull with an end that made me roll my eyes. Not for me. [*]
Justice League Dark #2: So... ghosts are constantly horny? That makes sense. After all, they can see naked people any time they want, but can't do anything about it. Peter Milligan gets this. That Dawn lady should have just dumped her ghostly boyfriend and let him be the serial rapist he obviously wants to be. Now, that's a Deadman comic I'd read. [***1/4]
The Mighty Thor #7: Hahahahahahahaha... that's it? That's the secret history of the Serpent? He became king after Bor died, became corrupt, and Odin killed tons of people to take him down? Wasn't all of that implied already? And, by 'implied,' I mean so heavily implied that I kept waiting for the twist. I guess it was meant to be that Odin killed so many people to get to his brother, but that sort of fell flat and was very underplayed. I did like the execution of the scene where Odin cut his eye out. [**]
The Red Wing #4: Hey, fuck you, dad. [Christ, that felt good...]
Scalped #53: Slow build to something horrible with some excellent scenes like the one with Nitz and the sherrif. [****]
Secret Avengers #18: Goddamn, David Aja! Ellis knows how to write a nice, short little story that allows artists to go mindfuck crazy. This was one of the best weeks for art that I can remember in a long time and this issue is right near the top. [****1/4]
Wolverine and the X-Men #1: Fun first issue. Some scenes worked, others kind of fell flat a bit. Lots of potential here. I think this goes on the pull list. [***3/4]
Later
'Breed III #6: The progression throughout the issue of Stoner looking down on everyone to eventually realising that he's a punk bitch next to the likes of Dreadstar and Darklon was pretty funny. That the cover to this issue is a reference to Dreadstar #1's cover is awesome. Jim Starlin knows what people want. [***1/2]
Butcher Baker, the Righteous Maker #7: Speaking of homage covers... that's a lot of shaded cock at the end of this comic. [****]
Captain America & Bucky #623: Decent issue. Samnee's art is gorgeous. Honestly, more looking forward to next issue and leaving behind World War II... though, ending with a concentration camp... what do you say about that? [***1/4]
Daredevil #5: The line "Send six." made me laugh. The art is wonderful and the villains are evil, but their secret plan that the blind translator came across is right up there with the evilness of the bad guys in The Phantom Menace. When criminals become too much like businessmen, they stop being entertaining. You may as well read the business section. But Marcos Martin is amazing and Waid's peppy/smart writing grabs. [****]
Incredible Hulk #1: My gut said that this wouldn't be for me, but I just had to give it a shot. My gut was right. My gut is always right. I knew I'd hate the art, so that wasn't it. Jason Aaron's writing was not to my taste. Dull with an end that made me roll my eyes. Not for me. [*]
Justice League Dark #2: So... ghosts are constantly horny? That makes sense. After all, they can see naked people any time they want, but can't do anything about it. Peter Milligan gets this. That Dawn lady should have just dumped her ghostly boyfriend and let him be the serial rapist he obviously wants to be. Now, that's a Deadman comic I'd read. [***1/4]
The Mighty Thor #7: Hahahahahahahaha... that's it? That's the secret history of the Serpent? He became king after Bor died, became corrupt, and Odin killed tons of people to take him down? Wasn't all of that implied already? And, by 'implied,' I mean so heavily implied that I kept waiting for the twist. I guess it was meant to be that Odin killed so many people to get to his brother, but that sort of fell flat and was very underplayed. I did like the execution of the scene where Odin cut his eye out. [**]
The Red Wing #4: Hey, fuck you, dad. [Christ, that felt good...]
Scalped #53: Slow build to something horrible with some excellent scenes like the one with Nitz and the sherrif. [****]
Secret Avengers #18: Goddamn, David Aja! Ellis knows how to write a nice, short little story that allows artists to go mindfuck crazy. This was one of the best weeks for art that I can remember in a long time and this issue is right near the top. [****1/4]
Wolverine and the X-Men #1: Fun first issue. Some scenes worked, others kind of fell flat a bit. Lots of potential here. I think this goes on the pull list. [***3/4]
Later
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Sketch Reviews (September 29 2011)
And so ends the wild ride that was September Comics. If I'd gotten my comics yesterday, that would have also ended on the same day as the end of the wild ride that was September Baseball... and it was a pretty fucking wild ride last night, wasn't it? Both Wild Card spots determined, two collapses completed, a few insane comebacks (with Tampa Bay's being the most insane), and just a ton of excitement for those of us who care. Plus, earlier in the day, while I was at work, the Jays won their final game of the season. So: good day. Same with today and the final batch of September comics. As always, these are brief thoughts and anything I'm reviewing for CBR isn't mentioned.
