By fnord12 | June 10, 2008, 12:03 PM | Comics | Link

SuperMegaSpeed Reviews

Punisher War Journal #20 - Well, i guess fighting the Hand and (eventually?) going up against Domino, Silver Sable, and Contessa Valentina Allegro De La Fontaine falls loosely in the category of Punisher interacting more closely with the Marvel Universe, but this book still isn't going anywhere. I only wound up with this issue because i decided to stop getting it too late, but nothing here makes me regret my decision.

Iron Fist #15 - This was all Fraction on story but i enjoyed it as much as any other issue of Iron Fist in this series so now i can't say the book was only good because of Brubaker. Of course it's easier when you're dealing with newly introduced characters from the past and you can't be judged on previous characterizations, and the style and time period allows for a little more melodrama and stilted dialogue, but good is good and this was good. Now to figure out how to integrate this into my chronologically-ordered collection.

Ms. Marvel #27 - Well, at least we see where this is supposed to fit with the main Secret Invasion story. Ms. Marvel has been an on-the-cusp book for me, or at least i thought it was, but it turns out i don't really need it so i'm using the semi-resolution here as a dropping off point even though she hasn't rescued her boyfriend yet. You know what the problem is...? In launching this book from that issue of the New Avengers, Bendis took the approach that Carol had the revelation from House of M that she wasn't really 'being all that she could be' and she was going to make an effort to change that. You could argue that with the whole alcholism thing in Busiek's Avengers and Iron Man runs that she had basically hit a low point and it was time for her to reassert herself. But every time i peek into this book, she is failing big time. She keeps blowing it. At first you say OK, that's good, it gives her a place to improve from, but by issue #27 she is still screwing up and it's just wrong. This is a character that has been around and depicted as capable and powerful since the 70s. She was introduced, however awkwardly, as a feminist heroine, and to take that character and make her a perpetual incompetent is just wrong. That, and the writing isn't very good (excepting Machine Man). On the plus side, the art this issue (fill in?), by Andres Coelho, is much better that what is usually on this book, from three perspectives: 1) storytelling, 2) just plain looking good, and 3) lack of butt-floss shots.

Daredevil #107 - Yep, Brubaker knows what he's doing. After having us wallow in misery with DD for a whole bunch of issues, he's showing us the way back out.

X-Force #4 - Ok, every issue of this ends with me going "cool!", and the characterization is really good (the exploration of X-23 this issue was great), so now it's all about the payoff. Every awesome concept in the x-universe has been thrown into this book, and now it's time to see if we're actually reading some great new synthesis of an x-story (best option), a greatest hits album (perfectly acceptable option), or one of those cheesey medleys bands do in concerts where they play 1 minute snippets of all their old songs before getting to the music from their crappy new album (crappy option).

New Avengers #41 - I guess the "skrulls persepective" / "nick fury perspective" angles for New and Mighty Avengers aren't holding throughout the cross-over. This might as well have been part of the main story, but any way you look at it this is good stuff. Having just re-read the issues that this issue is dealing with, i have to say i'm really impressed with Bendis' planning (or ability to write set-ups and then come up with cohesive resolutions 40 issues later on the fly, but i think it's planning).

Giant-Size Astonishing X-Men #1 - Seriously? Someone needs to have a talk with Joss Whedon. The man has a problem. He can not write a story without killing off a major character. He's a brilliant writer, and a geek's best friend, but he just keeps killing people. He's a psychopath.

Nova #14 - How awesome is Galactus? Huh?? Huh???!? He is awesome.

Secret Invasion #3 - Red herring. Has to be.

...right???!?!