This Two Week's Comics! July 1 & 8

Yeah, so I went on a mini-vacation last week and missed updating you on the comics I bought.  Now you get two weeks worth and I get to tell you about some really great comics!  Let's not waste time, let's get right to it!

We'll start with the second issue of A-Force.  I was pretty interested in where this was going and the second issue didn't really disappoint.  I think the weakest part of this series is Battleworld itself.  The A-Force team is very interesting, but the "rules" of Battleworld both set the stage for the action and restrict the potential for what the team could be.  Super-hero teams need to work in a world that is grounded with known rules and status quo.  When the world that serves as the backdrop is still very new and a jumbled mix of other worlds, it makes it hard to fit the new team in a proper context.  I think I'll like A-Force more post-Secret Wars, but I'll stick with the team until we get there.



Next up, another second issue, Starfire #2.  If you recall, this was another "wait and see" comic that was going to be purchased solely on the value of the cover.  Well, obviously the cover was good enough to warrant a purchase and the interiors don't disappoint either.  If you are looking for a lighthearted alien super-hero comic, this will scratch that it.  I'm in.

Back to Secret Wars action with what might be the best mini-series of the lot.  1872 is the Old West, Marvel style, but very low on the steampunk or super-powers that you might be worried about.  Based on the first issue, this is a straight Western, just with characters you know.  Steve Rogers is the Sheriff, Tony Stark is the local inventor, and the Kingpin is the Mayor.  Things get dicey when Red Wolf wanders into town with a mission.  This might be the best comic I have bought in two weeks.  Highly recommended!  Can't wait for the next issue!

And before we leave the realm of Secret Wars satellite titles, let's take a look at the let-down of the week: Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows.  The first issue was a little shaky, but I was ready to give it a chance.  The second issue didn't honor that chance.  I am now more convinced than ever that Dan Slott has no idea how to write Spider-Man or Peter Parker.  And, just like with A-Force, the fractured world of Battleworld is far too strange to provide a reliable background for really good storytelling.  Even so, this comic went from rocky to disaster in two issues.  This was a chance to really see the Peter Parker everyone wants, the one with a wife and child and the burden of still being Spider-Man.  Slott kind of gives us that story, but Battleworld complicates things unnecessarily and anything Slott may have been trying to do doesn't stand a chance.  Couple that with his failure to understand the characters he is working with and you've just got a mess.  I've committed to my comic shop to buy this entire series, but I'm going to see if I can get out of it.

With that out of the way, we can now turn to a couple of winners.  First, Princess Leia #5.  A great finish to a great series.  This story reaches it's conclusion in a very satisfying way.  Unlike the other two Star Wars launch titles, this comic simply set out to tell an adventure starring Leia Organa, not shock you with its incredible "Star Warsiness." I'll say no more and suggest you go out and read the whole thing start-to-finish and enjoy!

And when you've finished Princess Leia's series, pick up Lando #1.  In the exact same vein, this series seems to be satisfied to tell a great Lando solo tale (well, Lando and Lobot...).  Basically, this is a heist story with tons of Billy D level suave and smooth.  I had confidence in Charles Soule, one of the best writers in comics today and he did not betray that confidence. Staying very true to the character and not shoving Star Wars up your nose at every turn, this comic looks poised to pay out big returns!  Go get!

Which brings us back to "Do." And by "Do" I mean Secret Wars #4.  This is a big issue in the series.  With the set-up concluded in issue #3, we finally get some action and important action at that.  Since most of what happens is a big spoiler, all I will say is that the core series is far better than most of the satellite series I have read.  Secret Wars is a big event and it has everything a big event needs.  Thus far it has been pretty satisfying.  I see what Marvel was going for with the whole company-wide mega event, but now that we are into it, maybe this would have been better as a maxi-series that relaunched the entire universe, rather than taking the universe with it.  But, that's a bigger discussion.  On the small scale, the Secret Wars series is definitely worth checking out if you are a fan of the Marvel Universe.  (I opted for this really cool Captain Marvel, or is it Ms. Marvel, who can tell these days..., alternate cover because I thought it looked way spiffier than the original cover)

And that will do it for these two weeks.  Some pretty good stuff overall.  If you are looking for solid reads, go get 1872 and Lando #1, and maybe chase it with Starfire.

This Week's Comics 6.3.15

A surprisingly large week for me, just getting back into the hobby.

We'll start where we left off last week with Archie vs. Predator #2.
And I'm proud to say that my fears of last week have been alleviated.  Page 2 of issue #2 pays off the entire set-up from issue #1.  Juxtaposition is the heart of comedy and this page proves it.  The rest of the issue continues to pay it out in a very bizarre way.  The Riverdale gang is thrown up against something the likes of which they are totally unaccustomed to, but rather than just freak completely out and cower in the malt shop, like maybe they totally should, they take the offensive and try to figure out just what is hunting them down.  Can they do it?  I'll be picking up issue #3.




Next up is Secret Wars #3.  You may recall I was looking for this issue to also pay off a couple of issues of set-up.  I'm not yet sold on the entire premise of Battleworld, mainly the Doom is God stuff.  It just seems a bit much.  BUT, issue #3 FINALLY introduces the surviving heroes from the original and Ultimate Marvel universes into Battleworld.  Since they are really the only characters we have any history with, it is refreshing to have them as anchors in what has otherwise been a mad, mad world.  There are some interesting revelations and thankfully enough steam to keep me going for a few more issues unless something gets really stupid.  Marvel needed a save here, and they managed to eek it out.



While we are on Secret Wars related comics, the first issue of Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows hit this week.  This is the only Spider-Man comic I have had any interest in for years.  This is supposed to be as close as we are going to come to the real Spider-Man starring in a comic again.  (for those of you who don't know, Amazing Spider-Man #400 was the last issue to star the real Spider-Man, after that Marvel just simply lost all notion of how to handle the character and spent the next 300 issues systematically destroying the character.  It's like the Simpsons...)  I was extremely nervous about reading this as my faith in Marvel's ability to handle my favorite character has been betrayed like my faith in Star Wars to have meaningful movies beyond the original trilogy.  And despite a few bumps: the Parker child is named Annie for some reason, not May, this issue delivered a good story about Peter Parker in a post-baby era.  There are rumblings that the overall story is going to take a galactic-level bent, but for at least this issue the story was kept pretty street level with Venom showing up to attack the Parker family and Spider-Man giving him a beat down the likes of which we have never seen.  Being a parent DOES change you.  Will future issues hold up?  I'm in for #2 and I'll let you know.

Finally, we come to Princess Leia #4, the penultimate issue in the limited series.  This comic has delivered every single issue.  The story is tight, the art is great, and it manages to stay true to the original characters and universe.  Issue #4 continues that trend and ramps up the story as we build to next issue's presumably awesome climax.  If you've not been reading this, and you like the REAL Star Wars, go catch up.  You will not be sorry!

One critical note:  take a look at the panel below.  While the art has been solid every issue, this one panel bugs me.  It looks like Artoo was originally drawn thinner, more narrow (hence the hatching shade like along his backside), but somewhere along the line someone said, "he looks too thin," so someone went back in and made him thicker.  He doesn't look quite rounded.  He looks a bit lumpy on the back side and the inking isn't quite a smooth.  It's a minor detail in an otherwise wonderful comic, so I'm not busting too many chops, but it does look off.

So those are this week's comics.  All in all, a good week.