Annihilators: Earthfall #1: Already more enjoyable than the first Annihilators mini, which I found to be a bit of a letdown. I loved the part where everyone was ganging up on Quasar for wanting them to take it easy because they're on Earth when he has no problem letting loose on 'alien' planets. To the rest, Earth is an alien planet, so suck it, kid! The promise of the return of the Magus also has me engaged. More than that, Tan Eng Huat's art has a rougher edge this time out, more reminiscent of his work pre-Annihilators and I dig that look more. The back-up story is a back-up story. [***1/2]
'Breed III #5: And, just like that, 'Breed III becomes Starlin's version of what Vengeance is for me. That final page seemed fairly obvious once Wyrd mentioned having gathered some allies, but that doesn't stop it from being a total geek out moment for this Starlin fan. Besides that, a really good sustained bit of action in this issue and done in a visually inventive manner a lot of the time. Maybe finally reading the first two 'Breed series has gotten me more into this book, but I'm really excited to read the final two issues now. [***1/2]
Captain America & Bucky #622: Entertaining. Gorgeous. Yup. [***1/4]
Journey into Mystery #628: Talk about art just killing a comic... I like the writing, but the art made this a chore to get through. It's the sort of art that causes my eyes to slide off the page and hope for it all to be over soon. Gillen brings it... Portacio takes it and dumps it in the toilet. [**1/4]
Justice League Dark #1: Some interesting bits. Some great art. Like a lot of #1s I've seen this month, nothing about this felt complete or like anything more than the barest of introductions. Which I guess is where we are now in comics. This was the first act of an hour-long TV pilot... and those tend to have five acts. But, what I liked I liked enough to bring me back next month. [**1/2]
Secret Avengers #17: Not as distinctive as last issue with the dialogue, but pretty damn entertaining. I've liked Kev Walker's work for a long time now and glad to see him as one of the artists for Ellis's run. Lots of fun little moments in this issue like the eyeball mood speedometer or the final page or Steve's "Oh hell" panel. Already looking forward to the next one. [***3/4]
The Ultimates #2: Wow. This was a wonderfully constructed little comic that pretty much told a complete story within the larger story and pulled off something big... in issue two. I liked the first issue, but felt a little underwhelmed at the same time. For all of the "You can do anything in the Ultimate universe" talk I heard, I wasn't seeing that. Well, here it is. Shit. And Esad Ribic continues to draw the hell out of this comic. Skipping this new Ultimate relaunch looks like a mistake right now, anyone who did that. [****1/2]
Holy Terror: I'll keep this brief: I wasn't offended. I didn't find much in here particularly offensive. I'm also pretty hard to offend. I found it cartoonish and ridiculous in a laughable way. I'm not offended mostly because there isn't anything here worth taking seriously enough to be offended. The story is rubbish and the dialogue is Miller at his worse. The art is stunning and gorgeous and worth studying. I haven't encountered a disconnect between amateurish writing and masterful art this large in quite some time -- maybe ever. So: writing [-**]; art [*****]
Later
Annihilators: Earthfall #1: Already more enjoyable than the first Annihilators mini, which I found to be a bit of a letdown. I loved the part where everyone was ganging up on Quasar for wanting them to take it easy because they're on Earth when he has no problem letting loose on 'alien' planets. To the rest, Earth is an alien planet, so suck it, kid! The promise of the return of the Magus also has me engaged. More than that, Tan Eng Huat's art has a rougher edge this time out, more reminiscent of his work pre-Annihilators and I dig that look more. The back-up story is a back-up story. [***1/2]
'Breed III #5: And, just like that, 'Breed III becomes Starlin's version of what Vengeance is for me. That final page seemed fairly obvious once Wyrd mentioned having gathered some allies, but that doesn't stop it from being a total geek out moment for this Starlin fan. Besides that, a really good sustained bit of action in this issue and done in a visually inventive manner a lot of the time. Maybe finally reading the first two 'Breed series has gotten me more into this book, but I'm really excited to read the final two issues now. [***1/2]
Captain America & Bucky #622: Entertaining. Gorgeous. Yup. [***1/4]
