Image Primer at The Weekly Crisis

One of the friends of the Revolution is The Weekly Crisis. I've admired their reviews from all the writers there for a while now and I owe Kirk a thanks for getting me into the reviewing business. After reading his blog for a few months I was inspired to start up my own and he made me aware of blogger and gave me some great advice and if not for that I wouldn't be working for the Revolution right now! 

So in December when he put out a call for Guest Posts I was eager to do so. We came up with an Image Primer and after a month or so of writing, re-writing, editing and patience it's up and it is awesome! Click the link to check it out at their site and let me know what you all thought of it!

Image Primer 

Siege #2 Review

With a highly disappointing and boring first issue my hopes weren’t too high for the 2^nd issue of Siege. Though deep down I still had some hope that Bendis could wine me over again and give me the over the top fun event comic I had been hoping for.

Creative Team

Writer: Brian Bendis

Artist: Olivier Coipel

Inker: Marc Morales

Colorist: Laura Martin

Story Rating: 5 out of 10

Art Rating: 7 out of 10

Overall Rating: 6 out of 10

Opening Comments: Siege #2 is more of what I wanted out of this event, over the top action and some fun moments. Sadly this was still far too thin a read and it seems like Bendis wasted this first half of Siege to set the stage for the real fun next time, and that’s sad to see.

Story Comments: This issue’s biggest flaw was definitely the lack of story and moving things forward. When you’ve only got 4 issues to tell your “everything changes” storyline you’ve got to actually do something with that precious time you have. There’s no room to just wait around and waste our time.

This is what’s confusing me about Siege, it seems like Bendis is writing this as some kind of 8 issue event. I mean honestly, does Siege feel half way over? Not at all. If anything it feels like I just read the first chapter of an 8 part storyline. Now I’m glad it’s not 8 issues but what’s the point of having 4 issues if you’re going to write it like it’s 8?

I almost wonder if Bendis wanted Siege to be much longer but Marvel told him to cut it down to 4. It sure as hell feels like it. I could easily mistake parts 1 and 2 for one issue of the event. This is a huge problem for any event. Even Blackest Night by it’s halfway mark felt like it had accomplished something.

I should address once more the flaw in Norman’s plan. Just one day attack Asgard and everyone will love you? I still can’t see the logic behind this. I know time and time again everyone points out that he’s crazy so there’s no need to explain it but…no…I refuse to accept that.

Maybe if something real had happened, like if the Asgardians where involved in a real incident but nothing has happened. Norman made up one event that killed a lot of people and just like that, bam, we’re invading Asgard. It’s just so inane and boring, like Bendis pulled a magic wand out of his ear and said “there, now Norman wants to attack Asgard and he did this and that”

I just can’t see any reasoning behind attacking gods. Unless you’re just bored. Is that it, Norman? You woke up one day, looked at your Gwen Stacy dressed hooker (Too soon to make a Gwen Stacy fetish joke? Everyone else is doing it.) and figured to yourself “I’m bored, lets go invade Asgard!” I mean I try again and again to understand it but I just can’t.

Now for the one part of this issue I honestly loved and that was the Sentry and Ares fight. Bendis handled Ares incredibly well here and I absolutely loved the fight, short and one-sided as it was. This is actually something that’s bugging me. Would a fight with the God of War really be that one sided? I’m sorry, but I’d think a god could put up a better fight then that.

I get that Sentry is super strong, really, I understand all that but it still feels so boring to have him be this super powerful. I mean come on, Ares is a damn god, you are telling me he couldn’t last at least a few minutes with Sentry, maybe do some real damage? He got in one shot and Sentry acted like he felt nothing.

Then there was how short the fight was, while I liked the fight scene, why was it so damn short? Bendis added a totally useless scene of the Avengers suiting up to kick ass but it was totally pointless. Trust me, Bendis, I wasn’t going to freak out if the Avengers showed up without showing the S.H.I.E.L.D. jet. It was a waste of page.

It would have been great to have more time devoted to the Sentry/Ares fight. Maybe, I don’t know, actually let Ares do something cool? Hurt Sentry? Just a little bit? I know it’s a crazy idea, how dare Sentry be proven he isn’t perfect. We’ve got to boast that Sentry is the most awesome guy in forever.

Then there was Ares’ death. I’ll admit it was a surprising moment and handled well, but there’s always the biggest flaw and that’s that Ares is a God. No point in killing off a character like that if he’s just going to come back. If this was Moonstone or Venom I may believe the character was dead but with Ares it is obvious he’ll be back.

