Secret Avengers v1: Reverie HC

Nick Spencer: props. Props for actually understanding how Hawkeye is supposed to work. He’s on a black ops team. They’ve got specific orders to kill the Scientist Supreme. And Hawkeye just won’t play along. He’ll go on the mission, but the first chance he gets he blows his cover to save Black Widow, just the kind of choice an Avenger should make.

What makes the interaction more fun is the varied response from Hawkeye’s teammates. Black Widow knows Clint and just goes along, figuring it is not a big deal; she’ll take care of it herself. Nick Fury Jr. is insulted that Hawkeye can just consider himself “above” killing. Fury is a soldier, not a super hero, and he has no qualms about taking out the target.

Jim Rhodes is getting a lot of respect in these pages, which is nice to see. He’s a senior hero and the best example of a good soldier/hero in comics, so I liked seeing him take ownership of a role he was meant for. I think Marvel might just be maneuvering him into the Iron Patriot armor, though.

Spencer has some nice interplay between the core team and backup players Mockingbird and Taskmaster, but I still found myself unsatisfied while reading this book. When you’ve got AIM’s super-villain team of bosses that includes the evil Black Widow, Mentallo, Taskmaster, and Graviton, I WANT TO SEE THOSE VILLAINS. Instead, there are an amazing number of pages dedicated to Maria Hill and some random UN dudes talking about who should be in charge of SHIELD.

Honestly, maybe it is just me. Is this what people want from their Avengers comics? Or their SHIELD comics?

Luke Ross’ pencils are as dynamic as ever. I found myself really impressed at his faces for Daisy Johnson and Maria Hill until I realized they were just about the same. I also recognize how well Ross draws the Super Soldier costume on Fury Jr. and Black Widow in her suit. Imagine if he was drawing Hawkeye’s real costume? Or we actually saw those villains in more than a panel each?

This is another comic where I love the cast, I love the villains, and the writing is competent, but the pacing and the actual story on the pages is lacking. It is like the comic book industry is TRYING to spend time on the boring stuff between fights. Any media can do talky and stand around. Only comics can bring an insane level of action on every page.

(I should note that I don’t NEED insane action every page, but I need more than is in this FAIR comic.)

Iron Man 2.0 v1: Palmer Addley is Dead TPB

What an odd trade. This clearly wasn’t written for the collected format. Nick Spencer spends the first few issues setting up James Rhodes’ new status quo. After the War Machine armor fails him in the field, Rhodes becomes Iron Man 2.0, and gets a gig with the military again. He’s “on loan” to a General so that the military doesn’t use someone else. Rhodes has a team of intelligence contractors, but throughout this trade they don’t get to do much more than fill in the background. They are too vanilla to make an impression.

Spencer clearly likes his “Palmer Addley is dead” through line, the phrase comes up at least once an issue for the first half of the book. And Addley has some potential. His creations are being used in “real world” type terrorist attacks, very much in the vein of Matt Fractions early Iron Man work with Ezekiel Stane. The neatest bit is when Spencer spends an entire issue revealing a bit (but not too much) about Addley through archived interviews. This is an interesting baddie!

Too bad he disappears halfway through the book. In a jarring change in tone, the book suddenly becomes a Fear Itself tie in. Titania and Absorbing Man do a quick walk on to pick up a hammer before wandering out of the book; I assume their story is resolved elsewhere.

Then, Iron Man 2.0 is teleported with Iron Fist and the other Deadly Weapons to stop a spiritual jailbreak from the Eighth City. Oh, and while they are there, they meet up with the Monkey King.

… I’m sorry, what? How in the world do these stories fit together? This is one of those times where having your main character voice the same confusion just makes things worse. When Rhodes says “I hate magic. Why am I here?” and stuff like that, I had to agree with him. This is a story for a different character. The collection ends with Dr. Strange talking about the magical entity that possessed Iron Fist. In an Iron Man comic?

Barry Kitson is the first credited artist on the cover, but it sure doesn’t seem like he did a whole lot of this. I love his art, but there aren’t a lot of pages boasting his tight pencils. He’s joined by a legion of fill-in artists, too many to list here. The drastic change in artistic tone, along with the jarring shift in plot from military industrial complex to magic makes this feel like a book that had no direction.

