Every week, I will get together all of the new release comics I pick up and throw together a post giving my thoughts on each. There can only be one "STATION456 PICK OF THE WEEK"! This prestigious award is reserved for the most entertaining book of the week. The focus is on new releases, but I will sometimes discuss older comics in the "Station456 BONUS ROUND."
-- Without further adieu, let's get to this week's books! --
Avenging Spider-Man #9:
At the beginning of this issue, we see Peter hopping on a plane ride with Captain Marvel to Boston to go see his Aunt May. Things become complicated when they run into a masked vigilante having a run-in with robot cops after an accusation of bank robbery. I tend to prefer the care-free, fun style of Avenging Spider-Man over Amazing Spider-Man's focus on character drama, and this issue reminds me why. Avenging Spider-Man #9 is all comedy and action and pretty colors and it's awesome.
I love this masked vigilante character that I assume is entirely new. She claims that she stole from the bank in order to give money back to the people, as she believes that this federal bank is corrupt and needs to be fought against. She eventually calls herself Robyn Hood and is totally an Occupy protester to the extreme. She's great.
The book is filled with laughs, and they don't just all come from Robyn Hood. Spider-Man is at his corny, joke-spitting best, and Captain Marvel is no stiff. The book is more than colorful and suitably expressive too, with good looking action.
Loved this issue. It gets the...
STATION456 PICK OF THE WEEK
Batman #11:
Hot off the heals of Batman #10, Scott Snyder ends his beloved and quite massive Court of Owls arc this week with Batman #11. Bruce and Lincoln March duke it out for the majority of the issue, exchanging dialogue along with punches. It's a satisfying battle that sends the two all over Gotham City, delivering some pretty explosive action. It looks great thanks to Greg Capullo's solid artwork that doesn't call attention to itself, letting Snyder's artwork grab most of the attention.
The issue ends with a smart conversation with Dick, bolstering the ambiguity of the conclusion to this arc. We don't know if Lincoln March is really Thomas Wayne or not, and we don't get a crystal-clear account of how the Court is recovering from the Bat-Family's triumph. Which is a good thing, because there's now two more massive things to float in the minds of Batman fans until future writers inevitably satiate our desires.
The excellent final page and the conclusion of the "The Fall of the House of Wayne" back-up do a great job of saying goodbye to this superb Arc. I wasn't surprised or excited by this issue but it did a good job of ending what's going to be remembered as an important chapter in Bruce's life.
Batman and Robin #11:
In this chapter, we see Damian fight Jason with memories of the Joker's violent assault on him with a crowbar, and Jason fight Damian with comments about his upbringing and hostile disposition. It's an interesting idea to have two Robins fighting with each other like apes declaring their dominance, and it's fun to watch them pick at each other's dark pasts and character flaws. We also see the new group of villains wreaking havoc on Gotham City, branding their victims with Bat symbols to make them wear Batman on their persons just as they have to with their injuries. They're a fun set of characters with really neat designs.
The artwork looks very nice, as always, with its dark color palette and overall edgy look. There's a particularly stunning display of artwork through a two-page spread towards the end of the book.
Good stuff. Love the current Batman and Robin run.
Spider-Men #3:
In Spider-Men, 616 Peter Parker is plopped into the Ultimate Universe with Miles Morales. The first two issues were lots of fun, the first simply getting 616 Spidey into the Ultimate Universe and the second getting the characters to further understand what's happening. This issue is filled with a ton of action that honestly makes this issue feel like mostly filler.
Mysterio throws an army of Spidey villains at the Spider-Men - Venom, Green Goblin, Doc Ock, etc. - through the power of illusion. None of the action is very clever, as it's really just a flood of classic villains flinging themselves at the duo. It all looks nice, because the artwork is very impressive, but it mostly fell a little flat for me.
The issue does end with a suitably dramatic conversation between Peter and a drug store clerk about the famed Ultimate Peter Parker, and a last page reveal that is going to lead to some serious tears next issue.
This chapter was okay. It will work better in the trade.
Swamp Thing #11:
I wasn't crazy about the first six issues of Swamp Thing but things got exciting for me at issue #7 when Alec became Swamp Thing again; this time for good. Last issue left Swamp Thing resting in a swamp after the big battle in preceding issues and love-interest Abby getting attacked by Anton Arcane. In this issue, well, he wakes up.
What we see is a brawl between Swamp Thing and Anton Arcane, and it's pretty great. The dialogue is satisfying and often very creepy, and the art looks great. I'm not sure if I prefer Marco Rudy's artwork over Paquette's, but it can certainly be said that it is more unique and eerie.
The issue ends with an incredibly exciting transition to the Animal Man/Swamp Thing crossover starting in issue #12 of each book.
I can't wait for Rot World.
***
And that's it for this week - no bonus round this time! A pretty good comics week for me, but nothing mind-blowing. What do you think of this new series on my blog? Leave your suggestions, comments and critiques below! Also, tell me what books you picked up this week and which comics you've been reading in general!
- I'm out! -
Spider-Men #3:
Mysterio throws an army of Spidey villains at the Spider-Men - Venom, Green Goblin, Doc Ock, etc. - through the power of illusion. None of the action is very clever, as it's really just a flood of classic villains flinging themselves at the duo. It all looks nice, because the artwork is very impressive, but it mostly fell a little flat for me.
The issue does end with a suitably dramatic conversation between Peter and a drug store clerk about the famed Ultimate Peter Parker, and a last page reveal that is going to lead to some serious tears next issue.
This chapter was okay. It will work better in the trade.
Swamp Thing #11:
What we see is a brawl between Swamp Thing and Anton Arcane, and it's pretty great. The dialogue is satisfying and often very creepy, and the art looks great. I'm not sure if I prefer Marco Rudy's artwork over Paquette's, but it can certainly be said that it is more unique and eerie.
The issue ends with an incredibly exciting transition to the Animal Man/Swamp Thing crossover starting in issue #12 of each book.
I can't wait for Rot World.
***
And that's it for this week - no bonus round this time! A pretty good comics week for me, but nothing mind-blowing. What do you think of this new series on my blog? Leave your suggestions, comments and critiques below! Also, tell me what books you picked up this week and which comics you've been reading in general!
- I'm out! -
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