Invincible #69

I'm glad Robert Kirkman is keeping things Earth-bound again. Well, all the threats this issue actually do come from other planets, but at least the action is on Earth. Kirkman has built up his corner of the Image universe so completely that I get bummed if I don't see Monster Girl or Robot for too long.

Universa seems like the generic alien powerhouse. I'm not sure if she's actually a villain or not, but she needs to drain the Earth dry to power her dying planet. I dug seeing Atom Eve and Invincible teaming up to take her on, and even better, due to Eve's power fluctuations, she had to step outside her comfort zone to take out the villain.

The other threat for the issue is the return of the sequids, the cool little brain octopi that basically work like tougher-talking Starros. I really dug the Guardians of the Globe having to evacuate potential hosts to stop the invasion. The approach makes sense, since the little buggers get stronger the more hosts they have, but still, I liked seeing scared bystanders porting out of the danger zone. It does seem the Guardians are overmatched though. Brit helps in the power-house department, but the team needs a couple more members to make up for losing the Immortal, Duplicate, and Rex Splode.

Ryan Ottley is great. Sure, I can't help but notice Universa and Eve have almost the same face, but that's ok. Those little sequids always look so gross, I think they might be my favorite Invincible villains.

Good

Guardians of the Galaxy #21

Is there a better team book on the stands right now? I don't think so. DnA's cosmic corner is so well fleshed out that the background super-team The Luminals are now an effective rival group for the Guardians. They get a lot of panel time in this issue, and man are they enraging. It's so much fun rooting for "our" team against the more politically connected Xandarian team.

Moondragon is really the star of the issue. She voluntarily... accepts the parasitic creature that is loose in the Guardians HQ in order to protect the Luminals and the other residents of the space station. This whole plotline is super-gross. Moondragon looks pregnant, with gross bumps on her stomach moving around as the creature inside her gets comfortable. She is supposedly keeping it under control with her telepathy, but how long do you think that can last? I also appreciate that the Church of Harmony is totally in love with this entity. Sure, it's demonic and murderous, but it makes the worshippers get the same feeling as when they're praying, so it must be their god, right? Awesome, awesome idea. Factor in the first inklings of the evil universe waiting on the far side of the rift (a universe where "life won") and its clear this book juggles plots better than any other. I'm sure a universe where "life won" might have need of Martyr as the avatar of death too, or dare I hope? Thanos?

Brad Walker handles the varied elements in this perfectly. He draws courtroom scenes, exploding heads, and dramatic alien pregnancies all with a perfect style. He's a great fit for this book.

Excellent

Marvel Zombies 3 TPB

Fred Van Lente delivers the type of zombie story I hoped for from the start of this franchise. He basically plays the whole horror thing straight, and by putting the zombies up against actual characters from the "real" Marvel U, the horror is much more effective. Only a few named characters get killed here. I recognize Conquistador from Contest of Champions, but I have no idea who Siege is. It is nice to see that even Aquarian and Jennifer Kale are too big of names to get eaten.

The actual stars of the trade are obviously Machine Man and Jocasta, with Portal of Darkhawk fame as a supporting character. The robots are dispatched by ARMOR (think interdimensional SHIELD) to obtain a pure blood sample to create a vaccine for the zombie virus. The only problem is that there is a mole in ARMOR, and the vaccine will just infect all the registered heroes instead of innoculating them. There's some great ultra-violence as Machine Man engages in all the violence he wants against the soft fleshies. This Machine Man is the Aaron Stack of Nextwave, not the kind robot of the 70s. That's ok, Van Lente makes sure to give us enough glimpses of X-51's heroic side to still make him likeable. I'm really psyched for the next installment, especially if it really delivers with the Legion of Monsters!

Kev Walker handles the gore well, and still keeps within the style of the previous Marvel Zombies series. He'd be a little too scratchy for a core Marvel U book, but in a horror setting like this, he's perfect.

Thor #605

Kieron Gillen promised some smashing, and he delivers it in his second issue. Thor has returned to aid Baldur and the other Asgardians in dealing with the treacherous Dr. Doom. Doom has killed and transformed numerous Asgardians into gross undead cyborgs. There are some great moments in this. Thor's tremendous, atomizing lightning blast was exactly what I want in a Thor comic. I also dug how quickly Baldur backed down in trying to face down Thor too. When your big gun decides to show up late, you don't give him a hard time when he saves your butt.

