Story: History 101001
Reviewer: Paul Sebert
Writer: Marc Sumerak
Artist: Mike Hawthorne
Colorist: Mike Atiyeh
Letters: V.C’s Dave Sharpe
Editors: Mackenzie Cadenhead, Mark Paniccia, &Joe Quesada
Publisher: A Marvel Pop-Art Production
Ok… do you really dark secret of this issue?
Really… I mean, don’t go complaining to me for giving away the most shocking, tightly guarded enigma of the year that will shatter the comics industry as we know it.
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I mean really… are you sure? Absolutely sure? I mean really really. I don’t want to ruin this comic for anyone.
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Ok if you absolutely must know, scroll on ahead. But this is your last warning.
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Ok, here it is, the most jaw-dropping revelation in the history of comics! Adam Aaronson the seemingly perfect TEEN learns he’s a MACHINE in this issue!!! I am shocked! I had no idea that they were going to go in this direction! Who could have seen this coming?! I mean really who would ever have thought that a book named Machine Teen would have a lead character who was not only a machine, but also a teen? I mean this is clearly the biggest surprise since Jeff Loeb and Tim Sale wrote the ending of Long Halloween.
Ok… all kidding aside, this book about a seemingly normal high school student who discovers he’s really a nifty high-tech android and gets stalked by some shadowy government types is one of those titles that’s hard not to like, but also hard to recommend. Editor turned writer Mark Sumerak has shine for good dialog and that shows in this issue. The words coming out of the characters mouths lack the snaky wit of many modern comics, but sound fairly believable. The main problem lies with the fact that while Adam comes across as a likeable lead character the plot he’s in is fairly mundane.
So mundane in fact that you already know 3 quarters of the plot the moment you read the title logo “Machine Teen.” Equally mundane is Mike Hawthorne’s art, which very much resembles Pat Olliffe’s work on Spider-girl and doesn’t quite feel appropriate for the books science fiction theme. I would have rather of seen some sweet Udon Studio art, or perhaps Mark Brooks.
One interesting side note, this mini-series might receive a boost in sales thanks to Adam’s appearance in the recent Hulk “House of M” tie-in issues. It’s great to see Peter David playing around with some new characters like Adam and the new Scorpion, but alas… Machine Teen is a lot more exciting guest-starring in the pages of Incredible Hulk than in his own book.
