Secret Avengers #1
I want to tell you about this new series by Ed Brubaker and Mike Deodato, but SHHH!! It's a secret! Wait, what, that's not why it's called Secret Avengers? It's called Secret Avengers because it's like a black ops team? And also the team members are Steve Rogers, Sharon Carter, War Machine, Black Widow, Moon Knight, Ant-Man, Beast, Valkyrie, and Nova? And that the story is about Roxxon, a version of the Serpent Crown, and the team that needs to get their ass to Mars?Okay, enough with the question marks. I don't know about Valkyrie and Nova (maybe because they're more like powerhouses), but the rest of team works with this "Black Ops Avengers" idea. It doesn't hurt that I'm a fan of both Brubaker and Deodato, so I had no problem enjoying this issue. Deodato's art is perfect for this concept, and of course Brubaker with his work on Daredevil and Captain America shows he can do the sneaky-stealth-espionage stuff. I recommend it to everyone! Well, at least give it a look.
Green Lantern Corps #48
Things are being cleaned up on Oa, but Tony Bedard and Ardian Syaf aren't leaving it at that. It starts with Ganthet, Guy Gardner meeting with Atrocitus on his home planet. Ganthet tells them about a dire situation that needs to be fixed, but we're not told what the problem is or what their plan is. What we do know is that Ganthet stops become a Guardian (even a Blue Guardian) and instead becomes a Green Lantern, with ring and everything. Oh yes, and it looks like the Alpha Lanterns are building their numbers as Green Lanterns are being requisitioned by them, which seens to be the active story right now.The tricky thing with this book is that since it has a large number of characters involved, so if the current storyline involves Lanterns you don't care for, it results in an issue you don't care for. Personally, this is not the case for me on this current story. I recommend it for Lantern fans and those who liked Blackest Night.
Amazing Spider-Man #632
This is part three of a (I think) four part story by Zeb Wells and Chris Bachalo. The story is "Shed" and is about the Lizard shedding Curt Conners mentally by killing his son Billy last issue (I thought it was a "he seems dead but not really" moment, but boy was I wrong). There's also the literal shedding of the Lizard's body as a new Lizard emerges, stronger both physically and mentally. In fact, he's now able to communicate with the reptillian portion of our brains and have us act on our more base instincts. He makes Spidey run away, and causes actions in some random folk that are definitely more primal in nature. How's Spidey gonna stop him? No idea.Definitely one of the darker stories that's been on Spider-Man. I'm not a fan of Bachalo's art, but in this story it works very well with the theme. Obviously you should pick up the previous two issues if you're planning on picking up this issue. Right now it seems to going for the "darkest before the dawn" feeling, and right now for Lizard is pretty freakin' dark. Recommended for anyone that likes Spidey.
Detective Comics #865
This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs. This is Dr. Arkham's brain, which is just $%#@ed up! By David Hine and Jeremy Haun, this is the second part of a two part story. It shows how Arkham became Black Mask as well as showing what's going on with him at Arkham. It shows how nothing is what it seems, whether it the goings on inside Arkham's head, or what's going on in Arkham Asylum itself. It just goes to show just how manipulative an expert in psychology can be. There's also a Second Feature with the Question, but I'm not recapping it. (see last week's rant on my opinion of second features)I had dropped Detective after Batwoman took it over, but picked it up again after this story (involving BatMAN) No real action in this, but the story didn't need it either. After showing how Arkham is NOT in good hands, you know that we're going to be getting a recurring Batman villian. If you are a fan of the Batman rogues, or the Batman universe in general, I very much recommend this story.
I haven't read part three of the Spider-Man story year, but the first two were great, and I have to say that I LOVE Bachalo's art, and I've been a fan for a very long time! He had a low mid in the late 90s where he added a bit too much "manga" to his style, but he's found the perfect balance with what he was doing earlier with what he tried then. I will say that his flow can sometimes be a little confusing, but other than that, I love the guy!
ReplyDeleteSecret Avengers could turn into the "must-read" Marvel book of the year, with some stiff competition from Jonathan Hickman's SHIELD. Brubaker rarely misses, and with Deodato doing the art, I couldn't be more excited for future issues of S.A.!