Action Comics #900 Review

The world of comics has just released its biggest milestone yet with Action Comics #900. The title began back in 1938 with the introduction of the first superhero, Superman. 900 issues later, Superman still plays a prominent role in the series and is the main character is the primary story of the issue.

Gotham City Sirens #20 Comic Review

In this new arc of DC comic’s series Gotham City Sirens the reader encounters the character Harley Quinn breaking into Gotham’s infamous institution, Arkham Asylum to confront the love of her life; The Joker.

This issue ties nicely into the Batman universe, since the Joker has returned and is recapturing the role of not only Batman’s but also Gotham’s most prominent villain.

Death of Spider-Man Crossover

Marvel’s next huge crossover is finally here the Death of Spiderman. This crossover takes place in the Ultimates universe, and as you can imagine the end result of this story will be the end of one of our favorite superheroes, the Amazing Spider-Man.

This is a six-month cross over event beginning this week and spanning all the way until August. Although it may seem like an extremely long time, Ultimates fan’s will rejoice to know that they will now be able to read some of their favorite titles monthly instead of bi-monthly, which is a definite plus. The crossover involves two titles, Ultimate Spider-Man and a new mini series created for this crossover entitled Ultimate Avengers vs. New Ultimates.

For this crossover, Marvel has enlisted many of its heavy hitters both in writing and art for the two stories involved. Like always, Ultimate Spider-Man is written by fan favorite Brian Michael Bendis, with art done by the team of Sara Pichello, David Lafuente, Lan Medina, and Ed Tadeo, and the best is still to come. Ultimate Avengers vs. New Ultimates is written by the legendary Mark Millar, and penciled by equally as legendary Lenil Yu. Marvel decided to jump-start this cross over with the release of two of the installments this week.

The Death of Spider-Man promotional postcard that was released a few weeks ago solicits that you should read Ultimate Avengers vs. New Ultimates to start off the crossover, but after reading the two, it really doesn’t matter which you read first. So lets start with Ultimate Spider-Man. This issue is a prelude to the Death of Spider-Man cross over. Two storylines are taking place in this issue, which end up intertwining by the end. First off, Spider-Man is being training by Tony Stark in order to become a better super-hero. The second story line that is occurring is that the Black Cat has had a weapon of ultimate power come into her hands. Mysterio is now harassing her, due to the fact that he wants that power for himself and he is willing to do anything to trick her into giving it to him.

Follow Up Review: X-Men #7

It seems like yesterday I was writing the review for the first issue of the new X-Men series written by Victor Gischler, and here we are, one arc down and already on issue number seven.

The series just wrapped up its six issue Curse of the Mutants arc, and now the X-Men are starting to gain popularity in the San Francisco area, beginning to be commonly referred to as San Francisco’s X-Men; kind of like how New York has the Avengers. Many of the X-Men are enjoying helping the people of San Francisco with their day-to-day problems, whether it be a house burning down, a robbery, or even a cat stuck in a tree, while others feel as though their powers and abilities could be put to better use.

In this issue a handful of the X-Men are sent to New York City to investigate an issue that is “too small for the Avengers, but too big for local law enforcement”. This group of X-Men find themselves in the NYC sewer system searching for the source of the problem.

Daredevil Reborn

This is the first issue of a 4 part mini series that chronicles what is happening with Daredevil in the aftermath of Shadowland; and also while Black Panther takes over the ongoing Daredevil series.

The issue begins with Matt Murdock having an internal conflict about finding himself, and touches upon on how he can hopefully redeem himself after everything that happened. The story takes place in New Mexico, for now at least, and Murdock find himself, but inevitably Murdock gets himself into some trouble with the locals, and on top of it, the local authority.

Pax Romana

Pax Romana was a four issue mini series that was released by Image comics in 2007 and 2008. This series is written, illustrated, colored, and lettered by author Jonathan Hickman. Jonathan Hickman is best known for his work on Marvel Comic’s Secret Warriors and he has been working on the current arc of the Fantastic Four.

The story takes place in the future, where the Vatican has backed a group of scientists that have discovered the wonders of time travel. The church decided that in order to save the present, they would use the new technology to send back a representative of the church, as well as an army of men with modern technology to remedy the past and enhance the future.

Soon after the introduction of the project that will act as the basis for the entire story, the plan goes wrong and the true premise of the books becomes clear to the reader.

This series has both an interesting style of writing, as well as a fairly interest art style. When it comes to the writing, the issues read more like a book, taking a break from the standard style of comic writing, implementing pages of text that depict conversations between key characters that allow for Hickman to better lay out the storyline in a shorter amount of time. Hickman would also use a block of information when each character was introduced in order to give quick background information to better acquaint the reader with the numerous characters featured throughout the story.

When it comes to the art, Hickman uses a style that is unlike anything I have ever seen. He tends to choose a certain color for each frame of the story, using the color, accented with shading bringing to life the scenes of the story. I did not expect this type of coloring to add as much as it did the story, but it certainly left its mark. As for the art style, Hickman tends to leave it simpler than most artists, usually leaving out extreme detail in each pane, especially when it comes to the faces of the characters. Instead he focuses on the shading and slight facial marks.