I still love James Rhodes. But I liked him as War Machine. Or maybe Iron Patriot. I think Iron Man 2.0 is insulting. I’ll keep waiting for a book that handles Rhodey with respect and a clear direction. This book is another in a long line of EVIL War Machine comics. 

Hulk: Hulk of Arabia TPB

Jeff Parker continues to do no wrong. He’d already turned me on the Red Hulk, turning him from a character that enraged me on sight to one of my new favorites. Now you add it Machine Man? Well, I’m not made of stone here. Adding in one of my favorite Kirby creations, then writing him like this just made this book an easy sell.

Machine Man isn’t a complicated character, but he can be a fascinating one. I love seeing Red Hulk come around on the guy, starting with their common ground in military research. It’s also fantastic seeing Machine Man make his oddball predictions about comic book science, then take satisfaction when he’s correct. I’m thrilled that Aaron Stack will be appearing in the Red She-Hulk title in Marvel NOW.

Arabian Knight is pretty great too, especially with the redesign and focus that Christos Gage worked into the Union Jack series a few years ago. Now, we don’t get as much of the Knight as it seems at first, but man, it works. I actually went back and re-read a lot of dialogue in this collection after a big reveal, and it all totally works. Very nice work from Parker.

The last line-up of the Secret Avengers shows up too, and their use really highlights a thought I had after reading their series. War Machine, Valkyrie, Black Widow, Steve Rogers… this is a real Avengers team. Call them covert if you like, but missions like this (taking on the Red Hulk) make it hard to not rank them as a pretty great “standard” lineup for the Avengers.

In the end, this is a world-building storyline. The Marvel U needs some more locales in the Middle East, and I think there is a lot of potential in the new country established here. Red Hulk doesn’t actually accomplish a ton, but when we’ve got a new super-powered bad guy with regional influence, packing powers with ties to the Rigelians (of Recorder fame), that’s a can’t-miss with me.

Patrick Zircher nails it, as he always does. He gets to do some sweet mythical designs, like the Manticore and the Scorpion gal who show up here. Machine Man’s extendable arms, jet-powered head, and other silly powers don’t look silly when drawn this cool. I’m not a huge fan of Fortean’s huge Redeemer armor, it’s a bit too generic, but all the other super-details look great. I dig Sultan Magus’ design; he’s got a regal look that doesn’t offset his ability to get his hands dirty. I see long-term potential with the character.

Good

Invincible Iron Man: Stark Resilient TPB 2

One of Fractions greatest accomplishments with this storyline is the creation of the Stark Resilient staff. I can’t remember all their names, but the five or six folks who make up the new company are all recognizable and entertaining. I especially love the slacker who is playing cell phone games and Bejeweled around Stark’s technological radar sense. Fraction’s other fantastic idea is the crowd-sourcing of Detroit Steel’s backup. The Hammers release a Detroit Steel app that lets you play as Steel’s wingman, piloting a drone battling in the same theater as the big hero. It’s a great idea that gamers all over would be blasting away at Iron Man, yet still think they are saving the world.

Salvador LaRocca has a lot of new designs to work on in this trade. I’m not sure I love all the new designs, but there is no denying the sleeker look makes Iron Man look more futuristic. I don’t love the big eyes on all the suits, but I do like the new repulsor nodes dotting Stark’s new suit. War Machine and Rescue both look way too much like Iron Man, though. WM was always Iron Man with cannons and a paint job, so I’m not too worried about that, but I felt that Rescue’s old elongated helmet and swooping curves made her stand out from the star of the book. The new Rescue suit doesn’t differentiate itself much. Detroit Steel is a nice design. He harkens back to Firepower or the Iron Monger; he just dominates more of the page than the slim Iron Man. And Tony Stark might make fun of the chainsaw blade slung under Steel’s gauntlet, but it sure seemed to be pretty effective!

And I will never get tired of seeing Sawyer from LOST starring as Tony Stark. It makes me chuckle every time I see it.

