Reviews of the comics I checked out this week.
Whether inspiring or disappointing, I read them all.
Welcome to The Pull List.
The New Avengers Annual #1 (Pick of the Week)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Gabriele Dell/Otto
Color Ive Svorcina
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Price: $4.99
What happens when you put an idea into someone’s head?
An idea that is so contagious that it is almost impossible to eradicate once it has taken hold of the brain.
This idea spreads like wild fire when a pissed off Simon Williams convinces eight bad guys (The Revengers) that the Avengers have caused more problems than they solved and lists the five worst things to ever happen to the world, which were caused by the Avengers, to drive his point home. The former Wonder-Man leads a surprise assault on the Avengers Mansion and catches our heroes completely off guard. The destruction and devastation the Revengers inflict upon the New Avengers is unlike any we have seen before.
Once Williams and company carry out part one of the villainous plot, they then set their sights on the Avengers Tower to finish what they started.
The cover art by Gabriele Dell/Otto perfectly captures Simon Williams at the height of his anger and you know right away something big is about to go down. Williams’ dialog scripted by Bendis is spot on and amazingly captures the deep and utter conviction Simon has in his beliefs about the Avengers. It’s one thing to fight a bad guy whose goal is world domination and money, but It’s another thing to fight a bad guy who truly believes he is doing the right thing for the good of mankind and who has no qualms about showing no mercy in order to complete his objective.
Five dollars might be a little much for a comic book when the average market price is $2.99, however, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a New Avengers fan or anyone who took a break from the Avengers titles in general.
* * * *
Action Comic #1
Writer: Grant Morrison
Art: Rags Morales
Publisher: DC Comics
Price $3.99
This isn’t your father’s Superman.
Hell, I don’t even know if it’s my Superman.
Grant Morrison is trying to help us figure that out for ourselves as this is a new Superman for a new age.
Gone is the boy scout who once stood for truth, justice and the American way and now meet a strange visitor who believes in his own sense of justice that happens to be in tune with the real everyday people of Metropolis.
Superman has a chip on his shoulder when flying into action, but he enjoys what he is doing and can not stand the sight of bad things happening and bad people getting away with bad things.
This is Superman at his core even though he looks more like Superboy in these early stages. The story begins as Superman has been in Metropolis for six months.
The Clark Kent you can always count is gone and instead we have a Bohemian writer who has difficulty paying his rent on time. The old Clark Kent would have found a way to pay the rent on time no matter what, while this version is being chased by his landlady for payment.
On one hand, it’s kind of depressing to see the Man of Steel having ordinary difficulties, but at the same time, you have to remember this is a reboot and the point is to gain a new audience. Maybe, having a hard time paying rent helps us relate to this new Superman, since most of us can relate having gone through similar situations.
The color and art work in this issue is epic and captures a kind of golden age essence for the new school approach to this long standing series. Are these characters traits going to be the norm for this new Superman?
Or, are we watching a young man with growing pains who will eventually find his way to become a different Superman we all want to get behind?
This reboot of Action Comics provided a great first chapter and I will be back for part two in October.
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Green Arrow #1
Writer: J.T. Krul
Art: Dan Jurgens & George Perez
Color: David Baron
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99
DC Comics delivered the goods IF you have never read a Green Arrow comic book before.
By day, Oliver Queen is the visionary behind Queen Industries which is a global leader in energy and transportation.
By night, he dons the green outfit and high tech arrows to become the emerald archer of crime fighting. J.T. Krul’s script for this title is a solid example of comic book writing 101: introduce the character, show him beating up three super powered baddies named Doppelganger, Dynamix and Supercharge to save the day, dig a little deeper into the main character to discover why he does what he does and having an unexpected ending that makes you want to buy the next book. You might not like this if you are hardcore Arrow fan since nothing spectacular happens, but you have to look at this book for what it really is: a platform for Oliver Queen’s word balloon to yell at you and say “Allow me to re-introduce myself”.
* *
Batgirl #1
Writer: Gail Simone
Art: Adrian Syaf
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99
Barbara Gordon swings back into action as Batgirl after a long absence from crime fighting in the kick ass variety.
Barbara is eager to put bad guys behind bars, however, she suffers from a lack of confidence that paves a rocky road for her return.
DC remains faithful to the back story regarding her paralysis even though the cause of her recovery is ignored at this time. Memories of her spinal injury causes Batgirl to freeze during an incident when the villain points a gun at her spine.
Gail Simone penned a great script for the first issue. The dialog makes you want to root for Barbara Gordon in every aspect of her life. Adrian Syaf’s art work is simply amazing. In my opinion this book had the best art work of the week. It beautifully captures the essence of what this story really is. A hero on the comeback trail. I hope the combination of Simone and Syaf stay together for a long time as far as this series is concerned.
Their creative ingenuity has brought style, elegance, class and character to this book.
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Justice League International #1
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $3.99
Andre Briggs, head of intelligence for the United Nations, is assembling a group of superheroes to form the “Justice League International”.
The U.N. imposes some prerequisites for candidate selection that has it’s pros and cons as international politics and country representation heavily influences the process.
The suggestion of Batman joining the team is immediately squashed by the U.N.
Do you really think this will deter Dark Knight from lending a helping hand? The appointment of JLI’s team leader causes controversy within the ranks for a variety of reasons. Dan Jurgens’ script gave the team’s selection process with Briggs a CNN “Situation Room” type of feel. The back and forth banter between Red Rocket and China’s August General in Iron is amusing and Guy Gardner is still a humble individual.
The first panel that artistically caught my eye was the arrival of the newly appointed, charismatic and surprising choice for leader of the Justice League International, and as I read on, I realized that he seems to steal the show in almost every panel he appears in. There is a great portrayal of Guy Gardner’s reaction to finding out who he will soon be taking orders from. Overall, I enjoyed the artwork in this issue and an interesting and refreshing first chapter.
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Star Wars: Dark Times: Out of the Wilderness #2
Writer: “Mick Harrison”
Art: Douglas Wheatley
Color: Dan Jackson
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Price: $2.99
The second installment of Star Wars: Out of the Wilderness is one book you can leave on the shelf this week.
It’s not that it’s a horrible comic book, it’s just that nothing really happens.
Das Jennir and Ember are still stranded on the desert moon of Prine. Meanwhile, on Coruscant, Emperor Palpatine is once again chewing out Darth Vader for putting his obsession with the Jedi over Imperial matters. Vader says “As you command, my Master” as he exits the throne room.
It’s hard to get that “must have feeling” over of every book in a series. Flashpoint suffered from the same problem and Out of the Wilderness is no exception.
Save your $2.99 for another comic and wait until next month to see if the story picks up in part three.
