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Incredible Hulks #612 Review

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Feb 142013
 

by Charlie Brooks, CMRO Contributing Writer

Incredible Hulks

Issue #612

Written by Greg Pak and Scott Reed, Art by Tom Raney and Brian Ching

Published: November 2010

The Hulk is traditionally a loner, but throughout Greg Pak’s run on the character he has been acquiring allies and family. He now has a son and a daughter, his wife is back from the dead, his best friend and closest cousin are gamma creatures, and he has the remainder of the Warbound who allied with him during Planet Hulk and World War Hulk. So what are the implications of a whole family of Hulks? The newly-retitled Incredible Hulks plans to explore that.

The Incredible Hulks #612 kicks off the “Dark Son” story-line, which sees another member of the Hulk’s family approaching Earth, but first we have an interlude with Bruce Banner and his wife Betty. Well, it’s actually former wife now, since Betty was declared legally dead for over three years and thus their marriage is nullified. Always missing the boat when it comes to personal relations, Banner tries to put Betty’s wedding ring back on, which causes her to freak out at how pushy he’s being and turn into the red She-Hulk. Hi-jinks ensure. By hi-jinks, I mean smashing.

Despite kicking off a new story-line, this story would make a very good stand-alone comic. It’s about Bruce’s inability to get the nuances of human relationships, trying to act like everything is fine despite the fact that Betty is still messed up in the head. In the end, the Hulk comes out, which break Bruce’s wedding ring. Can the marriage be fixed? That is something that we will spend many issues trying to find out.

Once again, Greg Pak nails the voice of Banner and the Hulk, and he is blessed with some good art to back up his writing. The catch in his issue is whether fans will enjoy the Hulk family or not – the Hulk has traditionally been a loner, so it’s a pretty big change in direction. For my part, I enjoy it because it feels like a logical progression of the themes we saw beginning back in Planet Hulk.

The backup story features more of Hiro-Kala facing down Axeman Bone. This is an appropriate backup story due to the fact that the other son of the Hulk is headed into the main story, but right now it’s stuck in neutral as it feels like we’re just counting down the issues before the big fight between Hulk and the titular Dark Son.

Overall, despite the fact that we’re waiting for the next big story-line to kick off, this is a good transitional story. There is a need for downtime like this in order to keep the comics from just jumping from one huge crossover to the next. The highlight of this issue is the interaction between Bruce and Betty which shows us that while Betty may be alive again, things are not just going to go back to the way they used to be.

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #43 Review

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Feb 122013
 

by Lindsay Young, CMRO Contributing Writer

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man

Issue #43

Written by Marc Sumerak, Art by Carlos Ferreira

Published: November 2008

Maybe it’s just me, but I sure don’t remember doing a unit in highschool on marine animals. Mostly I remember learning about precipitation. This is apparently too dull for Peter Parker’s school, who even spring to take the kids to the local “totally not Sea World” marine park, Oceana Park. Naturally, since this is a Marvel Adventures title, shenanigans ensue that force Peter to don the costume and save the day.

I really like the concept of this one: Spiderman battling it out in what is essentially an aquarium, surrounded by sea creatures that could help or hinder the battle. It’s a neat setting with a lot of potential for interesting, engaging action. The issue does use some of that to its advantage, though it remains pretty resolutely in goofball territory, and there’s not a huge diversity of animals involved. Still, maybe it would have been too much to do otherwise, especially for a one-shot story.

The story itself is a pretty silly one, and it’s not trying to be anything else, which is fine with me. Orka is pretty ridiculous in terms of villains, especially since he’s trying to ‘rescue’ a bunch of animals that apparently have no interest in being saved until they’re aggressively hypnotised. He’s strong, but pretty slow, so Spiderman has little to no trouble dealing with him. It’s your standard Spider-man oneshot in a lot of ways, with maybe a cooler setting than normal, but with a villain who is pretty unimpressive.

Overall, a decent read.