Good

Invincible Iron Man: Stark Resilient TPB 1

Boy, waiting for the omnibus of Matt Fraction’s run on Invincible Iron Man sure leaves a guy far behind. I’m just now getting to the Heroic Age era of this title, complete with the new Iron Man armor and the debut of Detroit Steel. My little nephews already have a toy of Detroit Steel! That’s got to be the fastest character turnaround ever, right?

This story picks up with Tony Stark broke and beaten, but he’s got a plan. He’s going to make his repulsor tech available to the world, for free, but the gadgets that get plugged in, that’s where there’s a profit. It’s odd, this whole story reminded me of the old WildCATS series where Spartan was going to give everyone HALO batteries. Is it just me, or is this similar? I also find it interesting that Marvel and Fraction have really moved up Stark’s weaponeering days. I mean, I remember he had been out of the gun business for awhile during Armor Wars, but in this story we are seeing that Stark was still manufacturing SHIELD weapons up through Dark Reign! It’s interesting how creators get to go to the same well if they just wait long enough. I’m sure in 2019 we’ll have some crackerjack writer talking about how Stark is thinking about getting out of the weapons biz all over again.

The villains for this arc are the Hammer Girls, the wife and daughter of Justin Hammer. Now, Justin Hammer is one of my favorite Iron Man baddies; I always loved the way he had a small legion of super-powered flunkies on hand to take on Iron Man. There’s a bit of that here, since the Hammers employ both Detroit Steel and Spymaster, but only Steel gets an actual conflict. I will admit it’s a great touch that Tony never figures out that his first prototype car gets blown up by Spymaster. The guy is good at his job!

It’s also interesting seeing how Marvel was pushing the Iron Man Family concept at this time. Iron Man II must have come out in here, because Jim Rhodes is right back front and center. I’m not complaining, I like War Machine, but he hasn’t had a big role in the series so far, yet he’s scoring team-up covers like the olden days. Rescue/Pepper Potts also makes a return. I like Rescue, I think she’s a great supporting character with potential to be a lead, so I’m glad she’s back on the scene. It’s neat having J.A.R.V.I.S. in his movie incarnation too.

(Continued tomorrow)

Secret Avengers #28

Time to just admit it. I’m horribly confused. The story playing out in this comic has little to nothing to do with the one in Avengers starring the same characters. I’m usually pretty good and putting that aside. (“Sure, Wolverine just went straight from Mr. Sinister’s dungeon to Ultron’s lab. Why not?”) This time, I just don’t see how that works. It’s like Bendis and Rick Remender picked up the same plot point from a brainstorming meeting and wrote independent stories without consulting the editors. I mean, this is just weird!

In this chapter/universe, the space Avengers are concentrating on freeing the Kree from mind control. I feel like I missed a chapter or something, because this new mind-based villain came out of nowhere for me. Minister Marvel is an entertaining villain, but I really didn’t see his involvement coming (and it felt a bit unnecessary in the greater Phoenix plot).

I do like that Remender has Ms. Marvel utilize her Binary power-set. It’s just another piece of evidence that Remender and I grew up on the same comics and like the same things. Binary was always one of the cooler Starjammers. (Admittedly, not a lot of competition in the Starjammers.)

Renato Guedes’ art isn’t typical for the Avengers. His soft pencil lines combined with the faded coloring makes this look a lot more arty than we usually get from our super-comics. It actually does work. I’ll admit characters like Valkyrie, Thor, and Beast look better than War Machine or Captain Britain. He seems to have a better grip on flowing hair and exposed faces than on metal or masks.

Fair

Avengers #27

So clearly I’m missing something. Why is the Avengers tie-in showing this story? The same material is covered in Secret Avengers, but not in exactly the same way. In fact, I’m having a hard time reconciling the two parallel stories. It just doesn’t seem to make sense.

Walt Simonson is still a fantastic artist, but I can’t help but feel that he’s missing the mark with Protector. This guy looks like a kid, and it’s a bit harder to hold a grudge against him when he looks so young and confused. Bendis’ odd choice to make Protector immediately regret his actions is weird too. I mean, Protector betrayed his team (either with Ms. Marvel or not, depending on which tie-in you read) and sent them hurtling towards a sun. So that would kill them. That’s a full on, murderous betrayal. I don’t care if he’s surprised that the Supreme Intelligence hates Earth. It’s a bit too late to ask for specifics, doofball.

