New Invaders v2: Original Sin TPB

James Robinson is really impressing me on this title. It might say Invaders on the title, but Robinson is putting a lot of the focus on the under-used original Human Torch. Jim Hammond is a fascinating character with a ton of potential, and Robinson is really proving to have a nice handle on the character.

Captain America, Sub-Mariner, and Winter Soldier all appear on a fair number of the pages, but make no mistake; this is Jim Hammond’s book. When a super-powered pop star goes rogue, it is the Torch who tracks down her secret past and the “sin” of the original Invaders that did the original damage. Torch takes the blame like a champ, too. It is neat seeing how Robinson is writing the Torch so consistently in both his titles (this and Fantastic Four).

Not satisfied with the Kree and the original Invaders, Robinson tosses even more elements of classic Marvel in to the mix with Deathlok and the cyborg’s secret master. I won’t ruin it (although I think recent covers have), but this might end up being a pretty big tie in to a lot of clues found in Bendis titles over the past few years. Marvel has used these aliens for years, but their best role was definitely in the 1970’s title Killraven. I’m sure he’ll show up soon.

But for now, there are a legion of Deathloks taking on the Invaders. I was never a Luthor Manning guy (more of a Michael Collins deadhead, you know), but Robinson makes it easy to cheer for the mind-controlled, undead soldier. I also have to wonder about the psychopathic Deathlok that Jason Aaron used in his X-Men and Wolverine run.

One of the coolest choices in this book is the new Human Torch uniform that Marc Laming and Steve Pugh use for Hammond once he joins up with SHIELD. It is almost the same as the Super Soldier (or Nick Fury) suit, with the primary-colored shirt with a big logo on the front. Hammond’s has a flame (obviously) and the SHIELD logo on the sleeves. I hadn’t really thought about it before this, but the original Human Torch would look great on screen, wouldn’t he?

One complaint that keeps this book from being EXCELLENT is that the story always feels like second fiddle. Perhaps it is my resentment of the eternal and boring incursion story from the Avengers titles, but seeing Namor treat this book like it isn’t his priority; seeing Cap wrestle with bigger problems on his other team… well, it just makes this title’s stories feel like they don’t matter as much. If this is a relaxing distraction for Namor, how huge can the stakes really be for the reader? That makes this merely a GOOD comic.

Captain America: Patriot (2010)

Honestly, I don’t understand comics. Who was demanding this series? Were people really clamoring for a feature on Jeff Mace, the Captain America of the 1950’s? I just can’t make myself believe there were many people who wanted this. Maybe Marvel was trying to clarify their continuity and timelines? I honestly can’t figure it out.

That’s not to say this isn’t a good series. Mitch Breitweiser’s art is gorgeous from start to finish, and Karl Kesel’s story hits all the required notes. I just can’t figure out why this book was made. Am I forgetting some crossover into Ed Brubaker’s run on Captain America?

Jeff Mace was active as the Patriot, dealing with New York street villains while Cap fought the good fight in WWII. After Cap’s disappearance, Mace steps up when the world needs another Captain America. It is pretty fun seeing Mace try to fill Steve Rogers’s shoes, especially when Namor won’t give him an ounce of respect. Namor is constantly belittling and doubting Mace’s abilities, even when the rest of the team is trying to give him a shot. It’s easy to root for Mace when he’s got a bully like Namor gunning for him.

As I said, Kesel hits all the required notes. There are some All-Winners Squad fights, but most of the interactions we see with the other heroes are personal and character-driven. There are allusions to the Red Scare. There is a nice subplot with Mace trying to figure out his love life. His co-worker and erstwhile partner Mary Morgan clearly loves him, but he has the hots for his FBI handler Betsy Ross. I felt like the Mary Morgan story was a tad unresolved at the conclusion of the series, but I did like Mace getting a happy ending.

Breitweiser’s art is a rare treat. Someone this good should get more work. His work has a lot of similarities to Dougie Braithwaite, only a tad more dreamy. The costumes on the heroes and villains are all nice designs, including new characters like Night Witch or redesigns like Red Guardian. He can clearly handle drawing a large cast; why doesn’t he do more work?

This is a FAIR comic; I don’t know why Marvel wanted it made, but it is fun seeing a forgotten chapter in the Marvel U get a few panels in the sun. 