CMRO Update (08/31/2012)

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Sep 012012
 

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Fox continuing to role out Marvel films

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Aug 032012
 

by Josh Starnes, CMRO Editor

Not one to fall behind its competitors, 20th Century Fox is pressing on with the Marvel films it currently holds under license, with two new entrants into the X-Men franchise expected over the next two years.

After a 12-month delay following the Fukushima disaster in 2011, The Wolverine finally kicked off filming this month, beginning with set pieces in rural Australia before moving to Japan. The follow up to X-Men Origins: Wolverine follows Logan’s travels to Japan as he tries to deal with his recent memory loss and build a new life for himself. In the process he becomes involved with a Yakuza princess and comes into conflict with the Silver Samurai.

Filming kicked off in Japanese P.O.W. set built in Kurnell, Australia. “It’s a beautiful spot here,” star Hugh Jackman told The Leader in Australia. “This is the first time I’ve been to Kurnell and the location is great. … Yesterday I was up at half past three and this morning I was up at quarter to five. They got to do some shots without me this morning, so I got a bit of a sleep in.”

Based on a script by Christopher Macquarie (Oscar winner for “The Usual Suspects”), The Wolverine is directed by James Mangold (Oscar nominee for Walk the Line) who came on board late after Darren Aranofsky (The Black Swan) left the project.

The next phase of the main “X-Men” franchise is also taking shape with filming for the next “X-Men: First Class” movie set to begin in January.  Set to be titled “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” producer Bryan Singer confirmed that portions of the well known story would make up aspects of the plot though the script was still being written.

Director Matthew Vaughn will return to helm the sequel, along with James MacAvoy, Matthew Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence as Professor X, Magneto and Mystique.

Publisher Flourishes as “Summer of Valiant” Comes to a Close

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Jul 312012
 

by Josh Starnes, CMRO Editor

Long-time comic book fans are sure to remember when adding the newest issue of any of Valiant’s titles was just as imperative as picking up the latest X-Men or Batman title.  The new owners of the Valiant brand seem intent on piggy backing on those sorts of fond memories and by all accounts they are succeeding.  The new/old publisher announced this week that it had sold out of its print-run for “Archer & Armstrong” #1–the fourth of its launch titles all of which came out this summer–at the same time they were adding “Shadowman” to their schedule this fall.

Closed since the final attempt to relaunch the series in 2000 with Unity 2000, the Valiant brand was bought from final owner Acclaim during that company’s own insolvency and relaunched this summer by former Marvel CEO Peter Cuneo and Hollywood entering Dinesh Shamdasani with fresh new takes on X-O Manowar, Harbinger and Bloodshot.

With the so-called ‘Summer of Valiant’ nearing its conclusion the company announced that it planned to have 15 titles in rotation by 2015, an ambitious plan by any standards, and is preparing its books to be able to minimize reader drop off and keep audiences coming back for more.

“Every new arc is a fresh “jumping on” point for readers. We’re really working hard to make each story-arc as new-reader friendly as possible,” Shamdasani told Newsarama on Monday. “We’re very lucky to have a tremendous first couple months here at Valiant; it exceeded our expectations on all levels. We have a lot of options going forward, and it all follows a very specific plan Fried Pierce put together in the past few years. We’ve been doing a lot of long-term planning, even before our first book came out.”

“The great thing about the Valiant Universe is that there’s something very exciting around every corner. I think we have a great opportunity to build something definitive and lasting. We’re not just jamming pieces together in our broader storytelling though; there’s logic underpinning all of our ties between the titles. I talk with the writers at-length about creating great individual titles and a great universe, and I’m excited with what we’ve come up with,” Executive Editor Walter Simmons added.

Old characters aren’t the only part of Valiant lore the publisher aims to bring back. At the Valiant panel at Comic Con the company announced it would be bringing back its Gold Logo program, issuing ultra-rare gold variant issues to fans who show their support for the company in a big way.

The Valiant staff plans to dig into its archives as well, looking to please both the old and new fan. Solicited for this October they company will be releasing Valiant Masters “Bloodshot” Vol. 1 containing the inaugural Bloodshot story arc from the first books run, along with a new original unprinted story from that era by the original “Bloodshot” team of writer Kevin Van Hook and artist Don Perlin.