I am pleased that the savage Beast who shows up in this one is once again the ape-beast. The Avengers office is clearly fine with Hank McCoy going back to his original look. The X-editors need to stop fighting it and do the same.

It’s just a strange situation. With Bendis writing some of the core AvX series, I would have thought that the core Avengers title would be a little more focused on the Earth-side situation. I mean, the space team is already starring in Secret Avengers. Why go to that well twice?

Average

Secret Avengers #27

Marvel’s accelerated publishing schedule is beginning to catch up with me. I picked up this comic to review it, but I was having a devil of a time remembering what happened. After opening it, I realized that I hadn’t read it yet; I was confusing it with the last issue of Avengers. Too many issues in one month dealing with the same story, people!

In any case, Rick Remender is still doing a great job with this title. War Machine gets a lot more to do in this issue, and Remender has a nice handle on his voice. Good old Jim Rhodes was knocked out when things weren’t half as bleak as they are when he wakes up. Thor also comes off like a leader here; we usually see Thor backing up Cap or Iron Man, but I really enjoy seeing him taking charge. He talks up Captain Britain to try and get his confidence back up, and takes charge when his team gets split up. The split works well; there are plenty of nice character moments for the entire roster (except Protector, but who cares?)

I’m curious who is behind this Kree manipulation. It sure looks like the Supreme Intelligence isn’t calling the shots. Too bad, I like that big brain. I’m also still unsure if this is the real Captain Marvel or not. He certainly has the memories, but how many times has Marvel teased us now?

I still love Renato Guedes’ “beautiful” take on an Avengers comic. Beast’s (in ape form) has painstakingly illustrated hair. Thor has a distinctive nose that keeps him from looking like Captain Britain. This looks like a romance comic or something, but man, when it’s time for Thor to smash someone’s head with a hammer, it looks pretty sweet too.

Good

Secret Avengers #26

It’s always enjoyable to see super-heroes who are “different.” Captain Britain was never really a favorite for me, too generic. But I absolutely love Rick Remender’s take on the hero. The guy is powered by his self-confidence, that is, the more he believes in himself, the more powerful he is. A guy like that literally CANNOT stop to think things through. He’s got to go with his gut, and always believe it is going to work. The awesome thing is that a hero like this is basically always set up for failure.

Remender plays up this fascinating dynamic by setting the scene with some nice opening moments. Beast and Cap Britain have worked together in the past; I never thought of them as close, but it makes sense they would hang out in anticipation of a suicide mission. I also dug seeing how Thor and Valkirie spent their last free hours: getting hammered.

Ms. Marvel, Protector, and War Machine are also on the mission, but Rhodey gets taken out fast and I think the Kree-affliliated folks will have a lot more to do next issue.

Renato Guedes’ art is beautiful. It’s a lot more sketchy than I’m used to in my mainstream hero comics, but it works well in this context. The art has an almost BPRD-esque feel to it. The Phoenix Force, the ships, and the space backdrop always look impressive. I also appreciate that Guedes draws Beast in his ape-form. The X-office can fight it, but everyone prefers the original look.

Good

Secret Avengers v2: Eyes of the Dragon TPB

Wow. Once again, the secret “spy” team delivers the best, most “Avenger-y” story I’ve seen in months. Ed Brubaker really does some nice stuff here. At times, characters suffer from a lack of panel time (mostly Moon Knight and Ant-Man) but even those neglected characters get brief moments to shine.

This trade stars Steve Rogers, Sharon Carter, and Shang-Chi as they attempt to stop the Shadow Council’s resurrection of Shang’s father. Once known as Fu Manchu, his evil goes back a lot farther than anyone previously guessed, with ties to the titular Eyes of the Dragon.

John Aman, the Prince of Orphans (from the Iron Fist series) essentially joins the team, and he’s a great fit. His misting power works well, and he definitely holds his own in the fights. And speaking of fights, this collection has some fantastic battles. From the Rogers/Shang sparring sessions to the Valkyrie John Steele beat-down, the fights are fantastic. I actually chuckled in glee when War Machine drops Steve Rogers from above, with Rogers delivering a devastating two-handed punch to Steele.