New Avengers #5

Until the final page of this issue, this comic is all talking. The story of cosmic destruction and universal balance could literally star any scientist type characters. Iron Man doesn’t need his armor until the last page.

I mean, I know New Avengers is going to have a more cerebral tone than Avengers, but man! Terrax the Tamer is in this issue, and he spends pages and pages talking! Terrax! Best of all, it isn’t even really Terrax; rather it is an alternate reality version of the character.

Hickman seems to have a great grasp on the core cast. I dig the way he writes Black Panther as an ever-ready bad ass. Tony Stark has that right level of arrogance, and Reed Richards thinks he’s the boss even in a room full of leaders. Dr. Strange’s mystic tomes and interactions with Wong seem dead on also.

But the whole alternate Earth conflict, complete with ominous Galactus in the distance is so abstract. There is no villain in the book so far, so all of this is just sort of happening. As I said in yesterday’s review, I might just be a simpleton, but I don’t come to comics for man vs. nature battles. I want a villain! I’m sure Hickman has one, but we should know more about Black Swan and her motivations than we do right now. I think it is a question of pacing more than anything else, perhaps in a trade these answers will come out right away.

Steve Epting draws such cool looking super-heroes, it makes me sad that they spend so much time talking. It seems obvious to me; Tony Stark in space is not as cool as Iron Man in space. Thankfully, T’Challa is rocking his Black Panther costume all the time, so there is always one cool costume hanging around. Dr. Strange wears his a lot too, actually. I like Epting’s Beast more than the version in the X-books; he’s got a bit more of the class ape-face.

Fair

New Avengers #2

Hmm. This was a lot slower paced than the first issue. I can certainly understand why; Jonathan Hickman has a lot of information he’s trying to dump in this one.

I always enjoy Hickman’s charts and diagrams when they feel like bonus material, but I’m not sure I love it as much when so many actual story pages are used. (I think three or four pages are largely taken up by these images.) I also worry that the plot is a bit… dense. I mean, there’s a lot of comic book science being thrown around as the Illuminati sit around the table. There’s not a lot of action to go along with it.

That’s a complaint about this whole comic. There is an awful lot of sitting around and talking. Even the confrontations, while well-written, are just talk. Who hasn’t wanted to see Black Panther confront Namor? Well, there’s some sparkling dialogue between the two, but not punches thrown. I’m confident Hickman knows what the audience wants, because it is there in the dialogue. And speaking of dialogue, Hickman does a great job with both the Panther and Namor. The others don’t have quite as much a chance to shine, but I like stand-up guy Cap, too.

The closing pages show off what Steve Epting could do with a little more action; those red-washed battle scenes are stunning. Epting’s Black Panther is fantastic, looking regal and powerful even when he’s just strolling around. I can’t wait to see a full-figure drawing of Iron Man; you know that will look great. I am unsure on the current look for Dr. Strange. It looks like he’s Sorcerer Supreme again, which is good, but that third eye is gross!

I think my only issue with this book is the pacing. I had the same complaint with Secret Warriors, SHIELD, and Fantastic Four from Hickman in the past. I do like his writing; I just think it works better in trade format.

Fair

Thunderbolts: The Great Escape TPB

Wow, I’m really on a big Thunderbolts kick these days! It’s easy to see why, when I’ve got this many good comics stacked up to read. Thunderbolts has been truly blessed with great creators over the years, and Jeff Parker fits right in. There is one issue in this trade that has a little overview of most of the team’s incarnations, and the Parker-era after Siege works just as well as the rest.

The lineup here is getting expansive, but Parker doesn’t short anyone. (Except for poor Shocker, who kind of disappears and doesn’t travel through time with his buddies. Was he needed in Spider-Man?) In the present, Cage, Mach V, Songbird, and Ghost are trying to locate their time lost teammates. They get some sweet team-ups and opponents, including Valkyrie, Mr. Fear, and the Enforcers (!). Who would have thought Ghost would be working so effectively with the “man.”

In the past, Centurius, Fixer, Mr. Hyde, Moonstone, Troll, Satana, and Boomerang are getting the grand tour. They travel to WWII and meet with the Invaders in a tremendous team-up. Then they bounce even further back in time and get to re-stage Jack-the-Ripper’s murders. And now it looks like they will be going up against the Black Knight. (Not Dane Whitman, one of my personal favorites, but I like Sir Percy, too). I’m kind of surprised at my faves in this arc. Troll, Boomerang, and Centurius are stealing the show in my opinion. Satana fits in nicely in the book too; I wouldn’t have figured she would work so well.

