The Marvel Space Race Pt 2: Guardians of the Galaxy #1

Following on from our review of Nova, we continue our intergalactic Marvel space race with Guardians of the Galaxy. With the upcoming movie and the need for Marvel NOW to take to the stars, where else is there to start (apart from with Nova of course...).

How any reboot's have been seen that rehash the same story of origin over and over again - Peter and that spider, Batman and that mugger. But when the hero isn't at the forefront of the public domain, this type of introductions is so gratifying.

Issue #1 recounts the history of Peter Quill aka Star Lord in 3 different time periods in the event's leading up to his birth and later his mantle as Star Lord. And true to Bendis form, the story is comprised of the usual character archetypes and enough dialogue to make the head spin. In other word this bad boy read like a good episode of One Tree Hill. There was mummy issues, daddy issues and a few kills here and there.

There are some great moments in this story - in particular the first meeting and later romance between Meredith Quill and J'son. It all happens so fast but you really don't question it. So rarely so we see this kind of true fleeting romance in the Marvel world, so any excuse to fall for it is welcomed. And penciller - McNiven, is definitely instrumental to this. His work is stunning. It's full of detail and expression, and McNiven is able to capture so many emotions throughout the panels. He really makes this story so easy on the eye despite all the dialogue. I really feel that the sum of his work is displayed in that beautiful spread of young Peter running away as his home is destroyed. And let's not forget colourist Justin Ponsor who really captures the varying moods and dynamics in this issue.

All in all, this issue doesn't come off a pre-requisite to the story, but it's definitely worth it for a reintroduction to Quill as well as some amazing artwork. There are so many shifting tones that really gave this issue pace and adventure, and it almost read's like the movie itself. We place the future of this title in Bendis' more than capable hands and this more than fitting song.

What Would Doom Do? Simple. Kick back and wait for the Nova crossovers to start kicking in, and then beggg that the GG swoop down into Avengers Arena issue and save the hell out of Cammi. True story.

The Marvel Space Race Pt 1: Nova #1

Fresh off the back of LSCC, overspending, and casual banter with Kieron (Karen) Gillen, we've found ourselves climbing on board for the Marvel NOW intergalactic space-race with the reboot of Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy.

First off I should say that I liked to keep my feet firmly on earth's 616 ground (and various alt universes) - Much of my galaxy corps learnings have come from my blogging partner in crime. So I must say that these #1's were the perfect introduction to the Marvel Galaxy.

In Loeb and McGuinness' Nova reboot, the mantle is about to be passed on from Richard Ryder to one of Marvel's newest recruits, 15 year old Sam Alexander (Avengers vs X-Men, Ultimate Spiderman - the cartoon!). For a Nova newbie (kinda), it's great to start a fresh. Loeb is able to fill you in on the NovaCorp history through a clever sequence of 'tales' from Sam's 'no-good' dad Jessie - a former wearer of the helmet. A rather amusing twist is that within a world of mutants, Sentential's, Civil Wars and all sorts - Sam doesn't believe his dad's stories!

What I really love about this issue is that Loeb is able to make such a far-fetched story seem so far-fetched but within a realistic setting. For once, we get to see a glimpse of 'real life' outside of the world of aliens and super-powered people - where the character's aren't focused on the next bad guy or their newest costume, but real life issues. Sam's a teenager facing typical teenage problems, as well as he added stresses of family life. But of course, that's already about to change.

If the story has one downfall then it's that we've seen it so many times before. But Loeb and McGuinness really make this work. McGuinness' work is perfect for this series. It's clean, action filled and just stunning to look at, and inker and colorist Dexter Vines and Marte Gracia really help to bring this all together.

Nova is already shaping up to be a great tale. It's so slick and already fun. It'll be great to see where they take this once Sam has established his powers. Even if it is just a story about growth, it's definitely one to make the SamAlex haterz give it read!

What Would Doom Do?
FIND OUT IN PART II!! (tomorrow)

Why we love Deadpool

Now we've written about Deadpool on 2 previous occasions (Here and of course Here), and now we've reached #5 we felt that it was time to revisit and re-evaluate.

The merc with the mouth is now 2/3's of the way through his task to dispose of the resurrected Presidents, and #5 see's him take his hunt intergalactic to gank Reagan.

There isn't really much to distinguish this issue from the others - Posehn and Duggan's dialogue is as fluid and witty as ever, and they do an awesome job of moving - what could easily be a typical Deadpool story - along. But what's really interesting is the developing 'relationship' between Wade and Preston. Through such an unlikely, seemingly un-moving pairing, Posehn and Duggan provide a rare 'magic moment' of Deadpool showing a bit of heart through his reaction to Preston's death at the hands of a George Washington.