Now here’s one question I have for Marvel: Why is it okay to show Sentry literally ripping Ares in half, showing his guts, spinal cord and other nasty bits spilling out as he’s torn up and show it all in graphic detail, but Moonstone can’t say the word “bitch”. I just don’t get it. It’s cool to show a brutal murder, but the word “bitch” oooh that’s the real taboo here.

I get why the F word and “Shit” are censored. But really, Moonstone can’t say “bitch”? We have to censor it? I just don’t get it. It makes no sense and if Marvel is going to boast this as some mature and real important event can’t you be a little adult and just say the word “bitch”? My eyes won’t catch fire if I read it. I’d rather my 13 year old son read the word “bitch” then see someone get ripped in half.

One thing that really confused me is how long it has taken the Avengers to get here. I’m sorry, this is a big event and the Avengers are just now showing up? At the very end? Really? I have my doubts they would take this long to act.

I’ve been pretty negative, but I will be totally honest when I say I did indeed enjoy this issue for the most part. It was miles ahead of it’s weak starting even if it was still frustrating. While it was painfully thin and rather dull deep down I still had a good time reading Siege for its fun over the top action.

Bendis indulges on the dumb fun of an event comic and it doesn’t get much dumber then this. Unless all the characters lose their ability to speak and are only able to move  by punching each other. But I still had a lot of fun with the action and how it all came together.

Is that any excuse for how stupid Siege is? Not at all and I’m not trying to act like it is. But in the long run an event comic is dumb and you can’t really expect anything else out of it but action and some fun moments. That’s been what event comics are about, and maybe every once in a blue moon it will have an actually interesting thought in it but that is indeed a rare moment for an event comic.

Still much as I try to hate how stupid Siege is I just can’t hold that against it. I’m not reading Siege for a thought provoking or interesting read. I read good comics like Ultimate Spider-man, Jersey Gods and Invincible for that kind of stuff. No there’s no need for any of that pesky good storytelling here. I just want dumb over the top action and like a fun dumb action movie it satisfies that desire.

Add in that it’s only 4 issues and it’s like getting to watch an abridged version of Die Hard and that is awesome. Sure I love Die Hard, but do I really give a damn about the story? No. I care about seeing one badass kill a bunch of other badasses because he’s top badass.

So overall this issue was weak, so very weak, but it’s a guilty pleasure of sorts.

Now about the ending, it was just dumb. Norman standing there as the shield is about to smack him across the face. I felt like I was in a theater watching a bad horror movie and shouting at the screen “Ruuuuun ya moron!” I mean seriously. It was so boring, Norman looks up and is about to get smacked with the shield. It’s only a slight improvement over the ever so exciting Captain America getting pissed as he gets up off his couch.

Because nothing says pissed off like standing up off your couch, children.

Art Comments: Coipel’s art was a big step up from his weak art last month. It’s still not as great as I was hoping for but I’ll admit it was a big step up for him as it seems he’s doing a better job of capturing the epic scale that Siege deserves. While his work definitely still looks rushed I still enjoyed it.

My big confusion was his reuse of panels. Just painfully lazy of him. He did it a couple of times, the scene with Steve Rogers giving a speech to the heroes one panel he’s looking at the right, then the next he’s looking at the left and it’s the same panel copied and pasted. Clever, Mr. Coipel, I almost missed it.

Usually I don’t mind an artist recycling panels if they do it in a clever way. Mike Deodato has usually been able to get away with it. But this here was just painfully lazy. Recycling the same panel 4 times on the final page especially was pathetic.

I’d like to think that when you’re handling a big event comic you should pride yourself on that work and try and add in that extra effort. Cutting little corners like this as well as his rushed art really took down what was solid art a lot for me.

Final Comments: We’re half way into siege and I still can’t really recommend it much. If you like me have that craving for dumb fun action then Siege is a good book for it. But other then that its pretty much a dumb event at it’s dumbest.

January's Comics Reviewed

Finally I’m getting out some reviews for you all. Sorry these took so long, I have no excuse other then my own laziness. I got 3 comics today that I’ll review real soon. I’ll post a review of Siege #2 tomorrow and hopefully Wolverine: Weapon X #10 the next day. Hopefully being the key word here.

Another note before the reviews. I’m changing my review system. I’ve always used an out of 5 type system and while I’ve usually fond it effective I think an out of 10 system is definitely more precise. Since I’ve been using one for the Revolution now I think it’s time I use it for my reviews here as well. So from now on everything will have an Out of 10 rating.