Kev Walker and Declan Shalvey handle most of the art once again, and these guys have it down to a science. The WWII era costumes for the criminal T-bolts are absolutely tremendous. Moonstone and Satana’s are the best. Shalvey gets to draw a lot a lot of classic characters, and he does a tremendous job. I miss those old characters like Atlas, Jolt, and Meteorite. What happens in the next trade???

Excellent

Captain America #635.1

Hmm. Marvel really seems to be enjoying this Atlanteans/Thule Society thing, don’t they? I first remember seeing it in Fear Itself, but I think it’s been pretty prominent since. Interesting.

Cullen Bunn does a nice job differentiating his WWII-era Cap from his modern one. Cap in the 40’s was a lot simpler. He’s out to inspire the troops, and he really over-thinks everything. We don’t get many internal monologues like this anymore, but they used to be the norm. I like that the flashback-era story has some flashback-era storytelling.

Man, jerk Namor is one of my favorite characters. He’s mean to everyone! Teammates, enemies, random people on the street, Namor has time to hate on them all. This issue has a strange group approach him on a membership drive, and Namor doesn’t exactly ace the interview. He’s surrounded by an obviously well-prepared and well-funded group, and he’s not impressed or cowed in the least. (Interesting that he didn’t join, though, isn’t it?)

As for this secret society, the Covenant, I don’t’ recognize most of the members. Ulysses Bloodstone has always been a stand-up guy, but the rest of these guys are mysteries to me. I do like the look of Murderous Lion and The Menace, though. I can only hope Menace’s name is “Dennis” under that mask!

Will Conrad’s art interests me. He used to be a Mike Deodato clone, but now he’s got a clean style of his own. I really like his facial expressions. Pretty sparse backgrounds, though, a little more detail would really clarify the jumps in time and location.

Fair

AvX #8

So in my opinion, there is no coming back for Namor after this. I know the Phoenix Force is influencing its five hosts pretty severely, but man, there is no way Namor can show his face with the X-Men or Avengers after he attacked Wakanda like this. I mean, he’s blasting tidal waves through the main streets and sending sea monsters to attack the populace. I don’t care if he’s mad at the Avengers for not respecting the X-Men’s new role in world power; this is a bad guy move plain and simple. I’m not sure if that’s Bendis’ take on the situation or the official Marvel direction, but I had been cheering for the X-Men until now.

Captain America says it straight out, with Namor’s attack, all support for the X-Men as good guys is basically gone. The X-Men have acted like tyrants, like the Avengers feared all along. The Marvel U populace and all the readers need to realize the Avengers are the protagonists here.

As for the actual fight, it’s nice and brutal. Red Hulk comes out of it the worst, with Namor handing out more damage than Rulk has ever absorbed. Bendis puts together a great team of heavy hitters to confront Namor. Beast, Vision, Rulk, Spidey, DD, Thor, Falcon, Thing, Dr. Strange, Valkyrie, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver show up to aid Black Panther and Cap. That’s one heck of a powerful lineup! Honestly, I could have read another 10 pages of these guys battling each other.

I’m intrigued at how Cyclops is reacting to this attack, since he clearly wasn’t aware of it. It seems Emma Frost is fine, but I’d hope at least Cyclops and Colossus are showing some remorse. It sure doesn’t feel like it when they show up and chase off the Avengers, though. As for the boost in power that the Phoenix Four now feel? I wonder if any of the remaining hosts might try to take out his or her peer to taste a little more power? Talk about a bad guy move…

Adam Kubert is a great artist, but some of this feels a tad rushed. Cap looks skinnier than normal in the panels where he’s running around fighting Atlanteans. My bigger problem is some confusion during the battle. Scarlet Witch and Namor are in a power-blast facedown, and the next panel has Vision flying away with Wanda. Was she hurt? Exhausted? What happened? That said, most of the battle is well-laid out, especially the bruisers’ moments. When Thor, Thing, or Rulk are going toe to toe with Namor, it looks nice.