I don’t really know much about Max Fury, but the idea of an evil super-spy is pretty solid. I love that his plans have just as many layers and tricks as the real Fury; it’s neat seeing that Rogers is pretty adept in that world too. Ant-Man gets a fantastic moment as a secret back-up plan, and Moon Knight gets a wonderful moment too, both resulting from Rogers’ planning. (Sharon Carter and the Beast get taken down too easily though!)

With a book this jam packed with characters and action, I see why Brubaker let Nova fade away from the cast. Really, that a$$-kicking role does just fine in Valkyrie’s hands. Mike Deodato and Will Conrad do a fantastic job with the battle scenes and the quiet moments. I also found it amusing (and fair!) that for all the scenes of the lady Avengers standing around looking naked, there are a lot of shirtless dudes too. They are trying to please everyone, I guess!

This is the best Avengers I’ve read in awhile.

Excellent

Secret Avengers #21

What a wrap-up to an entertaining run. Warren Ellis delivers his last word on the Avengers with the same gonzo, original ideas that he’s delivered through his run. Utilizing a nice forgotten piece of Marvel minutiae, the Secret Avengers invade a ONE base (Office of National Emergency, last seen around the X-Men’s Decimation) to root out a Shadow Council spy. I wasn’t pleased to see Cap resorting to torture (by association), especially when it worked once again.

I did like that Ellis surprises us with the actual traitor, and it is all worth it for the great battle scenes in the office building’s basement. The weird, tentacled creatures are pretty reminiscent of those in The Mist from a few years ago, but it’s very different seeing them clearly blasting their way through office building floors and lashing out at heroes.

Ellis makes sure to give almost every member of the team a few lines, although he saves the best for Steve Rogers, Beast, and Valkyrie. The potential in this lineup really is fantastic, I suppose Ed Brubaker deserves the credit for that. The straight-up heroics of War Machine make a great contrast with the more… unrestrained methods of Moon Knight and Black Widow.

I love Stuart Immonen’s artwork. His sleek, powerful War Machine is one of the best Iron Man style designs that I’ve ever seen. I love that you can see the difference between Sharon Carter and Valkyrie by their flowing battle-hair. And the aforementioned creature design is a great blend of sci-fi and horror. I know most people love this creative team for their Nextwave work, but I would have loved more straight-up super-heroics like this.

Good

Secret Avengers: Mission to Mars TPB

Explain to me why the "covert" team of Avengers is going on the most classic-style adventure of any of the Avengers titles? Using the classic Marvel serpent crown? It's a secret team yet it stars a bulkier Iron Man, Lady Thor, and a blue furry cat-man. Am I the crazy one here?

Don't get me wrong, these aren't complaints. I'm thrilled that Ed Brubaker put together this well-rounded team of heroes and set them off after the storied serpent crown. I would have loved for Nova to have a bigger role on the team; as it is, he botches one mission then jets back off for the Thanos Imperative. It's too bad, Richard Ryder would be a good fit on the Avengers, I just think Brubaker probably didn't need all that firepower. Brubaker has his big guns covered with Valkyrie (Mike Deodato likes her big guns too. War Machine brings a lot of muscle too, although I'm not a huge fan of "angry" War Machine, even though that's how Jim Rhodes was portrayed in his most recent series.

The more espionage-y members fill out the roster nicely. Ant-Man is the new Hawkeye, trying to prove his worth while still retaining his silliness. Black Widow is Steve Rogers' right-hand gal in the field, while Sharon Carter fills that role at home. Moon Knight is crazy, but there isn't really time for his madness to manifest in these pages, he does a good job of staying on task and doing his job. I loved how Mike Deodato took Moonie's cowl off on the space-suit version of the costume.

Deodato's art is always dynamic and fun, the guy draws great explosions. He also gets to draw some titanic chests on Valkyrie, Sharon Carter, and Black Widow. Seriously, I think Val might be able to open doors from a few feet away. At least all three get to kick a lot of butt, so they aren't just pin-ups in the book. I also loved Deodato's space-costumes for the team. Steve Rogers, Moon Knight, and Black Widow were especially cool.