Journey into Mystery #628: Talk about art just killing a comic... I like the writing, but the art made this a chore to get through. It's the sort of art that causes my eyes to slide off the page and hope for it all to be over soon. Gillen brings it... Portacio takes it and dumps it in the toilet. [**1/4]
Justice League Dark #1: Some interesting bits. Some great art. Like a lot of #1s I've seen this month, nothing about this felt complete or like anything more than the barest of introductions. Which I guess is where we are now in comics. This was the first act of an hour-long TV pilot... and those tend to have five acts. But, what I liked I liked enough to bring me back next month. [**1/2]
Secret Avengers #17: Not as distinctive as last issue with the dialogue, but pretty damn entertaining. I've liked Kev Walker's work for a long time now and glad to see him as one of the artists for Ellis's run. Lots of fun little moments in this issue like the eyeball mood speedometer or the final page or Steve's "Oh hell" panel. Already looking forward to the next one. [***3/4]
The Ultimates #2: Wow. This was a wonderfully constructed little comic that pretty much told a complete story within the larger story and pulled off something big... in issue two. I liked the first issue, but felt a little underwhelmed at the same time. For all of the "You can do anything in the Ultimate universe" talk I heard, I wasn't seeing that. Well, here it is. Shit. And Esad Ribic continues to draw the hell out of this comic. Skipping this new Ultimate relaunch looks like a mistake right now, anyone who did that. [****1/2]
Holy Terror: I'll keep this brief: I wasn't offended. I didn't find much in here particularly offensive. I'm also pretty hard to offend. I found it cartoonish and ridiculous in a laughable way. I'm not offended mostly because there isn't anything here worth taking seriously enough to be offended. The story is rubbish and the dialogue is Miller at his worse. The art is stunning and gorgeous and worth studying. I haven't encountered a disconnect between amateurish writing and masterful art this large in quite some time -- maybe ever. So: writing [-**]; art [*****]
Later
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Sketch Reviews (August 25 2011)
Not much to add this week... let's get to it...
Batman: Gates of Gotham #5: Well, that was underwhelming. A decent ending, but fairly typical. I have no real complaints, no real compliments. [***]
Batman, Incorporated #8: And the new contender for 'worst issue from Morrison's run on Batman' is... My god, this is an ugly comic featuring mediocre writing. [*]
Brightest Day Aftermath: The Search for Swamp Thing #3: Three issues building up to... not a goddamn thing. What was the point of this book besides proving that DC really will publish anything no matter how fucking awful it is? No, really, get me the e-mail addresses of everyone who approved this piece of shit so I can ask them what point it served, because I sure as fuck can't see it... [-****]
Captain America & Bucky #621: The closest thing I have to buying a book primarily for the art. Chris Samnee is wonderful. The writing is okay, but this is a bit of a downgrade from the 'first' issue of this series. Will it actually go anywhere beyond "Bucky: Year One?" Let's see! [***1/2]
Flashpoint: Project Superman #3: This comic wasn't as funny as the second issue, but it was still pretty funny with its visual allusions and the constant look of "I... I think I wet my pants" on Kal's face. I don't know... I just couldn't take it seriously. It had none of the genuine humanity of the Azzarello/Risso Batman mini but all of the superficial crap... it's just a funny comic. I wish they'd gone all out and just did the parody of Action Comics #1 for the cover. [***1/4]
And a special bonus:
A Few Things You May Need to Know from Ultimate Fallout to read The Ultimates #1
* The man in the helmet on the first page is Reed Richards. He's escaped from the Negative Zone with the goal of creating an environment that will create the next generation of superpeople to help remake the world as he wants it. I think. Those people in the white Future Foundation-esque uniforms are his followers and they live by the code 'evolve or die.'
* Captain America quit at some point. It was mentioned briefly in Ultimate Fallout #6 with Steve Rogers last appearing in the second issue at Peter Parker's funeral. He got slapped by Aunt May. We've yet to be told why he quit, but I assume it has to do with Parker's death.
* Nick Fury was ordered to increase S.H.I.E.L.D. operations by 30% only to be told shortly thereafter that the budget is being cut by 30%. That has put him under a little stress.