Now onto the comics!

Jersey Gods #10

Written: Glen Brunswick

Art: Dan McDaid

Story Rating: 9 out of 10

Art Rating: 9 out of 10

Overall Rating: 9 out of 10

Opening Comments: Jersey Gods #10 was an excellent read and once again reminded me that Jersey Gods is easily one of the best comics out there each month. With strong pacing, great action and incredible character work Jersey Gods is easily a comic everyone should be reading and this issue reminded me of that.

Story  Comments: Brunswick succeeds on a lot of levels with Jersey Gods, but I think his highest success is the pacing of this arc. The Abandoned has done great for pacing a strong storyline and building up to an exciting conclusion. Something that not all writers can do really and Brunswick really blew me away with the pacing of this arc.

Of course as always the characters continue to be both fun and interesting to read every time. Brunswick never fails to make compelling and exciting characters and once again he utilized them very well here. I especially liked Helius in this issue. Brunswick gave us funny Helius as well as Helius suffering his first ever loss and it was handled very well.

As always the Barock and Zoe relationship develops nicely. In this issue they are hardly together until the very end but Brunswick still makes their relationship a pivotal part of the story and important as well as interesting. I love the way these 2 interact because it always feels general and real and it’s always interesting to read.

Brunswick has made 2 great new villains with LA and Maya. While both alone don’t seem like very big threats with Neboron technology it was exciting seeing how well they handled it and I hope we see them again as they really are exciting and interesting new villains.

One thing I wasn’t expecting was the possible Rushmore/Lurella relationship. Rushmore is a great character and he does have a connection to Lurella since they are from the same city but I didn’t expect her to care for him. This is an interesting new dynamic and I really hope that we see more of it when Rushmore pulls through.

Brunswick shines most here with his ability to balance the comedy and action along with the drama. Most writers can only focus on one aspect, first action then maybe a bit of drama at the end. Brunswick blends these 3 aspects of a story beautifully and it makes a really great conclusion to the arc.

My best example is how in this issue we got a fight scene, a death and a hilarious moment as Helius seduces Maya. It’s all there, a full package in one comic and that’s more then most readers could hope for but Brusnwick did it and it was great. All 3 emotional points where hit excellently but never did it feel like one messed with the other and it worked amazingly well.

The fact that Brunswick can transition from Helius singing a Justin Timberlake song, to an intense fight, to a dramatic death is masterful writing and it’s sadly something we don’t see enough of today in comics. This is a really personal story and the reader really feels emotional investment here. It’s powerful writing and the sign of a really good writer when he affects the reader like that on so many levels.

Any writer can just randomly kill off a character for shock value and then try to make the readers feel bad about it. It’s easy really and it happens all the time but to just hit that one note is so boring and overplayed. Rarely is a death given any real emotion behind it. A character just gets their heart ripped out and we’re done with it. Readers can’t give a damn of Iron Man’s girlfriend gets shot if she’s dead and we move on like nothing ever happened.

Brunswick succeeds in making me feel bad for Hector as he dies. Sure he was a nefarious guy but deep down he was just mad at a father he never knew. He came to terms with his anger and finally got to see his father for the real man that he was only to be struck down. It’s tragic in the way that most deaths in comics can only hope to be and it really hits you in the heart to see that.

Helius’ reaction adds a new layer of pain to it as well. It’s one thing to kill off a character then expect the audience to simply feel the emotional ramifications, but when we see the characters affected by it then that’s the real accomplishment. Helius’ final words about the son he never knew where touching and heart breaking.

Action is another important aspect to this issue and the action was great. I especially loved McDaid’s layouts as he really went outside the box and it paid off. I love unique panel lay outs and it was great here as he really gave us a fun look on the action while it retained its intenseness.

The ending was both a great ending for the story arc and a hook ending to excite me for next issue. Brunswick has been building to Barock’s relationship with Zoe getting to the next level and him doing something major like this. It’s really exciting to see how she’ll react next time and Brunswick has set up a perfect hook ending, exciting me for more but still leaving me satisfied with what I read.

Art Comments: Much as I loved the story I also loved the art for this issue. McDaid has grown so much over the past 10 issues of Jersey Gods and his art at this point is purely excellent and great stuff. It’s some of the best art I’ve seen from him and he handled everything so amazingly well, the comedy, the action, the emotion is all there and it all looks gorgeous with McDaid’s unique style.