Good

AvX #6 & 7

So the X-Men are still pretty much the bad guys, right? I mean, Cyclops is doing his best to maintain his boyscout status, but clearly, the rest of the Phoenix Five are not doing so well. I suppose Colossus might still be OK, since he hasn’t done anything, but Namor, Emma Frost, and Magik are all looking a lot like villains.

Emma Frost full-on torches Hawkeye, and while we know he survives, that’s got to be a pretty traumatic experience. I’m also amazed that Scarlet Witch retained her “break people apart/House of M powers.” She touches Namor and he makes like the Thing and crumbles! It’s an interesting twist that she’s the one Avenger the Phoenix Five fear, but c’mon, couldn’t we have seen a bit more of the reunion? This lady has been dead for a long time, and last I saw (in issue 0 of this very series) she was not on good terms with the team!

It’s amazing that with a 12 part series, I can still feel like I’m missing stuff. When did Namor and Emma start cheating on Cyclops? I guess the X-Factor and other X-people reunion happened off-screen somewhere, since Havok and Polaris are now clearly with the X-Men? It’s like I missed the pieces where Cyclops put his plan into action, and we’re already in the middle of it. This really feels like a series written by a bunch of different people. “I thought YOU were writing Cyclops’ master plan!”

There are some great elements in here. Black Panther is back where he belongs at the forefront of the Avengers. Tony Stark’s self-obsession is always entertaining. Captain America seems a lot more ragged than I can remember. As I said above, I really like Cyclops trying to toe the line and prove the X-Men are still a force for good.

(And we’ve got some wonderful set up for the next couple issues of Versus, no doubt about that.)

Olivier Coipel’s pencils are still an acquired taste, but I really like his stuff now. His Black Panther is simply awesome, and I love the cutaway shots of Utopia with Magneto floating serenely, guarding his kingdom. Best of all, Coipel’s Hawkeye actually looks pretty cool before he pulls a Johnny Storm.

It’s funny. I’m so clearly supposed to be cheering for the on-the-run Avengers that I find myself pulling for the X-Men. The Avengers had their chance!

Fair

AvX #1

Look at that logo. Is it me, or does this look an awful lot like the main Avengers vs. X-Men title? No, I don’t think this will get confusing at all.


I grudgingly paid out my $3.99 for this one. I thought I’d get a free digital download, but no such luck. In fact, that would have made me pass this book buy except for one problem. I love fights. I love comic book stories, of course, but I still love what brought me to the table when I was 8 years old. Big dudes and ladies smacking the hell out of each other.

And this book delivers. The first chapter features Iron Man vs. Magneto, and thanks to Stark’s genius, the fight lasts longer than you might expect. Shellhead exhibits some fantastic new powers and abilities; the most powerful is tapping into the “planetary power” of Jupiter. Magneto pulls off the same trick, though, so fair is fair. I would have thought this one would end differently than it did, but I’m still satisfied. Jason Aaron does a nice job giving us a clean win. Adam Kubert’s art is fantastic, especially his Magneto. His Iron Man is well done, but Magneto looks regal, powerful, and classic.

The second story features the Immonens putting Namor and Thing through the wringer. Again, the fight didn’t end at all the way I’d expect. Namor, underwater, vs. the Thing. Seems sort of simple, doesn’t it? Kathryn Immonen does a nice job with the banter, especially coming from the more comical Ben Grimm. I also appreciate that the ending is a bit less… final than the one in the first fight. The Thing is walking away, but Namor has already recovered. I think there may be a round 2! Stuart Immonen remains possibly my favorite artist. The heroes look great, the undersea monsters look great, and the backgrounds look great. Couldn’t ask for more.

What an idea, giving top-name artists top-tier characters to knock around. What a treat.

Excellent

Invaders Now! HC

I picked this one up from the library, and it’s odd, I like the Invaders, I like Christos Gage, but this series left me fairly cold. In fact, other than the excellent Torch trade, I haven’t loved any of the Invaders material that Dynamite put out over the last few months.

And really, I should have liked this a lot more. This story features Arnim Zola, Shuma Gorath, and zombies. I mean, those are three of my favorite things, right? But the whole time lost element of the story never totally works. I just don’t feel bad for Bucky Cap or Toro, not as much as I guess I should. It’s also hard to get riled up about the repercussions of a story we never heard about before now.