“People may not remember this, but I too was part of the original Valiant line-up, as V.P. of Manufacturing and Operations,” new publisher Frank Pierce said. “I’d been gone from Valiant for almost twenty years, but still everyone asks about my time at Valiant so it’s great for me to come back full circle as publisher.”

After its successful launch in 1991, Valiant Comics grew to be one of the most popular brands in US comics. However, two years after its launch co-founder Jim Shooter was forced out of the company and print runs and numbers of titles were escalated to take advantage of the 1990′s comic book speculator boom. Finally, Valiant was sold to video game company Acclaim shortly before mid-1990s speculator crash leading to a period of transition for the company as it went through several creative hands while Acclaim upper management attempted to launch video games based on its characters including Shadowman and Turok. The cost of the acquisition proved too much as video game sales also dipped and Acclaim was eventually sold to Activision in bankruptcy while its holdings, including Valiant, were gradually sold off.

The Valiant publishing relaunch is not the only place to find some of the favorite characters from that period.  Starting in 2010, Valiant founder and original editor-in-chief Jim Shooter has been writing the adventures of the Valiant’s licensed Gold Key heroes–Magnus: Robot Fighter, Doctor Solar and Turok: Son of Stone–for Dark Horse Comics.

Tales of Suspense #81 Review

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Jul 292012
 

by jfpj1991, CMRO User

Tales of Suspense

Issue #81

Written by Stan Lee, Art by Jack Kirby

Published: June 1966

I much anticipated this issue. We saw in the issues of Tales of Suspense (and Tales to Astonish) that Tony was going to testify for Senator Byrd’s committee and the Cosmic Cube in the hands of the Red Skull.

Tony seems to have decided tor relinquish his secrets regarding the Iron Man armor, and perhaps his secret identity as well. This makes the reader tense with the expectations of what to follow. I’ve been a fan of comic for years, but because I’ve never read this arc in particular, I do not know what exactly will happen with Tony’s identity and that keeps me on the edge of my seat.

We also see Titanium Man return to the scene. Personally, I found the introductory arc involving the Titanium Man to be incredible. It was emotional and action packed.

The only weak spot during all this great plot is nothing much happens in this issue. We see Tony thinking while heading to Washington in various modes of transportation, and we see the revitalization, preparation, and initial return of Titanium man. That one sentence sums it all up.

The Cosmic Cube issue was very lackluster in comparison to what it could have been. I can understand the Red Skull wanting to see Cap pulverized and punished, but one artificial man could never accomplish that. Then he buys that Captain America will serve him. He may feel overconfident, but he has learned through countless battles with his archenemy to never let his guard down around Captain America. The loss of the cube is very anti-climatic and the worst part is, the cube was man-made by A.I.M, so it could easily be recreated as some point, but Captain America doesn’t seem to consider this. He focuses solely on the one cube that has been buried.

Overall with such monumental appearances and letdowns, it all evens out for a 3 out of 5 stars rating.

New Avengers #27 Review

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Jul 102012
 

by Nick Walden, CMRO Contributing Writer

New Avengers

Issue #27

Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Art by Mike Deodato Jr

Published: August 2012

For a $3.99 comic I have really felt that each issue is worth its price. Bendis changes pace with this issue and narrows the focus to a handful of characters. But what he does with them is great. In regards to the tie-in to Avengers vs. X-Men I have been struggling with Iron Fist and how he plays into the story. Bendis uses this issue to delve into that aspect of things.

We have some nice flashback action to help lay a backstory for what is going on in the current day. This is something that Bendis has done before and again it works really well. I have to admit I love the Master Yu Ti character a lot. We get some great focus on Hope and Spider-Man which creates some memorable scenes and interactions. Really it gets us inside the head of Hope to see what she is dealing with and Bendis does that really well. There isn’t a lot of wham-bam action but I think that makes this book better. Sometimes a big story has slower, in-depth moments and this issue captures that aspect well.

For the art Mike Deodato brings his usual gusto to the table. Generally I like his style of drawing characters. What he does with the art matches the tone perfectly from the story. He doesn’t go overboard in the one-on-one scenes but still has his normal flair. The color work was an excellent compliment.

