quick takes 12/8/06
Until Marvel stops running so many ads with their comics, they get marked down a grade.Ultimate Vision #1...Can't say I was waiting around for Ultimate AIM to show up, but kudos to Mike Carey, who seems to be writing everything at the moment, for ratcheting up the creepiness to make these guys a credible science villain, not unlike something Warren Ellis would have come up with. And the Ultimate Vision, despite being quite different from the traditional character, is instantly sympathetic and interesting; "she" is a total goody two-shoes, but has a take-no-guff kind of attitude that handily prevents her from becoming boring. Sort of like the Silver Surfer in his best stories; could the Vision be taking his role as the major cosmic do-gooder of the Ultimate Universe? Oh, and typically professional art from Brandon Peterson. Good.
Deathblow #2...Brian Azzarello continues to be the sort of writer who will allow his protagonists to do all kinds of nasty things most writers would only consider for the bad guys. I can't really say I'm rooting for Cray yet, but I'm definitely scared for his soul. Unfortunately, the art is not always particularly expressive or clear. OK, but I have hopes.
Doctor Strange: The Oath #3...Magnificent art from Marcos Martin, who will probably be drawing for Vertigo before too much longer. The story remains compelling, in there between the ads, with an arch-nemesis for Strange so obvious I can't believe no one's thought to come up with such a character before. OK.
Welcome to Tranquility #1...The best first issue of anything I remember reading in quite some time. The premise could have been a one-off joke, but Simone cares deeply about her characters and they come to vivid life with Neil Googe's excellent art, which is clear, sunny, and witty, setting exactly the right tone. And it is funny, too. Excellent.
Agents of Atlas #5...The team falls apart, then comes back together. It happens perhaps a bit too easily, and the reveal at the end of the issue seems to set up the same cliffhanger as last issue. We'll see. Still, for breathing life into these z-list characters, and making it seem obvious that such wonderful weirdos should get their own series, Jeff Parker deserves some kind of award. Incidentally, has the best covers of any comics I've seen in a while. OK.
Midnighter #2...For someone who doesn't like superheroes much, Garth Ennis sure is writing a good superhero story here. I'm really glad he decided not to phone it in, because this has some terrific moments and some key development on a hero who was getting perhaps a bit stale. Good.
American Virgin #9...Well, that's an unexpected cliffhanger, isn't it? This appears to be Seagle looking to explore Adam's feelings, as a Christian, about death, which is good development, as we can't be talking about sex all the time, and we've probably plummed the depths of revenge. Becky Cloonan remains one of the best-cast artists on any comic out there, as the "fleshiness" of the villain tells more about him than any of his dialogue. In fact, this comic would become excellent if Seagle could let her show instead of telling us, sometimes. Good.
Justice Society of America #1...I eventually tired of the first run on this series, but darn if Geoff Johns hasn't hooked me back in. Actually follows a similar structure to the recent JLA revival, but does it much, much better, with clear ideas about who the characters are and why they need the Society. An insane Starman, an eager-to-please Red Tornado protege...these are good places to start. Excellent.
White Tiger #2...Admirably lighthearted and well-placed in the Marvel Universe. Unfortunately, the generic art makes it extremely hard to weed the story out from between the ads. Eh.
Wetworks #3...This one, on the other hand, could use some ads to cover up the atrocious artwork. I like to give any artist the benefit of the doubt, because the stories are really my thing, but come on, these character designs are horrible. It does have Mike Carey writing it, and it's sort of a horror/cop hybrid, which has potential...there are good ideas here, but not much nice to look at, with the bad art making the graphic violence somehow even more sordid. Terrible.
Ultimate Power #2...Greg Land on art is very pretty, true, and the fact that every single hero in the Ultimate Universe is showing up does have some kind of appealing everything-but-the-kitchen-sink-ness, but, as often happens when Bendis writes big events, we've really still only sketched the edges of any compelling plot. Bendis is as alwasy much more interested in how the characters talk to each other. This is fine, and he can make almost any character work for a little while because he can get them to open up and talk to us. But get someone else to write the big fights, please. Eh.
Teen Titans #41...Sort of confusing how Jericho comes back to life, isn't it? I think the fill-in artist is mostly to blame, though; he also makes a hash of the last page, where Deathstroke should be menacing but looks like he weighs about 150 pounds. Still, this has been a successful, wide-ranging storyline with many great character moments. Good.
Newuniversal #1...Really, really great, subtle art from Salvador Larocca to go with a quietly huge story from Warren Ellis, but holy hell there are too many ads in here to appreciate it. OK.
Uncanny X-Men #481...Ed Brubaker has these characters nailed; I can't remember the last writer to do Lorna Dane so well...OK, I can, it was J.M. DeMatteis. Considering how much happens, the plot does seem to be developing slowly, with the major villain quite far off-page, but the capture of the Professor feels like it's going to develop into something important, and the soap opera elements with Rachel are fun, too. OK.
Incredible Hulk #101...Somehow, this one escaped having as many ads, and damn if it doesn't read much better because of it. I've adored this storyline, and think it is the best one Marvel has ever done with the character, hands down. Give Greg Pak whatever he wants, Marvel. Excellent.
posted by Mr. Blasphemy @ 7:41 PM
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