This feels more like "classic" Avengers than most anything published recently. A good trade for those who miss the madness of 1980's Marvel.

Good

Comics on the Bubble: War Machine (1994)

War Machine (1994) - I think this is going on an issue-by-issue basis. Len Kaminski and Scott Benson don't write anything that sets the world on fire, but they've got some solid stuff in their run.


The art is by Gabriel Hardman going by Gabriel Gecko. He's clearly channeling Dave Ross at this point, and the fit isn't quite natural. Some panels and characters look fantastic, while others are a bit out of proportion. His stuff is worlds better these days on Agents of Atlas.

• Issue 2: Cable and Deathlok guest-star in this average issue. War Machine shoots up a ton of non-descript African soldiers, this is pretty boring. SELL


• Issue 3: Deathlok sticks around to kill some more generic soldiers. Can't make myself care. The art is kind of ugly too. SELL


• Issue 5: I'm a tad more interested now, Rhodey is struggling with killing all these folks. I like the Death Toll hitman's powers too, just regenerating lives. But since I'm missing part 2, I'm going to SELL


• Issue 7: The villain may be generic, but Hawkeye shows up to have a nice chat with Rhodey. KEEP


• Issue 8: I don't think I've ever read an Iron Man/War Machine fight I didn't like. KEEP


• Issue 9&10: This is a crossover with Abnett & Lanning's Force Works. KEEP


• Issue 11-14: Dan Abnett takes over as writer. I like this little story with WM fighting the thrill-seeking Rush Club. KEEP


• Issue 15-16: Boring time travel story in WWII. Nick Fury looked AWFUL in the 90's. he's got a flowing head of hair and a gigantic face eye-cover. UGH. SELL


• Issue 21: Ugh. The Crossing is absolutely awful. Black Widow, Hawkeye, and US Agent all look just terrible here. SELL


• Issue 22: Now we have gigantic, bejeweled (and evil) Iron Man showing up. I want to forget this ever happened. SELL


• Issue 23-24: I have no interest in the Warwear suit Rhodey wore at this time, so villains relating to that alien tech do nothing for me. SELL

Summary:
KEEP: 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
SELL: 2, 3, 5, 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 24

Secret Avengers #1

Wow, this really was a fantastic blend of Ed Brubaker's signature gritty action and the Avengers. I never thought the mix would work out this well, but I loved this comic.

The book opens with Valkrie and Black Widow undercover, acquiring an artifact from a Roxxon executive (bonus for even using Roxxon, one of the best evil corporations out there!) They nab the object, with Steve Rogers' help, and it turns out to be a variant of the Serpent Crown. So in the opening few pages we've got undercover work, punching, and the return of an old Avengers plot-device. Fantastic! The story goes on to show that Roxxon had been digging on Mars and that's probably where they discovered the crown. After losing contact with team-member Nova, Cap rallies the troops and they head off to recover the Human Rocket.

I loved the character interaction in this title. Black Widow and Valkrie are both tough gals, but in totally different ways. Rhodey/War Machine feels like a techie, a hero, and a pilot all at the same time. I love the idea of Moon Knight trying the Avengers thing again, hoping it can help him clean up his act. And pairing him with Ant-Man is genius. Ant-Man also needs redemption, and we've seen how Ant-Man tends to latch onto authority type mentors when he gets to the big dance (he was constantly puppy-dogging Paladin in Thunderbolts). Nova makes sense for this mission on Mars, and I do hope that he gets to stick around. From Rogers' dialogue, it seems the roster may be shifting around a bit.

I will say there are a LOT of time jumps in this book. I kept it straight, but I sure wouldn't mind a bit more linear of a story next time. I also have no idea what is up with Fury in that suit. Is that something from Secret Warriors?

Mike Deodato's art is fantastic. The backgrounds are a bit iffy, but I love the designs for Cap, Beast, and especially Ant-Man. The cover for next issue promises some great space-suit designs coming up too. This is a hell of a comic.

Excellent

Iron Man 2

Look at that picture and try not to be excited!