Another solid effort from this team rates a 9 out of 10. I just like everything about this story with the background and simplicity. The relationship between Spider-Man and Hope makes sense in a way based on their backgrounds and experiences; seeing Spidey as a mentor type is refreshing and yet works really well. As part of the tie-in this is a must buy to get the background, but it is a good book as part of the series and this arc so it gets the overall recommendation of buy this!

Thor: Tales of Asgard Review

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Jul 012012
 

by Lindsay Young, CMRO Contributing Writer

Thor: Tales of Asgard

Released: May 2011

Thor: Tales of Asgard tells the story of a younger Thor and Loki going on their first adventure to find a fabled sword and inflate Thor’s fragile manly man ego. Basically, that’s that plot. Pretty simple, but engaging enough. The flick feels a bit like an arc of a Saturday morning cartoon, which isn’t a bad thing. If this had been the pilot for a Thor: Teen Years type show, I think I’d keep watching. It’s a universe brimming with potential, and I feel like Thor: Tales of Asgard capitalizes on that competently, even if there’s nothing here to blow your mind.

The animation is a bit hit-or-miss. There are some fun character designs, but it’s mostly television-level animation, or perhaps a bit above that. It’s nice to look at, but it’s fairly functional stuff, nothing too arresting. A few times I thought the pacing was clunky, but only a few.

Thor isn’t quite as likeable as I think Marvel intended him to be here. Take, for example, Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, who was also arrogant and stupid, but still well-meaning and generally good-natured. He was likeable despite having giant flaws, hence why his friends are upset when he’s banished. This Thor has the excuse of being younger, but for two-thirds of the thing he’s mostly just an insufferable brat obsessed with boosting his own ego. He does go through a bit of character development, and by the end he’s more humble, but I felt a little gipped at how easily his foolishness was forgiven just because he had learned a lesson.

Loki comes off a little better. He’s a tiny thing next to his larger brother, infinitely smarter and just beginning to master his magic. His love for his brother leads him to follow Thor loyally on his stupid quest despite knowing better. Knowing that he’s the god of mischief and lies, it’s interesting to see him put in the position of the level-headed, responsible one. There are also some fun hints about his true background.

The subplot with the Valkyries is, however, pretty annoying. Each glimpse we see of this incredibly interesting culture is defined by how these warriors have been defined by men, with the leader implying that the majority of Valkyrie warriors became such because they were jilted by a man. Basically, they’re just pissed off man-haters who want to kill all dudes, except that they constantly talk about nothing but dudes. It’s lazy and one-note, and also just plain irritating – can’t have a culture of tough warrior women without making them “frigid” man-haters! It just ends up invoking too many negative stereotypes to be enjoyable when it really doesn’t HAVE to – there’s no reason why the Valkyries have to keep pointing out that they’re not men and that men suck. I can SEE they’re not men!

But overall, this was an enjoyable flick, if not one I’m eager to revisit.

Hulk #9 Review

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Jun 192012
 

by Charlie Brooks, CMRO Contributing Writer

Hulk

Issue #9

Written by Jeph Loeb, Art by Arthur Adams

Published: February 2009

Hulk #9 ends the experiment of splitting the book into two stories, and that’s a good thing. Jeph Loeb’s stories are little more than poorly-written picture books anyway, and cutting down the page count shows their weakness all the more. Luckily, if you don’t go in expecting something well-written, you’ll get some good art and a couple of chuckles.

On the green side of things, the Las Vegas story arc wraps up with some nonsense and a deus ex-machina. Now that the heroes have stopped fighting the Hulk and gone after the cannibalistic monsters, things actually get worse. Loeb has apparently forgotten that the Canadian wendigo is not a werewolf, because now the bites of the monsters cause other people to become wendigos. That includes the Hulk, who becomes “Wendihulk.” Luckily, Ms. Marvel is on top of things by calling Brother Voodoo, who literally teleports in, solves the problem in a few panels, and then teleports away. The only saving grace to the entire storyline has been a bit of humor here and there, such as in this issue where we get to see two of Marvel’s most insane heroes, Sentry and Moon Knight, talk about their therapists. If you want something well-plotted, though, this story is a waste of time.