I think that Hickman designed the series like this in order to allow for the story to be driven more so by the writing and the story as opposed to the art. In my personal opinion, I am usually more art focused, but Hickman is one of my favorite writers and it is shown in this series that that is his strong point, so I was more than happy to have the focus on the writing style and this spectacular story.

9 out of 10

Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes

About two weeks ago now I watched this show for the first time on TV. I was scared when first turning it on, wondering how they were going to butcher some of my favorite heroes from my childhood, and wondering how far from the truth the show was going to deter from the books. To my surprise, the show was nothing like I thought it was going to be and neither was the comic adaptation.

While watching the show I was wondering how and why the story and dialogue was so well done, and why I was enjoying it so much. All of that credit is owed to the fact that Chris Yost is the writer of the episodes and in charge of all of the stories, which to my blissful realization was the case with the comic adaptation as well.

Amazing Spider-Man #647

When I first picked up this issue of Spider-Man I had to take a look at it a few times because it is simply HUGE. I usually am deterred from a book when it has a $4.99 price tag, but when it is this large I really don’t mind paying the extra buck or two. I mean you pay for the amount of content right?

Uncanny X-Force #1

I was quite sad when Kyle and Yost’s X-Force came to an end, but when I heard Rick Remender and Jerome Opena were taking over the book and starting with a new team I became a little more okay with it ending. I really love these two as a team, and when Punisher went sour with the introduction of Frankencastle and I left the book, I really missed these two and the work they did. So to finally get a chance to experience them in action again was exciting.

Storm and Gambit One-Shot (Curse of the Mutants tie-in)

When it comes to tie-ins for comic book series I always want to read every single additional book I can so I can get the full story, but the majority of the time I cannot justify doing so because most of the stories aren’t anything crucial or even good for that matter, and it just costs too much. But, I decided to pick up Storm and Gambit because of three reasons. 1. The art is done by Chris Bachalo, 2. Its only a one-shot so even if its not great at least I got the full story, and 3. both Storm and Gambit are both great characters.

When I opened the book I was even happier that I picked it up because I quickly learned that this issue was incredibly important to the main storyline and I knew it would be worth the money it cost.

The story centers around Storm and Gambit and a mission they undertake into a secret Vampire lair in order to recover the body of Dracula. Little do they know is that everything is against them and not only are their mutant abilities going haywire, but there is no way they can get back-up from the other X-Men. The story goes on to have many interesting plot twists, and is action packed with exciting and gruesome battles where you get to see Storm in a form you never imagined. On top of it all, its One-Shot length is prefect and really goes from start to finish without a bump in the road.

On top of a great story, the art of Chris Bachalo (Uncanny X-Men, X-Men Legacy) is spectacular in this issue. He really has a style that perfectly fits the dark and dreary atmosphere of Vampires. He also does a great job illustrating the fight scenes, even when there is an overwhelming amount going on in the panels, he never makes them hard to follow or allows them to be jumbled. His art is pure beauty.

Overall this was a great book, and the story really fit perfectly into its One-Shot packaging. I had never read anything by Chuck Kim, but his writing was great and I think that he allowed for great chemistry between Storm and Gambit that really made the issue pop. When it comes to One-Shots and mini-series, comic companies usually slack on whom they have writing and drawing the issues, but with this One-Shot they did the complete opposite and I was very glad to see that. If you are reading Victor Gischler’s X-Men series and any of the other Curse of the Mutants tie-ins then this issue is a must. Don’t miss out.

9 out of 10

*Originally Posted on the Chris' Comics Official Website

Superman 700 Review

I have been waiting for this issue of Superman to come out ever since I saw that J. Michael Straczynski was going to be taking over the title, also I knew this issue marked the end of the whole New Krypton cross-over that had been prohibiting me from being able to jump onto the Superman band-wagon. I was also excited that Stracynski was picking up the series starting with the milestone issue, which is always a nice place to start reading a series that has been going as long as Superman has.

One thing that is always interesting with milestone issues, is that you get to see the work of many different artists and writers that have been involved with the series over the years, which allows the reader to compare and contrast within a single issue. With Superman 700, the reader gets a story by James Robinson (War of the Supermen), Dan Jurgens (Death of Superman), and of course J. Michael Straczynski (Thor, Brave and the Bold). For the most part, these three stories were quality stories, but like any comic, they had their up and down points.

The first story focuses on Lois and Superman’s first encounter after the events of the 100 Minute War. After reading the entire issue, I can see why this was the first story featured in this milestone issue, since it was the least exciting of the three. I am fan of James Robinson’s, but after reading the action packed story that was War of the Supermen, a love story between Lois and Superman just didn’t compare. I was more disappointed with the art than anything in this story. My big problem with the story was that I feel as though when doing a love story in comics, the artist needs to be able to convey the facial expressions that come along with love and that just was not here in this story.