I'm really hoping War Machine gets another series launched to coincide with the new movie. Maybe with Sean Chen on art?

War Machine #10

Is it me, or has it been a long time since the last issue of War Machine came out? In any case, this issue picks up with Norman Osborn having turned the Ultimo robot over to his side by reducing it to the intellect level of a child. Naturally, War Machine can't let such a powerful force of destruction fall into Osborn's hands, so he has his ally the Cybermancer zip away with the child-like machine so that she can teach it some morals. I'm amused at how quickly that element was removed from the story. I think Greg Pak needed to wrap things up for the upcoming cancellation of this title and needed to focus on the more exciting aspects of this story.

This is actually a good thing, since that means more War Machine vs. Norman Osborn. WM takes on Osborn and the two of them have a nice back and forth as the issue goes on as each temporarily gains the upper hand. While Osborn is occupied, WM's allies from the West Coast Avengers each make a mad dash to bring corrupt allies of Osborn's to justice. This was a pretty amusing sequence, from the hot-button issues that Pak chose to highlight to the reaction shot in the White House. Obama seems quite pleased at the Avengers' whirlwind approach to law enforcement. It is clear that Osborn is heading for a fall. He does manage to capture Rhodey, and moves quickly to put War Machine on trial. The final two issues of this series should be pretty cool as Rhodey stands trial for his heavy handed approach throughout this series.

Allan Jefferson returns to handle the art duties, and he does a nice job. He has a habit of drawing lumpy faces (particularly on Rhodes and Osborn) but I really dig his take on Wonder Man. The storytelling is clear and the pencils have a really light line-weight. I bet this was colored straight from pencils.

Fair

War Machine #7

Man, I honestly can't believe how my opinion of this book whiplashes around every month. This was a solidly entertaining issue, and it felt more like an Iron Man spin-off than the rest of the series combined. A lot of that comes from using Ultimo as a villain, but when Rhodes starts putting his tech team in spare suits of armor, now we're talking! I really liked seeing American Eagle again. His blow-off of Norman Osborne was fantastic. I'm also liking that rather than directly connecting to weird looking equipment, the War Machine armor reformed in the middle of an exo-type suit. It looks a lot less silly than having the top half of the armor attached to a tank or plane.

The title is really coming together and there is a lot of potential in the cast. After the Ultimo threat is dealt with, I'll be very curious to see where Rhodey and his crew go from there. The book isn't the best I read each month, but it is good enough.

The art by Allan Jefferson is clean and easy to follow. I think he might actually be a better fit for the title than Leonard Manco, who made everything look too realistic.

Fair

War Machine #6

Greg Pak goes back to the flashbacks with this issue, and I found myself re-engaged in the story. I love the story of Rhodey's childhood, I don't know why. He's such a good guy, and seeing his strong morals come out so fiercely in his childhood, I find myself really liking that aspect of the book more than any other. His Mom is a great character too, with her long-standing sufferance to her son's strong moral code. I'm always pleased when heroes have surviving family members, it makes them feel more real and not quite as "angsty." Rhodes' contingency plan and backup planning is neat, as we see how he asked his Mom to resettle to American Eagle's reservation so that she'd technically be off U.S. soil and he'd have a safe home base. The personal confrontation as Rhodes returns to re-equip himself was well done: Rhodes may make time to rationalize and explain to his mother, but she knows why he really came home.

Rhodey's support team still doesn't interest me that much, I kind of think they drag him down. I will admit it was a neat sequence when American Eagle took them all out so easily. AE's powers have been amped, haven't they? He is a top-level fighter these days and I just don't remember him being that top notch. I don't have a problem with it, he's a great character, but it seems new to me. As for the series going forward, while I'm liking some of the little story bits, I'm not interested in the overall War Machine vs. America plot. I'll pick up next issue since the West Coast Avengers are in it, but after that I'm not sure. Plus I'm worried that War Machine will be attaching himself to more tanks and planes, and that snap-on aspect of his new incarnation seems silly to me.

Allan Jefferson's art is pretty strong, especially in his handling of the armor and the flashback sequences. American Eagle's face seems a little too old and lumpy for the character, but not bad overall.

Fair