Now that's one reason why we love Deadpool.


But if that wasn't enough, then Moore's lines and Staples' colours really seal the deal. We had our reservations at first - whilst it seems like the perfect style for the nature of Deadpool, it just seemed a bit 'much', but it's safe to say they now have our seal of approval (yes we are that important). Some of the panels are so garish and grotesque that it almost seems like you should be looking away. It's all blood and guts but somehow...just somehow they manage to make it look good...and dare we say it...fun? The closing page is hilariously sad, and even Preston's death makes you want to chuckle. But nothing beats the full page spread of Reagan's guts and jelly beans spewing through Zero G's.

So on what note...What Would Doom Do?
He'd show you a bad-ass picture of Reagan spewing his guts. If that ain't enough to get you to read this series, well then quite frankly you ain't good enough to be a future resurrected president.

Uncanny X-Men #1

Last year Marvel hinted at the potential return of the flagship X-Men series. Then they dropped the ultimate A-bomb when they finally released the teaser - revealing that Bendis and Bachalo would be reviving the series in the wake of AvX.

The story runs right off the back of All New X-Men (more of Bendis' handywork) as Cyclops and his new band of 'Uncanny X-Men' attempt a mutant revolution as they gather up all the new mutants that have begun to pop up all over the shop (thanks Phoenix). 

But as we already know from ANXM, not all is quite as it seems, as the power of the Phoenix appears to have left some of the mutants including Cyclops and Magneto almost powerless or with little control over. Where as Magick appears to have grown stronger (we can only guess how long that'll last!)

It makes perfect sense for Bendis to carry this story as it is so intertwined with ANXM, but at the same time the story is written in such a way that you don't need to read ANXM for it to make sense (although you definitely should!). 

Also having Bachalo back on board is perfect. I lovvee his work, and there's something about the way that he portrays Cyclops that gives him a really sinister edge. With these new costumes (which we are loving), he's really managed to strip away that 'boy next door' look from Scott, which is perfect considering recent events. And we think his portrayals or Emma and Magick are a stroke of genius! Bachalo makes it so clear who wields all the power here - and that's Magick. She's pretty much been upgraded to the front now that Emma is also lacking in the power department.

Although the only thing we would say about this issue is Magneto...WTF?!

This new series of Uncanny X-Men is shaping up to be a massive player in Marvel Now. We are certain that Bendis has a lot up his sleeve, and if the last page of #1 is anything to go by, this title is gonna keep us on our toes for quite some time.

VIVA LA LACK OF DOOM!

Wham Bam Thank you Mam - The FEARLESSS Defenders

Time for Marvel NOW's first all female alliance, and we must say, it's a rather interesting one.
Misty Knight and Valkyrie - Thor and Iron Fist's ex's of sorts - are teaming up to prevent an onslaught of Viking zombies.

As female characters who have spent little time in the Marvel spotlight, it's finally great to see them take centre stage in a new story that isn't too far fetched, well written and immediately illustrates who each character is without being bogged down in too much dialogue. Misty and Valkyrie are such an unlikely duo, but it seem's like one that will just work. Bunn has done a great job of setting a story for two great and dynamic female characters and we'd LOVE to see the damage they could do if they were teamed up with Deconnick's current Captain Marvel. O_O

With this issue you just know you're only skimming the surface, and there's something about it that feel's really old school and classic. The only tiny tiny issue we have is that we hope it really doesn't turn into a 'This is an all female team, therefore it requires all female nemesis'' - that would really spoil the good thing that Bunn is setting up here. So er, don't let us down ok?

In terms of Sliney's art work, there's something that we can't quite place with this, but it works - specially with Gandini's colours. It feels like such a mish-mash of curves and and placid colours, but this only serves to make Misty and Valkyrie really stand out. You can really move across the page quite easily, which is surprising considering out much is going on. It great to see that Sliney can really handle these action sequences, and we're really waiting for that epic double page spread. Pretty sure that'll come in no time.

All in all, The Fearless Defenders is a great first issue, and nice twist to the original Defenders that we're used to. Finally Misty and Valkyrie have their time to shine!

What would doom do?
After retreating into a Latverian den of fear at the sheer awesomeness of this new female duo, the plan is to stay put, yes stay up, waiting, reading and hoping that that he'll become a beautiful semi bionic woman or a Asgardian female Thor so he can be just as awesome.

Snapshot: The Simplest Fantastical Story Ever?