Gage does a nice job with Union Jack, giving the character a pretty great batting average. Has anyone actually read a bad story featuring the current Union Jack? I can’t think of one. Steve Rogers is fine, as is Toro, but Namor, Spitfire, and the Torch don’t get a ton to do. The Golden Age Vision is somewhat interesting, but I don’t know much of anything about the character.

Arnim Zola isn’t much of a mastermind, leaving the main scheming up to the Lovecraftian Shuma Gorath. Shuma doesn’t have any dialogue, so it’s up to Zola and a weird WWII survivor to give the Invaders someone to play off. The dramatics never fully coalesced for me.

Caio Reis is a new name for me, and his art is decent. It’s tough going up against those Alex Ross covers. Reis’ faces were a bit lumpy and sometimes the battle scenes were too sketchy.

Average

Uncanny X-Men: Breaking Point TPB

Kieron Gillen’s first solo arc on Uncanny X-Men is really strong! I’m not a huge fan of Breakworld, and I certainly wasn’t clamoring to see those characters again, but Gillen does a great job constructing a compelling story with the concept. I even giggled at a few bits of the Breakworlders’ dialogue, which surprised me.

Gillen clearly likes Magneto, and gives him some great lines. Due to the style of story, only a few X-Men really get a spotlight. Colossus, Wolverine, Shadowcat, and Magneto dominate the trade, with Cyclops and White Queen getting a bit of strong banter in too. I’m curious to see what he does when he gets his “regular” line-up post Schism.

Gillen also gets to resolve the “intangible Shadowcat” subplot. It’s a necessary adjustment, I know we’ve seen that a few times before. That big metal containment suit wasn’t a good look for the character, I’m glad she’s free of it by the close of the trade.

I would have loved to see Terry Dodson draw a bit more “classic” a villain in this arc. Powerlord Kruun was always a bit too generic for me, he just doesn’t pop. Dodson does a great job on Colossus, Wolverine, and the other X-Men, though.

This trade also includes the entertaining 534.1 issue by Gillen and Carlos Pacheco. Is there any way we can get Pacheco doing more X-Men? I mean, this brought back the 90’s for me, in a good way!

Good

Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman v4 TPB

Man, these trades seem to take forever before they come out. Doesn't it seem like forever that Marvel did their big media blitz about the Human Torch dying in this comic?

In any case, it is clear that Jonathan Hickman is really keen on his Future Foundation concept, that's where this book is leading. In fact, the Foundation operates as a team through this whole collection, with Val and Franklin both exhibiting their world-class powers, and Alex Power seems right up there now too.

In contrast, the FF spend this collection split up handling different missions, many of them wrapping up old FF storylines. Reed Richards heads out to Nu-Earth to convince Galactus that he doesn't need to destroy that planet. Susan Storm heads under the sea with Namor to broker a peace treaty with the ancient Atlanteans she discovered in the polar icecaps. Meanwhile, Ben Grimm drinks the potion the Foundation made that will turn him back into a human for one week a year. So he and Johnny Storm go out on the town. (Johnny's reaction when Ben reverts to humanity is my favorite segment in the whole collection.)

Turns out that is bad timing, since Annihilus has chosen this moment to send another Annihilation Wave into the universe. This time, he's blasting free through the Negative Zone portal in the FF's headquarters. Closing this portal is the crux of much of the collection, and I found myself being won over by the snarky Wizard-clone (he might be the 2nd biggest brain in the Foundation).

Again, I like all these plots, but Hickman's take on the FF is so... dry. Johnny and Ben are the only two who have any fun with this hero thing. Killing Johnny off doesn't improve that situation. The final issue is a silent one, featuring the cast as they agonize over Johnny's death. (But hey, no body means a likely comeback, right?) I will be switching to the library collections for Future Foundation.

Steve Epting and Nick Dragotta are fantastic pencillers. From start to finish, this is a beautiful comic. The original Atlanteans include this awesome crab race that I marvel at every time they appear. Epting's art is simply stunning, and while he draws Susan Storm a tad young-looking, I love the way he draws her controlling a room with her confidence (even a room with Namor in it!)

Fair

The Marvels Project HC

Hmm. Entertaining but unnecessary. At least for me.