The second story in this issue was the “fun” story of the issue. The story doesn’t really focus on Superman, which was the only negative aspect of the story in my opinion and that is only because this is supposed to be the Superman anniversary issue. Regardless, this story was very entertaining and focuses on the ever-popular sidekick of Batman, Robin. One thing that made this story so entertaining is that it took place in the past, which usually provides a good setting for a story because it takes place back during a simpler time before events like Blackest Night and War of the Supermen. The story revolves around Robin’s interaction with Superman while Batman is off serving his duties as Bruce Wayne for the night. It is a fun story to read and it really shows off Superman’s true nature as a kind nurturing individual who will always be there in the nick of time for the people of Earth, which the reader soon finds out plays a large role in Stracynski’s story. The story is beautifully written and never has a down point, but what else can you expect from the guy who had the writing power to kill the Man of Steel?

The third story is the story that all the readers have been waiting for, the start of J. Michael Straczynski’s run, and the immediate aftermath of War of the Supermen. The story has a strong beginning, showing Superman answering the press’s questions revolving around the 100 Minute War, only for it to be halted by Superman receiving a slap that would cause Superman to re-work his whole sense of being; which is why this prologue is fittingly titled the Slap Heard Around the World. The story focuses on Superman trying to cope with the fact that during the time that he was overwhelmingly involved with the events that occurred on New Krypton, he neglected to fully protect the people that he had sworn to protect so long ago. As the story continues, the reader sees Superman interacting with a few of DC’s big wig characters, trying to figure out just what he needs to do to make up for everything he let happen during his time of leave. He would soon learn that it would not be the advice that he would get from his fellow heroes that would lead him in the right direction, but it would be advice that he received a long time ago from someone very close to him that would put him on the right path.

After finishing the entire issue, I was very pleased with the overall product. Straczynski provided a great story that just left me wanting more, like usual with his writing, and Eddy Barrow’s art on the last story was nothing short of impressive. He really knows how to bring life to the Man of Steel. The one thing that really bothered me about this issue as a whole was the price of the issue. I don’t mind paying $5 bucks for an issue if I am getting substantial material for the price, I was disappointed to say the least when I saw that Superman 700 was substantially smaller than Batman 700 just a week prior, which had the same price tag as this issue. I know Batman may be a bit more popular that Superman, but Superman fans need some loving too DC! Overall it was a solid issue and lived up to the majority of my expectations. I am excited to see what happens to Superman as Stracynski continues with his run, there is no doubt in my mind that it will be any less than spectacular.

9 out of 10

*Originally posted on the Chris' Comics Website

Cornbread's Favorite and Least Favorite Comics of the Week - 3/24

Favorite Comic: Nemesis #1

This should not be a surprising pick. Nemesis has been on my mind since Jared first started ranting and raving about it months ago. Also, what can beat a team made of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven? Anyways, lets get to the review.

The book reads fast, and many people may see this as a negative aspect, but with Nemesis it did not seem that way. I felt that when the book ended that I had learned a good amount of information about the story line and was content with how it ended, even though I wanted more.

Nemesis starts out by introducing Nemesis by exhibiting just how ruthless of a super villain he is. Regardless about what people are saying, I think the art is great. McNiven's pure pencil work on the book truely exhibits how great of an artist he really is. Also, with the dulled down colors give a certain feel to the story that enhances the dark violence that characterizes Nemesis.

The story is fulled with action, swears and gore which perfectly fits the dark theme I think Millar and McNiven are going for. The mysteriousness of the characters is also what makes the book so interesting. Millar revealed virtually nothing about Nemesis or the secondary main character Morrow which I think enhances the story and will make for a more interesting part of the remainder of the series.

Overall, this was a great story and it seems like it will be an awesome series. I would also like to add even though non-stop action, swearing and killing is awesome it will eventually get old, so by making this a 4 part mini the creators will be able to capitalize and keep this book popular till its end.

Cornbread's Favorite and Least Favorite Comics of the Week - 3/17

I had a big week in comics this week, but after talking to everyone else, it seems like I was the only one really. But alas, I was able to select a favorite and least favorite for this week and now all of you can read (or not read) about them.


Favorite Comic: Choker #2
*Warning Possible Spoiler Alert*

First off, I want to say that this book is beautiful. Templesmith's art really never lets me down. Also, the physical quality of the book itself is great as well, using high quality art paper for each and every page.

Aside from the way the book looks, this issue topped my list this week was the story and how it is developing. The events of this issue are even more messed up than the last, introducing the threat of man eating human monsters that seem to be attacking civilians in Shotgun city. This is on top of the introduction of a vampire attack in the last issue, which the reader still knows nothing about because it was hardly mentioned in this issue. I think it will be interesting if that in every issue McCool and Templesmith introduce a new threat that Jackson has to deal with and then in the last issue(s) it all ties together and you learn how it is all connected to the (as of right now) main antagonist Cassidy.