Final Comments: If you’re not reading Jersey Gods you owe it to yourself to check this series out. It’s got everything, amazing pacing, great characters, fun comedy, great action and real emotion as well as great art. This is easily one of the best comics out there and this was another amazing issue. Brunswick and McDaid did an amazing job here as they have been doing with this series.

Streets of Gotham #8

Creative Team

Writer: Mike Benson

Art: Dustin Nguyen

Story Rating: 5 out of 10

Art Rating: 7 out of 10

Overall Rating: 6 out of 10

Opening Comments: DC really pissed me off with this sudden Dini swap for Mike Benson for yet ANOTHER 2 month filler. Just as Dini comes back he’s gone like that. It’s total bullshit and I don’t care if it’s DC or Dini’s fault, it’s no excuse and if you’re going to have your own goddamn ongoing series, write your series!

Now to be perfectly honest this issue was still a solid and enjoyable read. Benson gives us a clever interesting mystery and he puts in some great moments here and there. But for one this felt like such a bland fill in, like this could have been any random issue of Batman. It didn’t feel like it fit the Streets of Gotham series at all. At least with Chris Yost’s fill in it focused on other parts of Gotham and was more interesting.

Story Comments: Benson gives us a by the numbers Batman mystery. Nothing new or interesting about it. Someone is killing people in Gotham and Batman’s got to solve the mystery. We’ve seen it all before and we’ve seen it done better as well. Even if it was solid read it wasn’t one worthy of this series.

But to point out the good, my favorite moment was between Batman and his first suspect. A nice change of the cliché “I’m a suspect so I’m a total jerk” moment we often get. For once one of these random suspects acted like a real human being rather then being a stock jackass. Benson really impressed me with that and I really wish we’d see this more often from writers today.

It was interesting seeing Benson tackle the idea of the dirty side of nightlife in Gotham. So often sex is like a joke in comics. No one can handle sex seriously, it’s always casual or funny and never do you see the darker nastier side to sex and seeing Benson address that here was interesting.

It was also nice to see him being straight forward about it. Yeah there’s some crazy shit out there. People who’d want to sleep with a woman if she looks like the Joker (Or Batgirl…just saying…) and it was nice to see that acknowledged. It’s not pretty but it was just nice seeing it for once.

As far as mysteries are concerned this one is at least decent and I did like seeing it develop. Benson may have given us a basic mystery but it’s still an interesting one and he handles the trail of clues very nicely and it all evolves well.

Picking the biggest flaw of this issue of Streets of Gotham was real easy. It can be summed up in 2 words.

Paul. Dini.

Where the hell was he? This is his 2^nd break from the series. Now while he was on Detective Comics he took a break I recall but that was different, that was an established series. This is his very own ongoing series. DC gave him his own comic book, all for him, and he still can’t write it. That’s bullshit.

This series has been sold as a Paul Dini comic. That’s one of the big hooks, that Paul Dini is writing his own Batman ongoing series. A place for all his fans like me to read his great stories. What’s the point of me reading this series if the guy I’m reading it for isn’t writing it often?

What’s even worse is this is exactly after a one month return. One goddamn month. At least last time he got out 4 issues rather then just 1. This is just lazy at this point. Like he’s not even trying anymore. He just writes this series when he feels like it I guess and that is wrong to the fans.

I’m a huge Paul Dini fan, I love his work. His run on Detective Comics was legendary to me, his work for Batman: the Animated Series is undefeated as far as cartoons are concerned, the Graphic Novel Mad Love is one of my top Batman books. So when I buy Streets of Gotham, I wanted my damn Paul Dini or I won’t be reading the series.

You don’t get your own ongoing series to simply not write it. That’s like getting a house and only living in it a couple of days a week. It’s stupid and frustrating. Now beyond how pissed I am at no Paul Dini for another 2 months there was more to this issue then just no Paul Dini.

Has Mike Benson read any Batman lately? Does he know Dick Grayson is under the cowl at all? Or that Dick is a nice guy? Or that he doesn’t act exactly like Bruce? I guess not since this issue read like a basic issue of Batman with Bruce under the cowl. There was absolutely nothing that could tell me this was Dick Grayson and not Bruce Wayne.

This issue is just so basic and by the numbers mostly. It’s a very basic mystery and while it is at least well done it’s just so bland compared to the more exciting and interesting Batman stories we’ve gotten before. While a murder mystery is always a good time for a Batman story it’s been done to death and there has to be something more then just a guy killing people in Gotham to justify it being a Batman story nowadays.

