A weekly column in which Jake gives
short blurbs about the comics he’s
picked up that week. Reviewed in the order read, which varies but generally by
increasing anticipation. Disclaimer: he
knows very little about art, at least not enough to considerably honor such
tremendous undertakings, so…yeh,
there’s that.
Planet Hulk #1
Writer: Sam Humphries (Greg Pak)
Artist: Marc Laming (Takeshi
Miyazawa)
Colors: Jordan Boyd (Rachelle
Rosenburg)
Letters: VC’s Travis Lanham
Marvel Comics
This is where the fun of Battleworld
comes into play for herein lies a story of a gladiator Steve Rogers, a red
Tyrannosaurus Rex named Devil Dinosaur, and a planet full of Hulks. Well, not so much a planet as much as a
district of Battleworld called Greenland (because heh), but you get my drift. Humphries weaves a tale that actually a
surprisingly familiar one for Captain America, but the trappings are different
enough that it feels fresh. For the most
part, the story is told from the mind of Conan America as he is given a
suicidal mission into Greenland at the behest of Doom. While Steve the Barbarian’s narration can be somewhat
tediously, yet understandably, dour, the appearance of a new player in the
issue’s closing moments
promises to add a bit more liveliness to the story. Laming and Rosenburg shine when the script
allows them to, as we’ve
not yet witnessed the full savagery of Greenland. As an opener, this issue teases us with the
possibility of the wonder and madcap to come and it does so quiet
effectively. There’s also a back-up tale by the
parenthetical team listed above that shows how Greenland’s original world came to be.
While it reads well and is enjoyable enough, it ultimately feels a bit
superfluous as I’m not
sure Greenland’s origin
was completely necessary to the audience’s understanding of the main story. Still, Planet Hulk holds much promise going
into its second issue with a strong concept and effective set-up.
Wytches #6
Story: Scott Snyder
Art: Jock
Colors: Matt Hollingsworth
Letters: Clem Robins
Image Comics
Well this is it: the end of Wytches’s first arc as well as my
subscription to this book. As a whole,
the story is good and Snyder does some deft character work, particularly in the
case of the main character. However, the
conclusion goes on about one page too long and ends with a bit of fourth-wall
breaking that’s a bit too
on the nose as it takes the reader out of the preceding heartfelt narration. The art is a bit of a mixed bag as well. Jock does some great work, particularly with
the series’ eponymous
monsters who are equal parts uncanny and terrifying. It is Hollingsworth’s colors, or rather color effects, that kill the experience
for me, though its arguably a decision of the collective creative team. The effects done by Hollingsworth, whose work
I have significantly enjoyed on other titles, are not particularly conducive to
my digital medium of choice, in my opinion.
Wytches is a good story, and its change of scenery from arc to arc is
almost enough to pique my interest. But
it just comes down to a numbers game, and I really can’t afford to keep picking up a book I don’t wholeheartedly enjoy
Moon Knight #15
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Art: German Peralta
Color Art: Dan Brown
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Marvel Comics
After the last outing with the Lunar
Legionnaire left a bitter taste in my mouth, I was a bit nervous to continue
the series. But this? This is the Moon Knight I like. Marc Spector fighting a literal boogeyman
that preys on children honestly sounds a bit ridiculous, but Bunn and the art
team manage to tell a tale that is incredibly engrossing and feels like a
return to form. Harkening back to my
personal favorite MK run of Huston and Benson, Marc Spector is as much at
conflict with his deific benefactor, Khonshu, as he is with the issue’s titular monster. Bunn gives the art team some space to work,
and Peralta and Brown excel particularly during the rage of Khonshu as well as
Moon Knight’s climatic
confrontation with the villain. The
final page leaves what is perhaps a promise of continuation of the story in
this book, much like the last arc. If
so, I’m all for it as this
was one of the strongest stories of the volume yet.
Spider-Verse #1
Writer: Mike Costa
Artist: Andre Araujo (Steven
Sanders)
Color Artist: Rachelle Rosenberg
(Jim Campbell)
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Marvel Comics
The web-warriors from the recent
Spider-Verse event get their own title as they are shunted into
Battleworld. While the formation of
Battleworld was supposed to erase the memories of the old universes, the web
that binds the spiders causes them to have flashbacks of who they once were
which sets up a grave conflict with Doom’s regime represented by long-time spider-foe, Norman
Osborn. Costa, who headed up the Scarlet
Spiders tie-in to the previous event, does an excellent job of capturing the
voices of the characters involved, particularly Pavitr Prabhakar (Spider-Man:
India) and Spider-Gwen. Araujo’s action sequences are
fantastic, ably capturing the agile acrobatics of the spiders. His faces, however, cause something of a
quibble as many of them appear off. The
back up story, depicting the misadventures of the ever enjoyable Spider-Ham are
a delight. Sanders and Campbell are able
to bring out the humor in Costa’s
script, no small feat when your main character is a anthropomorphic pig in
Spider-man cosplay. Spider-Verse is an
interesting series in that, while on the surface a self-contained tie-in, has
enough traction in its undercurrent to seemingly tie in to the larger story of
Secret Wars. That, and the strong voices
of the characters, makes Spider-Verse a title worth picking up.
A-Force #1
Writers: Marguerite Bennett & G.
Willow Wilson
Penciler: Jorge Molina
Inkers: Jorge Molina & Craig
Yeung
Colorists: Laura Martin & Matt
Milla
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Marvel Comics
10/10 would read again. Oh, what you want more about the book? Well, there’s an utopic island zone of Battleworld called Arcadia and
its protected by A-Force, which is made up of the Mighty Women of the Marvel
U. More? Well, it’s lead by She-Hulk, with Nico Minoru of the Runaways and
Medusa of the Inhumans featuring heavily.
The characters are well handled and the plot contains just the right
amount of joy, mystery and drama. The
art team splendidly captures the wonders of Arcadia and the emotional fallout
from the books conflict. Still
more? Well, America Chavez punches a giant
shark in the face and then throws it halfway across the world. ‘Nuff
said.
Loki: Agent of Asgard #14
Writer: Al Ewing
Artist: Lee Garbett
Colori Artists: Antonio Fabela
w/Andres Mossa
Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Marvel Comics
With the doom (heh) of the world fast
approaching, Asgardia does what it always does when faced with such crises:
prepare for war with the other eight nine realms. Some things are cyclical like that. This is very much a calm-before-the-storm
issue, though there’s
nothing calm about it as Odin and Freyja try to rally Asgard’s forces, Old Loki hatches a
desperately devilish scheme, and Verity Willis deals with who the hell this
new-new young Loki is (it all makes sense, in a Doctor Who sorta way). Ewing moves all of his pieces into play as
the final battle draws near but still makes time for humor, mostly black humor
from Old Loki who chews scenery from cover to cover. Garbett’s pencils assist greatly in this regard, with every slick
smile from the Trickster equal parts entertaining and sinister. Fabela and Mossa’s colors help keep a pervading sense of desperation and doom
throughout the issue, the scenes in Hel standing out. Another Ragnarok is upon us and the stage is
set for worlds and realms to collide in one final, explosive story. But what is the newly-christened God of
Stories’s play in all
this? An answer eagerly anticipated in
the next issue.
So what did you pick up this week?
Agree or disagree with anything said here? Let us know in the comments.
Labels: A-Force, Comics, Image Comics, Loki: Agent of Asgard, Marvel Comics, Moon Knight, Planet Hulk, Spider-verse, Wytches