* The threat in S.E.A.R. is a metahuman of some kind.
* Brian Braddock has cancer, so his brother has replaced him as Captain Britain.
* This may be important later: Tony Stark has been asked to take his brother Gregory's place in an organisation of 50 very wealthy and powerful (mostly self-made) people who are going to try to change the world from behind the scenes. We don't know if he's accepted yet.
And, not that this has anything to do with anything, but look at Quicksilver's face in the final panel of the preview for Ultimate X-Men #1. Isn't that just fucking awful?
If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
Later
Batman: Gates of Gotham #5: Well, that was underwhelming. A decent ending, but fairly typical. I have no real complaints, no real compliments. [***]
Batman, Incorporated #8: And the new contender for 'worst issue from Morrison's run on Batman' is... My god, this is an ugly comic featuring mediocre writing. [*]
Brightest Day Aftermath: The Search for Swamp Thing #3: Three issues building up to... not a goddamn thing. What was the point of this book besides proving that DC really will publish anything no matter how fucking awful it is? No, really, get me the e-mail addresses of everyone who approved this piece of shit so I can ask them what point it served, because I sure as fuck can't see it... [-****]
Captain America & Bucky #621: The closest thing I have to buying a book primarily for the art. Chris Samnee is wonderful. The writing is okay, but this is a bit of a downgrade from the 'first' issue of this series. Will it actually go anywhere beyond "Bucky: Year One?" Let's see! [***1/2]
Flashpoint: Project Superman #3: This comic wasn't as funny as the second issue, but it was still pretty funny with its visual allusions and the constant look of "I... I think I wet my pants" on Kal's face. I don't know... I just couldn't take it seriously. It had none of the genuine humanity of the Azzarello/Risso Batman mini but all of the superficial crap... it's just a funny comic. I wish they'd gone all out and just did the parody of Action Comics #1 for the cover. [***1/4]
And a special bonus:
A Few Things You May Need to Know from Ultimate Fallout to read The Ultimates #1
* The man in the helmet on the first page is Reed Richards. He's escaped from the Negative Zone with the goal of creating an environment that will create the next generation of superpeople to help remake the world as he wants it. I think. Those people in the white Future Foundation-esque uniforms are his followers and they live by the code 'evolve or die.'
* Captain America quit at some point. It was mentioned briefly in Ultimate Fallout #6 with Steve Rogers last appearing in the second issue at Peter Parker's funeral. He got slapped by Aunt May. We've yet to be told why he quit, but I assume it has to do with Parker's death.
* Nick Fury was ordered to increase S.H.I.E.L.D. operations by 30% only to be told shortly thereafter that the budget is being cut by 30%. That has put him under a little stress.
* The threat in S.E.A.R. is a metahuman of some kind.
* Brian Braddock has cancer, so his brother has replaced him as Captain Britain.
* This may be important later: Tony Stark has been asked to take his brother Gregory's place in an organisation of 50 very wealthy and powerful (mostly self-made) people who are going to try to change the world from behind the scenes. We don't know if he's accepted yet.
And, not that this has anything to do with anything, but look at Quicksilver's face in the final panel of the preview for Ultimate X-Men #1. Isn't that just fucking awful?
If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
Later
Monday, August 01, 2011
CBR Review: Captain America and Bucky #620
I recently reviewed Captain America and Bucky #620 for CBR and, in the process, wrote the following sentences: "This first issue seems like the beginning of a 'Bucky: Year One' mini-series, providing more depth into who he was before he became the sidekick of Captain America. Beginning in 1935 after the death of his mother, we see as he struggles to keep out of trouble to please his father, how he’s pretty much adopted by the army following his father’s death, and how he’s trained and chosen to be the partner of Captain America. Ed Brubaker and Marc Andreyko fill in the gaps in Bucky’s known origin, giving it some much needed flavor and an emotional connection between Barnes and the readers."You can read the rest HERE!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
CBR Review: Predators #1
I recently reviewed Predators #1 for CBR and, in the process, wrote the following sentences: "Predators #1 begins a four-issue mini-series prequel to the upcoming movie of the same name, offering two opening chapters featuring characters from the film. The lead 14-page story, 'Welcome to the Jungle,' is a violent story of hunter and prey, while the 6-page second story provides some insight on Royce, the mercenary that Adrian Brody plays in the film."You can read the rest HERE!
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