I should know better at this point, but I've read a LOT of origin stories for the Marvel U, so seeing another one, even from a crackerjack creative team, isn't enough to thrill me. There are a lot of great elements in Ed Brubaker's flashback story; I've never seen Angel as a POV character, the original Torch is always cool, and I love seeing Namor be a jerk. That said, I've seen all the Cap stuff and the early Torch/Namor fights too many times to be overwhelmed by it.

While I may have been left cold by the elements of the story featuring Cap, Torch, and Namor, I LOVED the portions with some of the lesser known characters. The Angel is a neat, likeable "normal" guy trying to be a hero. The Destroyer is fascinating, I had no idea he is a super-soldier created in a concentration camp. How has this guy not been featured in more comics? Brubaker's story rocks when it is dealing with all the surrounding scientific and military characters. Professor Erskine and his many assistants, John Steele, Nick Fury; all these grounded elements work extremely well in this re-telling. (I don't remember John Steele at all, is he an old character? I like him, I just don't recognize him.)


Steve Epting's art is fantastic. His Torch looks like he's surrounded by liquid flame. Namor really comes off as a villain, thanks to Epting's unflinching look at all the damage and destruction Namor brings down on New York City.

Overall, the book is well done and a solid story, I just felt like too much of it was already familiar to me. If you've been reading Marvel for a long time or read Marvels, this will rehash a lot of material.

Fair

Comics on the Bubble: Marvel Universe #1-3 (1998)

I almost shouldn't count this storyline as "on the bubble." Written by Roger Stern and drawn by Steve Epting, the top notch creative team should have been a good reminder that this is a hell of a solid story.

Through nefarious means, Baron Von Strucker has plans to create an atomic arsenal during the last days of WWII. He's more invested in Hydra than in the Nazis or Germany, which puts him at odds with just about everyone. Stern does a fantastic job of making even faceless Hydra agents seem like real threats, the specially trained saboteurs are remarkably competent. I also like how they all have code-numbers, it gives just a hint of identity to the similar looking masses.

The Invaders are a team where I like the idea, but I don't often like the actual stories. Roy Thomas' series in the 70s was fun, but bogged down by old-style pacing. Stern takes the best elements of those old stories (the Torch's confidence, Namor's jet plane, the developing team) and handles them in a more modern fashion. The Torch is awesome in this, he's constantly mouthing off in a way I don't remember, boasting and threatening the guys he's attacking. Namor is as angry and grumpy as he always is; it's great seeing him lose it when someone calls him the "Sub-Mareener." Cap is actually a bit in the background, he is cool, of course, but I think Namor and Torch shine most on the good guy side. In fact, as a whole, this is almost a Von Strucker story, he does a lot with the page he's on.

Steve Epting has turned into a premiere artist, but even this older work looks great. He's got the different fashions down, and his Cap already looks awesome. I love the Hydra equipment (I don't want to ruin it). There are times when his art almost looks like John Buscema's, and that's a high compliment.

Excellent

X-Men: Utopia (part 3) Dark X-Men: The Beginning

I like seeing Norman Osborn put together his team. It's funny, Namor is such an important character and such an important part of this story, yet I get tired of the guy really quickly. He just doesn't work for me as a sympathetic character. When he and Osborn face off, I didn't really have anyone to root for.

The Mimic story is fun, but wasn't as heroic as I'd hope for the character. Weapon Omega also comes across as a patsy. Osborn's manipulation of Daken is well played, and I loved the odd face off with Mystique. (Has anyone written Mystique as well as Jason Aaron?) Cloak and Dagger go along for the greater good, but that just makes me question why they ditched Osborn as easily as they did. It was never an easy decision for them to join up with him. Dark Beast is another story, it sure looks like he may end up with more control than Osborn.

The best segment in this mini-series is "The One That Got Away" featuring Aurora. When Norman Osborn tries to reign in her two personalities, he finds out things are just a bit more complicated. Aurora is a neat character, and in the speedster-poor Marvel U, I wish we could see more of her. I don't want to see all these new personalities coming back anytime soon, but I'd love to see some of the personality quirks she talks about show up in either of her two "prime" personalities. I always like seeing Alpha Flight characters, so having Aurora show up so tough her was nice.

Overall, the mini-series is probably unnecessary, but there are enough nice moments to make it worthy as part of a greater trade.

