Marvel
Uncanny X-Men #524 ***1/2
Before I do any kind of review, I need to bitch about Colossus. Specifically Colossus being by the plane at the end of the last chapter, and in the medical ward with Kitty at the beginning of this chapter. Annoyance.
Ok, now as to the rest of it. This was a quiet issue after the craziness of last week. I've heard it described as a 'breather' before the rest of Second Coming unfolds. I thought the tribute to Kurt was touching, but I found Beast's outburst to be terrifically inappropriate. Regardless of your feelings, you don't interrupt a funeral. It's interesting to see how the mutants all react to Hope. After all this time and all this build-up, she's got a lot on her shoulders. I think it's all just building up to the break that unleashes her real power. But with Bastion having a spy on Utopia, things are going to get much worse before they get better.
Second Coming: Hellbound #1 ***
I love the team Sam put together, and not just because the two gay characters actually get to do something substantive. It just seems like a fun group of people. But I've tried to read X-Infernus, and Limbo just confuses the hell out of me. I can't keep all of the demons straight, or anything really that happens there. Oh, and I thought the art was terrible for this issue. But I still enjoyed this team of people and I can't wait to see how everything unfolds. Especially Gambit's whole "Remy's not here right now" thing.
Astonishing Spiderman and Wolverine #1 ****
Peter Parker amuses the heck out of me. If I had time in my week to pick up another title, I'd take-on a Spidey title. And the Astonishing line continues to be a good read. This storyline I think is fairly obviously stand-alone, but I liked it once I figured out what the hell was going on. It's weird, as much as I bitch about continuity in comics, and how I want to see an obvious chronology, it doesn't bother me in the Astonishing titles. I do not understand why at all.
DC
Brightest Day #1 ***1/2
The things unfolding in Brightest Day are so damn interesting. Who can lift the White Lantern? What's the deal with Hawkman and Hawkgirl's bones? Why can Aquaman only control dead animals? We're seeing more and more each week that the resurrection may not have been the blessing everyone thought it was. I'm giving Geoff Johns major credit for weaving this story together, leaving me wanting more without making me feel the storyline is being needlessly dragged out.
Dark Horse
Buffy Season 8 #35 **1/2
Oh Buffy. I started reading this comic before I had finished watching the series, so I missed a lot of things. But since then I've watched the complete series, along with the complete Angel, and read every issue of Buffy season 8. And I have no clue what the fuck is going on. Apparently Buffy is like the pinnacle of human evolution, and Angel is the pinnacle of vampire evolution, so the two are now fucking like bunnies, and in doing so ascend to the next plane. But in ascending, they left a gaping hole in the fabric of space through which demons are pouring out. I think. It's an interesting concept, I guess, now that they've finally presented it fully, but the reveal was so convoluted that I'm still not entirely sure what the hell is going on. Oh, and Angel is evil, but not evil. I actually had this book removed from my pull-list I was so annoyed, but with so few issues left I might as well keep up with it to fulfill the completist in me. Oh, also, while I love the cover art with the soft lines, the interior art is fugly and I can't tell who most of the girls are unless they are original Scooby Gang members.
I'm a little confused as to why you're annoyed at Colossus.
ReplyDeleteOther than Beast spitting on Cyclops like a raving animal, I didn't particularly mind his lashing out. Which I'll go into further on my own post (whenever that happens to be.)
Oh, and I'm with Pixie. Shoulda just left her to rot.
I'm annoyed at the continuity error more than anything. Specifically, the fact that at the end of the previous issue we see Peter get off the plane bitching about Illyana and then he finds out about Kurt. In the very first scene of the next issue he's in the medical ward watching a DVD with Kitty. So either it was sloppiness on the creator's part, or Piotr is an asshole. I'm assuming the former.
ReplyDeleteI don't mind Hank's lashing out at all. I think Hank is being naive about what is necessary in life, but knowing how he feels about the issue I see his lashing out as perfectly justified. Even the spitting didn't bother me given how angry he is. My problem was that he did it during the funeral. There is a time and a place, and a funeral procession is neither.
And I disagree. Illyana at the very least provides a huge tactical advantage that makes her recovery necessary, especially with Kurt and Ariel out of the picture. Also, Colossus is a major party, and he's effectively useless while Illyana is out there. And after losing two other mutants, Cyclops is desperate not to lose any more. Understandably Pixie and Anole have their issues, but I don't think leaving Magik to rot is at all the right decision.
I'll go ahead and say that it's clear Scott doesn't think it's the right decision, and I'm backing him 100%. However, I think the reasoning is questionable. Colossus isn't truly a major party. He can turn into a metal force, sure, but frankly they've got at least 10 bigger hitters. And yea, they're down teleporters. But how does that make it smart to not only send your remaining teleporter to Limbo, where she has almost been killed once before, but to also send the fastest guy you've got (and therefore the next best thing to teleporting) along with her. Like I said, I trust Cyclops, and by that virtue the writers. And I know that leaving Magik would look bad. But I think the argument can be built very effectively that listening to Pixie wouldn't have been detrimental in the least bit. Especially coupled with the fact that while Colossus is a heavy hitter, Guthrie is equally as much of a power hitter. Couple that with the Gambit and Dazzler's capabilities, there is really more risked than gained.
ReplyDeleteMoral-wise, saving her is definitely the right decision. But like I said in my review, I'm just not a big fan of hers.
So now, when is it correct to use Piotr and when Peter. I can't remember at which points which version the writers use. Or maybe it's writer preference.
I think you mixed up some negatives.
ReplyDeleteTen bigger hitters? Cannonball maybe, but the mutants aren't exactly rolling in strong players at the moment, especially combat-tested strong players. I'm certainly hard-pressed to come up with ten.
I also think Scott wasn't expecting it to be as nasty as it turned out to be. Which is a pretty weak explanation, as every time they go to Limbo it's Hell. I think they wanted to focus on some other characters without taking away the focus on the main story, so this was a semi-flimsy excuse to take a trip.
I happen to like Magik, though, so I'm not upset that they're going to get her. Nor am I upset that Northstar actually gets facetime.
I thought his name was Piotr, but we Americanized it to Peter. I think both are correct, I just remembered Piotr and not Peter.
I probably did. I've been out of it for whatever reason.
ReplyDeleteBetsy, Hellion, Emma, Guthrie, Bobby, Rogue, Logan, Namor, X-23, Angel, Cable, Storm, Warpath. Then there's Magneto now that he's pretty much better. Magma and Sunspot. Gambit if the writers actually used his abilities properly.
I do understand the reasoning to go after her. I just don't think it is as imperative as it is made out to be. But I do love Chris Yost, so I am excited to see where this goes. Especially considering the cast. Gambit is one of my favorite X-Men and I do like the others.
When I mean 'strong players' I mean players who are super-strong. As in, have a great deal of physical strength. I'm not arguing Colossus is one of the strongest X-Men in general, but that he's one of the physically strongest and most resilient of the X-Men. I mean, there aren't many who can take a missile to the chest, then get up and throw a tank off the island.
ReplyDeleteTrue, Colossus is technically physically stronger than almost all the other X-Men. But personally, that's not really how I would pick my team. He has very little actual fighting skill. He just plows through things.
ReplyDeleteAnd, there aren't many people would take that missile to begin with. The others would just dodge it, and take out the guy driving the tank.