Well now, what do we have here, its a new comic of course!  Or to be precise it is the first issue of 'Snapshot' from Image, the first of four it seems, by way of Andy Diggle, and Jock, you may remember them from a little thing called 'The Losers'? I'll do my best to refrain from spoilers, but I am not always accountable for my words, so the risk is yours and since this is only the first issue at least I wont ruin the ending. I hope.

Now, onto what this comic is actually about and I should point out that I went in to this comic knowing nothing about what it was about except the cover, the name and the creators. I found it to be wonderfully refreshing, though that could just be my bias for comics speaking, especially since the main protagonist, no one special, just your slightly cooler than normal nerd who works in a comic book store and we spend a lot of the first issue there.

There is no magic, no super powers, no advanced technology, nothing out of the ordinary, or so it seems, certain plot elements point to something mysterious, but we don't know if this is super in nature, or just very clever misdirection and conspiracy  Personally I'm hoping for the latter. This is a down to earth story, at  least in comparison to many other works out there and its not hard to find your self imagining it actually happening. I like to think of this as a fictional work of a real world possibility  so far at least, things may take an increasingly wild turn.

Now for that other crucial aspect, and possibly more important(?) aspect of a comic book the art work. Now, I'll admit to being hesitant when I first picked it up due to its distinct lack of colour, and I am ashamed to admit that, I expect abuse to follow shortly. However, I can safely say that being a black and white comic has in no way dampened my enjoyment of it, if anything it has only pushed the book higher up in my opinion. Jock's work is excellent, clear and enticing, not too clean to be clinical, and not to messy to be confusing, its right in the middle. Also, regarding the lack of colour, I found it made the reading that much easy, not as much going on to distract the eye and mind from the meat of the book, the story and the characters. All of which allows for a far better reading experience.

So overall, an excellent comic with a lot of potential, and I've no doubt it will live up to it all. Both story and artwork go hand in hand to provide a unique experience that only Jock and Andy Diggle can provide.

What Would Doom Do?

After reading it twice and spending an hour or so making a mind map of ideas for how the story could be explained he would then lie in front of the TV on his front, legs waving in the air as he happily colours in the pages with his crayons, because even Doom likes to colour. And since he is evil he also gets to destroy some great artwork, damn that Doom. Though that is a good reason to buy two copies...

To Infinity and Beyond!

I was not looking forward to this series.

From the premise, it all seemed pretty "been there done that"...So what changed? This time we've got ourselves a nice twist, and we finally see the return of Marvel's Illuminati!

Cap, Iron Man, Black Panther, Black Bolt, Dr Strange, Mr Fantastic and Namor find themselves facing their toughest decision yet (well some of them), when an anomaly in an alternate earth, leads to alternative earths' gravitating towards each other causing an incursion, resulting in either the destruction of both worlds, or the sacrifice of only one earth (imaging throwing 2 eggs towards each other).

3 issues in and the team now have, Decided to use the Infinity Gems to restore the Infinity Gauntlet to stop the incursion by repelling the oncoming alt planet, Been joined by Hank McCoy - who has replaced Professor X after he posthumously recruited Hank to be his replacement (How? read and you'll find out), Enlisted Cap to be the wielder of the gauntlet, Repelled the alt earth (for now) - resulting in the destruction of the gauntlet (naughty Cap), Decided that they may need to make some tough calls - i.e. do all they can to make sure their world is saved over another's, Mind wiped Cap, Anddd they appear to have pissed of Galactus, Thanos and the Watcher (we'll see).
It's safe to say it's been pretty jammed packed, and as a result, whilst I like Hickman's work, this has made part of these issues very wordy. But that said, Hickman's depiction of Reed Richards is strong, bold, and very matter of fact. He's definitely the stand out character.

However, we feel the main star of this series so far is the colourist- Frank D'Armata. We're no stranger to his work (Look at Cable & X-Force!). D'Armata and Epting work great together, but D'Armata's colours really make this story what it is.
This is a very insular and quite a dark story in terms of mortality and getting your hands dirty, and this is reflected perfectly in the colours. The tones are dark and brooding - even the red's of Strange's cloak and Cap's shoe's aren't as vibrant and heroic as we're used to seeing. We're surrounded by blacks, greys and sepia, and even when they step through to the wall edge and see the oncoming danger, whilst the land looks calm, it's a stark bloody red. It really sets the scene, and it's almost as if you're not only an observer, but this insular feel makes it seem as if you're the silent watcher in the room.

Hickman's New Avengers definitely has a way to go to hit the top of our list, but it's definitely one to watch whilst your pining for your next hit of Marvel Now.

What Would Doom Do?
He woulda shattered these universes ages ago AND kept the Infinity Gauntlet looking brand spanking new...just sayin. READ.