Fair

Marvel Two-In-One #25-32 (1977)

So I'm reading two classic runs of Marv Wolfman's, one on Marvel-Two-In-One and the other is his more popular New Titans stuff. I'm going to say, I'm actually liking the Marvel stuff better. I'm not even that huge a fan of the Thing, but I think the pacing works better with the globetrotting adventures of the rocky guy and his gal pal Alicia Masters. These issues make up the "English tour" of the book that really is paced like a current TPB. The Thing needs to travel to England to find a scientist who can save the life of Deathlok. Since he's headed across the pond, Thing brings along Alicia Masters. Since this is a comic, they bump into all sorts of interesting folks like Sub-Mariner, Shang-Chi, Spider-Woman, and Modred the Mystic. I really dug the stereotypical English supporting characters. Spider-Woman deserves a co-starring credit here, she starts off controlled by Hydra but then sticks around for quite a while helping the Thing deal with all sorts of bad guys. This book is so full of mad ideas, I just have to love it.

Heck, the Thinker and Mentallo decide the most efficient way to kill Jimmy Carter is to bring Deathlok from the future to the present! Later, Alicia Masters is injected with Spider-Woman's DNA or something and she turns into a horrific spider-beast that the Thing still can't bear to harm. And through it all, the snooty English bystanders are annoyed at what the Thing is doing to the country. They even regret allowing Captain Britain to operate since he's probably bringing all this on! It's a fun little adventure that's kept light throughout, but with trademark angst for Ben Grimm. I don't think the guy could ever be happy.

And as a side note, it's too bad we're so far removed from WWII now that we can't just pop in old Nazis as the villains for every story. There's a great running story about an old Nazi treasure hunter that pays off with a Merlin-powered quartet of elemental demons. That would be a lot harder to pull off today! Heh.

Ron Wilson handles most of the art and his style says classic Marvel like almost no one else. There is an issue here and there with great fill-in guys like John Buscema, but this is Wilson's book. His Thing is definitive, a big blocky bruiser. I don't like the closed hood on Spider-Woman, but that was the design at the time, so I can't really blame him.

Good

Invaders Classic TPB 1

Roy Thomas has a habit of being really wordy with his stories and the first few issues of the Invaders lives up to those wordy and kind of boring trends.

The opening arcs are against stock silver-agey guys like Brain Drain and a bunch of aliens pretending to be Germanic gods. Nothing too exciting happens for awhile as Thomas goes through all the normal reintroductions for the core cast of Captain America, Namor, Human Torch, Toro, and Bucky. Thomas does immediately establishes a fun rapport between the senior members of the team. Namor calls the Torch "firebug," and the Torch calls Namor "water rat," clearly setting up their relationship. Namor is a heckuva lot more chatty than I remember him being and while he still hates surface men, he is also a lot more willing to talk smack than I'm used to. Another great bit with Namor is how often he makes veiled threats that he will turn on his teammates after the Nazis are defeated. He's not the greatest ally.


Things pick up when the Red Skull kidnaps and brainwashes the core team, leaving only the "worthless" Bucky behind. The story spins out into two fun issues of Marvel Premiere, introducing the Liberty Legion. The Legion is filled with luminaries like Blue Diamond, Red Raven, Miss America, the Whizzer, the Patriot, the Thin Man, and Jack Frost. Mixing all those guys together with Bucky and putting them up against the heavy hitters was a great idea, and the 7 on 3 fight is almost fair.

The closing story was the best of the trade, with the Invaders adding Union Jack to their lineup as they go up against Baron Blood. This was a good little story with lots of trickery from the Baron making this a closer matchup than I expected.

Frank Robbins' art was ok. He has a habit of doing odd faces and eyeballs, but for the most part everything looked ok.

Fair

Incredible Hercules: Love & War

Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente are crafting a modern Marvel classic. These stories don't change your life or make you re-imagine your thoughts about comics, but they are darn fun.

Hercules and Namora are off frolicking on an island when a group of Amazons kidnap Amadeus Cho and make off with him back to a Lemurion museum they've taken over. This brings Namor into the story, and there is a wonderful sequence where he and Hercules start battling until Namora stops them. It turns out Hercules knew they didn't need to fight, but he didn't think it was worth stopping the fight over a little detail. That's just awesome. Hercules' casual attitude about his protege's time with the Amazons is hilarious from start to finish, as he's just hoping Cho can get some action.

