Best Comic of the Week:
X-Men #1 – With this latest relaunch, the X-Men set up (overnight) a treehouse in Central Park for the X-Men to live in, which catches the attention of a lot of people. The new team combines like Voltron to combat an extraterrestrial threat (which makes it look like the X-Men will be heading back into space soon) that somehow slips past the early warning systems of Arrako/Mars and The Peak without being mentioned. We also learn about an industrialist who is very unhappy about what’s happened to Mars. Gerry Duggan sets up at least a year’s worth of stories with this issue, and things look promising. It doesn’t look like this book is going to be very character-driven though. Sunfire’s on the team, which I find weird, and barely says anything in this whole issue. Jonathan Hickman just spent time establishing Sync’s feelings for Wolverine (Laura version), but that doesn’t get mentioned at all here either. I hope that Duggan’s going to strike the right balance with character moments, but that’s been left aside for this issue. Pepe Larraz’s art is very nice, but I doubt he’s going to be on this book for long. I do remain hopeful that this will be an enjoyable series.
Quick Takes:
Beasts of Burden: Occupied Territory #4 – Things wrap up nicely for this most recent Beasts of Burden miniseries. I like that Evan Dorkin and Sarah Dyer took the story to post-War Japan, for a change of pace and to show how the wise dog concept works in other parts of the world. Benjamin Dewey’s art is lovely.
Captain America #30 – Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Captain America has been a strange thing. The story has moved very slowly (honestly, I can’t believe it’s been thirty issues), and while it has addressed some interesting aspects of the modern American experience, I’ve often wished this book went a lot harder (although, equating the Red Skull to Jordan Peterson was brilliant). This issue has Cap and the Skull face off over the dinner table, and it feels somewhat anticlimactic. These weren’t terrible comics, but they did need more oomph. Coates is a brilliant writer, but much of what he does best just doesn’t really translate well into comics I’m afraid. His second Black Panther series was very good, and I’d hoped he’d ironed out the things that were holding him back, but this ended up being kind of bland. I’m not sure what he’s got planned for his next book, but I’ll definitely check it out. As for Cap, he’s already started appearing in the United States of Captain America, which managed to make Fox News pretty angry over the last week, based on a surface misreading of a point that wasn’t even all that subtle in the first place.
Fire Power #13 – After all the madness of the last few issues, Owen and his family return home and try to pick up where they left off. The kids have trouble getting used to being back at school, Kellie and her partner end up using kung fu on a gunman (that scene looks so cool), and there seem to be a lot of snakes sliding around the monastery in China. Issue twelve felt like it was wrapping up a lot of the storylines that Robert Kirkman developed, but in reality, and in typical Kirkman fashion, there’s a lot more to this than expected. Chris Samnee’s art in this book has been among the best he’s ever done, and it increasingly feels like this series is just getting started. I really enjoy this book, so I’m happy.
Hellions #13 – The Mister Sinister that was believed killed on Amenth makes his return, and that means that the other Mister Sinister’s secrets are about to be exposed. At the same time, Orphan Maker discovers what Nanny has been hiding from him. It feels like a lot of the plotlines that Zeb Wells started this series with are coming together, which, because this is a Marvel book, makes me think that it’s maybe going to be ending soon? This book remains one of the odder and more enjoyable of the Krakoan titles.
Hollow Heart #5 – I hadn’t realized that there was a sixth issue of this series still to come, so was a bit surprised when things didn’t wrap up at the end. El has made his big escape, and in the process, realizes the full extent of Mateo’s lies. Paul Allor is pulling his story together very nicely, and Paul Tucker’s art continues to look great. This series has been a very nice surprise, digging into themes of trust and faith in a new way.
Immortal Hulk #48 – Joe Fixit and Betty Ross get the chance to talk out their feelings for most of this issue, and Jen gets to know Jackie McGee a little better. This is a quiet issue, which helps set up the coming final conflict between Hulk and the Leader. It’s increasingly obvious when reading this that Al Ewing is setting up the end of the story (and probably his run), and I am already feeling a little nostalgic for the earlier portions of it. There has never been a Hulk run like this before.
Post Americana #6 – We must be getting to the end of this series, as this issue is almost all action, cover to cover, as our heroes need to escape the Wonder robots trying to kill them, while the American government also sends drones to kill them at the same time. Steve Skroce is very good at these large-scale action scenes, so I enjoyed this.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #14 – I’m enjoying the way that Valance and Dengar are becoming Rush Hour style buddy bounty hunters, as they try to navigate the outer edges of the War of the Bounty Hunters event. I still find it hard to follow all the storylines about other bounty hunters who slip in and out of this book, and I was interested in the mysterious hunter who is coming after them, until I learned her name is Deathstick.
Suicide Squad #5 – I’ve been interested in Suicide Squad, but I don’t like the way that the story seems to be in service of setting up the Future State storyline, more than it is in building a lasting rationale for the series. Waller has Bloodsport (from the classic John Byrne Superman) exploring other Earths for possible recruits. This issue has him on Earth-3, where he comes across the Crime Syndicate. I like the way Robbie Thompson writes Bloodsport, and sets him up as a counter to Peacemaker. I’m not sure why this issue needed so many artists, but as it’s all DC house style stuff, the transitions weren’t too jarring.
X-Force #21 – The team has had an encounter with a Man-Thing derived new character, and then, after the whole teleforonics event from the Hellfire Gala, go looking for it again. This is a tighter issue than the last few, but I still wish there was more of a long-term plan for this series beyond the constant string of threats from Xeno to respond to.
Comics I Would Have Bought if Comics Weren’t So Expensive:
Avengers #46
Children of the Atom #5
Clans of Belari #1
Green Lantern #4
Skybound X #1
The Week in Music:
Namir Blade & L’Orange – Imaginary Everything – I love L’Orange’s production, but this album, which has Namir Blade rapping over his beats, is very different. Gone are the interludes based on samples of old noir films, and the beats have a lot more guitar in them. Namir Blade is an interesting MC (he’s new to me), and the pairing is very successful. This is a really good album.