The red Hulk’s tale is a bit more interesting because it hints at Rulk’s larger plan. Unfortunately, it also involves most of the female heroes in the Marvel Universe acting like idiots for plot purposes. The Lady Liberators are able to knock out Rulk, but instead of bringing him in, they wait around for hours (literally hours) waiting for Rulk to turn back into his secret identity. You’d think that could be better accomplished by holding him in SHIELD custody while they wait, but no, they decide that Mount Rushmore is the ideal place to wait for the change while they discuss “girl things” such as having sex with Tony Stark. Gee, I wonder why more women don’t read comics.

Naturally, Rulk was playing the ladies, letting them fall into a false sense of security. He escapes and kidnaps Thundra, but doesn’t kill her – instead, he gives her a job offer. We don’t find out what exactly the offer is, but unlike Bruce Banner’s conversation with General Ross back in Hulk #3, this plot point will be resolved in the future. Moreover, it hints that Rulk has a larger plan, which will eventually lead us into the Fall of the Hulks storyline.

Both of these stories are poorly paced, poorly written, and accomplish very little. However, they do have some merits. The Las Vegas storyline is good for a chuckle here and there, and the Rulk’s battle with the ladies leads into a larger storyline down the road. On the other hand, the Hulk’s story is terribly plotted, with the resolution being a deus ex machina that is downright insulting to the reader’s intelligence. As to the red Hulk’s story, I can’t imagine female readers seeing much merit at all in it, since in addition to the constant objectification of their bodies (i.e., artist Frank Cho and his butt shots), it makes women look downright stupid. Admittedly, though, women aren’t the only victims of this when the red Hulk is around – everybody’s IQ seems to drop by about 20 points.

Overall, it’s the same old refrain – good art, don’t think too much about the story. It’s going to be a while before the Rulk storyline becomes tolerable, but if you’re the type of person who buys comics mostly for the art, then there are worse purchases to make.

Amazing Spider-Man #115 Reivew

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Jun 182012
 

by Lindsay Young, CMRO Contributing Writer

Amazing Spider-Man

Issue #115

Written by Gerry Conway, Art by John Romita Sr.

Published: December 1972

Can we give this issue props for having the most hilarious tagline ever? “Aunt May–Assassin?” Perfect.

There are few things I like better than classic Spider-man comics, and this one doesn’t disappoint. This issue contains a showdown between Doctor Octopus and Hammerhead in what is built up as “the mind boggling conclusion of the greatest action-epic in this, the MARVEL RENAISSANCE!” Pretty bold statement for a comic that opens up with hat hook laser beams. (Which are awesome, by the way).

But it is pretty cool to see two major Spider-man villains going at one another, and all the while Aunt May is just down the hall! And she’s convinced that Doc Ock is a nice guy! It’s always sort of morbidly fun to watch Spider-man have to protect people who fear him or are acting against him, even if they love and admire Peter Parker. It’s an interesting conflict that underpins the more aggressive storyline with Doc Ock and Hammerhead waging war on one another. My favourite Spidey comics are the ones where absolutely nothing is easy, and that’s absolutely true here.

As the issue progresses the action becomes more complex and fast-paced, involving different combinations of Spidey, Hammerhead and Doc Ock. A bunch of Spidey’s friends also get involved, from Gwen to Ned Leeds. Quite a bit seems to be going down in this issue, and it ends in a really fantastic place, with Peter Parker dealing with Aunt May’s misguided decision, an intriguing hint at the Doc Ock/Aunt May relationship, and Hammerhead making an interesting vow as he spirits away.

It’s tough not to like this issue. It pretty much has everything I could want–Peter struggling with his secret identity and his responsibilities, tons of fun villains and fast-paced action, as well as the emotional undercurrents of some compelling relationships.