Meanwhile, Cho doesn't hit it off with the leader of the Amazons as he figured, but with an interesting gorgon-lady who is quite taken with him. I really dug the star-crossed infatuation the two shared, especially with the sad resolution that we all knew was coming. Cho couldn't really be happy, could he? As always, there is the required rib on Cho's "Fifth-smartest person" status too, as he's forced to admit he got the label from a soup company.

Namora was great in this, she's a fantastic character and I can't wait for the new Agents of Atlas trade. Namora is pretty much a lady-Hercules. She's out to smash people and have a good time. If she keeps appearing in books like this, she may quickly make it into my list of favorite characters. The other revelation in this trade was the first appearance of the Olympus Group, Hera's corporate posse of evil gods out to get Hercules. I'm excited to see what comes of that in upcoming trades.


Clayton Henry does a great job here. His core cast look good, of course, but I was really impressed that he succeeded in making a snake-headed Gorgon cute. Plus, he provided us with what might be the best Hercules panel ever.

Good

Invincible Iron Man #12

I'm enjoying Matt Fraction's tour through the old armors of Iron Man. We get some more action in the Sean Chen-era suit in this issue as IM takes on Namor in an undersea base. Fraction does a great job selling just how powerful Namor is. I think that set of armor is new enough that Stark should have made out ok, but I'm ok with maxing out Namor as an antogonist these days too. Stark ends up having to beat Namor by using his brain and the main export of the surface-world. It's a pretty neat way to see Namor taken out. The issue closes with Stark wearing his fishbowl headed undersea suit. If I get a request, I'm still hoping for lots of Silver Centurion, then how about some Stealth Suit?

The two side-plots get a lot of page time here too, with Maria Hill overwhelmed by the Controller and Pepper Potts taken into custody by HAMMER. I'm really hoping that Hill's story is a setup, I'm pretty convinced she was supposed to be captured she's trying to get plugged in to the Controller's network. He is a creepy villain though, isn't he? Norman Osborn comes off as a real villain in this. He orders a civilian plane shot down just to test out Pepper's capabilities in her armor and then takes advantage of the chaos to arrest her. I'm not sure her capture is a setup. Things might get pretty bad if she's going to the information retrieval department of HAMMER.

Salvador LaRocca's art looks good as always, in particular his take on Namor. I'm not a fan of Pepper's new armor though, that head is very oddly shaped...

Good

Sub-Mariner 70th Anniversary Special #1

I can't justify the price tag, but dang, Namor is a lot of fun, isn't he? The issue follows Namor as he decides to learn more about the Nazis after he spares one of the U-boats off the American coast. He goes "undercover" with a hat and coat (no shoes, no other clothes) in a German bar and is quickly scooped up by a German sleeper agent. She's a hot little number trying to win him over to the Nazi point of view, and she has a great little racial tirade as she looks down onto the streets of New York. Roy Thomas does a fantastic job with her speech. She's an evil characature, totally reveling in the worst parts of the Holocaust, but using her that way has a wonderful payoff later. After he claims to buy into her cause, Namor heads back to the U-boat with her. There more of the true face of the Nazi's as the crew is repulsed by Namor's mixed blood, and they announce themselves as the strongest of believers in the awful ways of WWII Germany. Namor quite contentedly smashes up their sub and leaves the sleeper agent to drown. He had been about to step away from the surface world conflict, but thanks to the clear evil of the Nazis, he is now ready to continue destroying them whenever he can. This was a nice little character piece that not only shows Namor's haughty self-confidence, but also shows what the Avenging Son is capable of when he finally makes up his mind. Good stuff.

Mitch Breitweister's art is fantastic. His 1940's New York is a realized place. The docks, taverns, and even the harbor look "right" in how I picture those things from old movies and stories.

Mark Schultz has a brief backup written and drawn in a Golden Age style, and it is quite entertaining. The odd facial features of Namor's Atlantean spy-master was great, and the lady-aviator was a neat one-off character. The use of an ancient kraken to destroy the Nazi base was perfect. It had a wonderful Golden Age feel (isn't that how an old story would have Namor resolve things?) and at the same time it played to Mark Schultz's strengths as an artist. This was better than the Captain America 70th Anniversary 1-shot. I'm going to keep an eye out for the eventual collection of these 70th Anniversary books, since the good ones are enjoyable enough to justify the average ones.

Good