Avengers vs. X-Men #11 - I just want this to end, ok? I'm done fighting it. See Paul O'Brian's review for a more detailed review and well-deserved take-down. I say we just move on.

New Avengers #30 - Luke Cage married and with a baby is another toy that Marvel strategically broke, and the logical conclusion is exactly what we're seeing here. Which, again, i'm totally fine with. I just don't want Mephisto showing up if a Heroes For Hire movie is ever announced. There's nothing tremendously wrong with this issue except for the tenuous connection to AvX.

Uncanny X-Men #18 - People (Wanyas, P O'B) are describing this as a good version of AvX #11 and it's true that it has actual character development and is generally better written. But i still find the nature of this type of tie-in especially annoying. This stuff should just be in the main series. Now i've got a semi-repeat that is just different enough to make everything feel disjointed. It's a very strange way to deliver a story, where you go read a scene all the way through and then you stop, and go back and go over it again with more detail. I guess it kind of works as like a post-modern, Joseph Heller type of thing but i don't think that's what Marvel is intentionally going for. I do like the Colossus/Magik reveal.

Avengers Assemble #7 - So i guess Thanos just killed three Elders of the Univese, plus the In-Betweener and the Stranger (or are they also considered Elders now; i wasn't sure)? And said that he's been involved in struggles and conflicts with them "over the millennium"? A quick double-check of Thanos Quest tells me that's wrong, at least about In-Betweener and Champion, anyway, but i'm being cautious because like Tom Brevoort says, most complaints about continuity are from people who haven't read every comic. And yet, it seems wrong, and there's no footnote. I didn't even realize Thanos (and therefore, presumably, Starfox?) is supposed to be that old. Anyway, i don't have a lot of faith in Bendis in this context and i don't think much of this plotline so far, but Bagley's art is nice.

X-Factor #243 - Polaris has been, ah, mishandled over the years, so coming up with an in-story explanation for it isn't a bad thing. But i was really hoping the "Polaris really is Magneto's daughter" thing would just go away (i posted that Twisted Toyfare excerpt below for a reason!), and this issue instead seems to be solidifying it. But i guess now that we're in memory implant territory we can go on for years with reversals. Then there's the question of Magneto & Mastermind hanging together so early, but i guess we'll just wave our sliding timescale wand at that if nothing else works. Besides that, PAD writes snappy dialogue and this is at least readable.

Avenging Spider-Man #12 - Not sure what i think of this. I mean, sure, i'll stick around for the Hypno-Hustler. And i really liked the cover (here's the original). But even accepting the Inception theme, it read more like a Joe Kelly Deadpool issue than, say, a good Deadpool issue. You know what i am saying? Probably depends on what you thought of Joe Kelly's Deadpool.

X-Men Legacy #273 - Speaking of awesome covers, here we have Rogue riding a giant saber-toothed lion (another homage, this time to Frank Frazetta). And that's really all i need to say about this issue. But since i've referenced his reviews twice already, i'll just note that Paul O'Brien thought this arc needed to be longer, and i disagree. I'm glad it didn't turn out to be a six part story. I would have trimmed it a bit and ended it after two; we didn't really need the extended post-battle wrap-up. I think we got the point. That said, three issues isn't a bad compromise and i enjoyed this.

Captain America #17 - This has been good. I like the continued Madbomb usage. Even an Ice Pirates reference this issue. So maybe this Bunn guy isn't so bad after all. I'm sure min will have an opinion with the Diamondback romance scene but at least that seems to be wrapping up (although it therefore seems a bit pointless). And i enjoyed Zemo's murderous showing in the satellite.

Avengers Academy #36 - Really loving this. It's a shame Marvel's just going to throw these characters away for some cheap deaths. Must... not... react... to... promo... materials. I really liked White Tiger's interaction with her totem spirit; that was a really cool scene. The Mettle/Hazmat pathos is well handled, Julie's fighting spirit ("And now... I have a dagger.") was awesome, and it's just a well-written, nicely drawn book. Also, i'll just say that the scarring that Jeremy "Briggs" gave to Striker sure reinforces my pet "son of the Molecule Man" theory.

Dark Avengers #180 - Luke Cage may be quitting the Avengers, but it looks like he and his offspring aren't getting out of the super-biz so easily. This does raise the question of when the various books are taking place; i guess it makes sense that this is all pre-AvX. Anyway, we'll figure that out later. I am amazed (and a little annoyed) at the degree to which we're doing a Judge Dredd homage? parody? here, but i am enjoying this book. I will concede, however, that while *i* like this story, it is very densely plotted, with a large cast of characters, references back to previous arcs and even other books (Red Hulk) written by Parker. So i guess i should just shut up regarding my frequent complaints (which weren't relevant this time anyway) about PAD's X-Factor. But it's only here that you can get Troll hacking off a bird-mutant's wing and Man-Thing saying, "You not touch Thunderbolts, Zah Zah.", plus Ghost and Hyde and just a really great cast. Regarding the art, it's not really my preferred style; just a tiny a bit more on the sketchy side than i would like. But there's a tradeoff for that. Lots of panels, lots of details (i know, sketchy but detailed; my vocabulary for describing art needs to improve), good action-flow, and i loved that panel with Moonstone doing the little ix-nay gesture when Satana accidentally referenced Cage in front of the mutants. This is a good book! And so it's being replaced with two separate Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers books, neither of which are by Parker! Dammit, i did it again!

i totally have an opinion on Diamondback's sad and pathetic display, but none of it's fit for general consumption. just know that Cap better stop acting like a royal dick. i'm keeping my fingers crossed for some sort of mind-alteration plot otherwise, if i were Sharon, i'd tell Diamondback she could be my guest. douche.