I do like how JMS and Gillen have turned Kelda into a goddess that everyone really liked. The chance to bring her back from death is enough to get Loki's guards to let him free, proving how much they want her back. Loki surprised me then, he actually showed up to try and save Kelda! I'm not sure what game he's playing, but between how he's manipulating Dr. Doom and Norman Osborn, he's never been more important to the Marvel Universe.

Billy Tan's art is scratchier than last issue. This is more in line with what I expect from him, it's not awful, but it isn't my favorite either.

Good

Scalped TPB 3: Dead Mothers TPB

Jason Aaron is taking the slow road in this series. If I was reading this monthly, I could see getting annoyed at the lack of forward momentum. We're 3 books in, and we're barely any closer to finding out who murdered who and who is betraying who. I could see how some people would be disappointed.

I'm not.

Aaron is taking his time weaving a tale that has some of the richest characters I've ever read about. Dash Bad Horse's reaction to the death of a loved one is so well presented, you can't help but appreciate the guy. He's a tough bastard, but occasionally he does crack. Dash's taking of a recent orphan under his wing just drives home how he is a good guy at heart. If he had the chance, he'd be a great guy. But in his world, usually all he can do is hand out punishments, not redemption. He tries his best, but the reservation is too hard a place.

After some thoughts that Diesel Engine was a good guy doing some bad stuff, it is clear he is bad through and through. I'm not anxiously awaiting Dash getting his hands on him. The confrontation between Diesel and the orphan is predictable and a bit emotionally manipulative, but damn if it doesn't work.

R.M Guera is still drawing this book perfectly. You can feel the heat baking everyone who appears on the page. The designs for the new Hmong enforcers are tremendous too. Great stuff.

Good

G.I. Joe Origins #8-10

Larry Hama's second storyline is feeling more and more like classic G.I. Joe. As more and more folks join the cast, the familiar interactions are coming together nicely. I am impressed at some of the new stuff too; I like that Stalker thinks Scarlett is a bit of a loose cannon. It's fun having the lone lady operative be the crazy one on the team too. Breaker and RocknRoll are a fun team, certainly they are the least impressive pairing of the cast so far. I'm also digging Hawk as a politician who can actually get down in the muck and kick butt when he has to. Hawk was always more of a soldier-first kind of guy in the Marvel era, in these IDW books I'd say he's more a general/politician and a soldier second. He's still looking out for his troops though.

Hama always excels when he writes civilians, and the hostages for this storyline prove he hasn't lost his touch. An elderly couple is actually ex-military and quite tough, and they are joined by a rapper and his crew. There is little to no friction as these two disparate groups of Americans come together while captive to try and take on their captors. No helpless prisoners here!

I do wish the art was a bit stronger. I don't recognize Andrea Mutti's name, but the pencils just don't hold up as well as most of the other IDW stuff so far. I would like to see the house style from the core Joe title used more in this spin-off. Let the experimental stuff stay in the Cobra miniseries, I want my core Joe books to look "classic."

Fair

Amazing Spider-Man: Death & Dating TPB

This is the strongest Brand New Day trade so far. There are two interesting things to note about this trade. The first is that it features writing by classic Spidey scribes Mark Waid and Roger Stern. The second is that it has the return of classic Spidey villains, including the Shocker and Molten Man. I'm not sure which return is influencing my opinion more, but I am really pleased with the product. This was actually the last Spidey trade I had ordered, I had planned on dropping the book, but now I'm in for at least one more trade.

The Roger Stern story was my favorite. With classic artist Lee Weeks on art, this felt more like Spidey than anything else I've read in ages. Spidey is down on his luck but still so plucky and determined, it's easy to see why we cheer for the guy.

In Mark Waid's claustrophobic thriller, the Shockers is a bad dude. I love how he and Spidey know each other so well they really can't surprise each other. Except when they do. Shocker was a bit more cold-blooded than I thought he was, but I guess I don't know the character that well. Maybe he always has been ok with killing folks. Spidey was almost too put upon here, the guy gets worked over a ton. But again, that's classic Spidey, isn't it?

The Molten Man/Norman Osborn story was worth it just for the insinuation that Spider-Man and Peter Parker are more than friends. Wonderful.

So more of this please, Spider-office!

Good