The New Avengers #26 Review

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May 182012
 

by Nick Walden, CMRO Contributing Writer

The New Avengers

Issue #26

Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Art by Mike Deodato Jr

Published: July 2012

One word summary – interesting. This series continues to impress me. Part of it has to do with it being abnormal in some respects to the other Avengers series. Brian Bendis has done a nice job with the story and cast of characters to really pique my interest even with a story line that arcs a little bit further out from what was expected with the AvX cross over.

In this book we get more of Master Yu Ti and his quest to deal with the Phoenix Force. Part of the plan ends up being DaVinci showing up to help. Now I like the DaVinci character as it has older roots in the universe and whenever a story brings in concepts from earlier times I get a little excited. Fongji, Shao Lao, and the Phoenix Force make for an interesting power triangle especially when you consider that the power of the Iron Fist is in play as well.

To go with the interesting story (note: this means other people might not like the lack of real Avengers in the book but I think it is a great change of pace) we have the outstanding art of Mike Deodato. Honestly you can’t get much better than what this guy brings to the table. His big scenes are always fantastic with tons of details. Honestly I think he is in the top 2 or 3 comic artists for his ability to create an amazing scene especially when given the space to work.

The final review is a beefy 9 out of 10. I think some fans will be miffed about the lack of Avenger action but the story line does tie into AvX and it is a cool bit of variety that I think works as part of the crossover and also by itself. Pick up the book and enjoy it!

World War Hulk Aftersmash: Warbound #5 Review

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May 172012
 

by Charlie Brooks, CMRO Contributing Writer

World War Hulk Aftersmash: Warbound

Issue #5

Written by Greg Pak, Art by Leonard Kirk

Published: June 2008

Following in the wake of World War Hulk, the Warbound miniseries, part of the “Aftersmash” of the event, got better with every issue. Unfortunately, Warbound #5 is a bump in that road, providing some uneven pacing and leaving several loose ends. It isn’t enough to drag down what is an otherwise good series, though, and that’s what’s important.

There is a lot going on in Warbound #5, and it would probably have helped to have another issue to wrap it all up. The story opens with SHIELD robots trying to kill Hiroim, since they’ve received intelligence from Kate that he’s the one powering the dome. At the same time, the dome has to stay standing because the Leader has done something funky with the radiation causing people to die if they are not exposed. Kate and the Warbound deal with the robots just fine, but the Leader is still one step ahead of them, bringing us to another big fight.

While there is a lot of action here, it happens sequentially instead of all at once, allowing the reader to figure out what’s going on before we jump into the next big fight scene. There are a couple of flaws in Greg Pak’s writing this time around, though. Specifically, he falls into the trap of needing to tell the reader exactly what’s going on at every point, which leads to some odd scenes such as when the Leader manages to take control of Kate’s mind enough to force her to do his bidding yet not enough to get her to stop talking to the Warbound about what’s going on. If the issue had been a little bit less busy, it probably wouldn’t have needed all the exposition.

Ultimately, the Leader’s plot is foiled and he teleports away, leaving the issue of how long he has left to live up in the air. He does get a parting shot before leaving, managing to kill Hiroim. However, upon Hiroim’s death the Old Power passes over to Kate. How this works is anybody’s guess – the nearest I can figure out is that it goes back to when they almost kissed a few issues earlier and we saw some energy crackling between them. This is an area where explanation could have helped, but we don’t get enough because of all the exposition and action earlier. The issue ends with the Warbound continuing to fight the leader’s monsters. The humans they swore to protect are safe, but Gammaworld itself still stands, giving the Warbound a new battle to fight.

Despite the flaws in the wrap-up, this is still a very good miniseries. It has a lot of good character development and does something interesting with Kate Waynesboro, who hadn’t been used since the 1980s. The ending is a bit rushed with lots of loose ends, and I suspect that Marvel might have hoped sales would be good enough to justify something longer. The bad news is that this didn’t happen, but the good news is that the Warbound got a lot more action when Pak returned to The Incredible Hulk down the line, so this is not the end of their adventures.

Warbound #5 is not the greatest of endings. It is, however, good enough, and manages to cap off what is a very good if not spectacular miniseries.

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