We’ve been here before folks and we’ve been here with better writing and a more interesting plot set up. I know Batman is a detective before an avenger but that doesn’t mean we can just throw any bland boring mystery story at him and it will stick and make for an exciting read. There has to be more substance to it then that.

On top of all that Benson makes a rather mediocre killer. He’s just some random criminal killer. That’s awesome. Maybe next we can have a killer of only cops, or hell if you want to be really clever just a random serial killer. That’s unique and exciting after all.

Why the hell did this have to be 2 parts again? Nothing about this feels important or interesting enough to warrant a 2 part storyline. This could have easily been a done in one storyline and it would have been much better for it.

Also DC, I propose a deal. Next time Dini says he can’t make it for this month’s issue of Streets of Gotham, just delay it a month. Yeah! I would much rather go 1 month with no Streets of Gotham then 2 months with Streets of Gotham not written by Dini and as bland filler.

As I said, Dick is being a total dick and it’s not like him. While some may defend that it’s him playing the role of Batman, we’ve seen him be much nicer to the police then this. The whole hook of this new Dynamic Duo is that we’ve got a nice upbeat and happy Batman and a Dark and cynical Robin. Even though Dick is playing Batman he still has the Nightwing personality deep down.

This issue just reeked of filler and nothing important happening. It’s just bland shit 101 as far as Batman is concerned. Benson plays everything by the numbers for your typical generic Batman story and it’s frustrating as all hell to see from what has been an excellent series so far.

Art Comments: I did like that DC kept Nguyen on the art to keep at least one thing consistent. Even if the stories are by different writers with the same artist still on board it helps keep the series with an at least somewhat familiar feel. But even this was far from Nguyen’s best work.

I know it’s not much else, but that is a damn fine cover by Nguyen. Easily his best cover yet for this series and that’s saying a lot because he’s a great cover artist. I love how the colors contrast and I especially loved his homage to The Dark Knight Returns, such an excellent cover.

While I liked Nguyen’s art I can tell it was very rushed. There’s a heavier use of shadows and it’s the sign of an artist forced to rush and gloss over more detail. This whole issue just looked way too dark and gloomy, the colors really where way too toned down and it got annoying.

Final Comments: If you’ve been wanting to read Streets of Gotham, I think you may want to consider collection waiting or something. That or whenever Dini decides to write the comic again. This issue was just bland and mediocre in every sense of the word. Nothing like the Streets of Gotham I’ve been enjoying and nothing worth your time and money.

Mighty Avengers #33

Creative Team

Writer: Dan Slott

Art: Koi Pham

Story Rating: 8 out of 10

Art Rating: 7 out of 10

Overall Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Opening Comments: Mighty Avengers is really hitting it’s stride here as Slott really is letting loose and giving us a really fun story arc with great character work and epic action the likes of which  the Avengers haven’t seen in too long. While I’m not one to criticize what Bendis has done over at New Avengers, this is easily the first book in a long time that felt like a real Avengers book.

Story Comments: Slott really excels with giving us a fun read here and really impressing me with the action. When it comes to a team book you want that perfect blend of utilizing all the teammates along with giving us solid action and giving us a fun read and Slott is really impressing me with how he handles Mighty Avengers. This feels like the comic he was born to write.

Seeing the contrasts of Norman as leader of the Dark Avengers and Wasp as leader of the Mighty Avengers is really clever. Seeing how Norman is over confident and refuses to let his ego be damaged is hilarious. Norman is definitely an ego-maniac at times and Slott really gets the character well and exploits his ego well.

Seeing Wasp really step up as leader is great. Slott has done a lot for the character of Hank Pym in his year of writing Mighty Avengers and he’s really revitalized the character to a major part of the Marvel Universe and the way he takes on Norman and asses the situation really fits the character well.

The way they interact is just so fascinating. Wasp is clearly the smarter man. He’s the experienced hero who has actually saved the world time and time again and you can just tell he’s ahead of Norman on everything. It was really cool seeing them argue and Slott really made them play off each other well. If I didn’t know both titles where ending in a couple of months I’d hope for another Mighty/Dark team up in the future.

One thing where Slott really does well is how he handles both teams. While not necessarily perfect with continuity (last I checked Bullseye hates Daken) it was just great seeing these 2 teams interact. Especially seeing the Mighty Avengers and how the Dark Avengers reacted to them each time.

Slott really handles a team book well here. So many times a team book will only focus on 2 or 3 of a 5 to 6 member team and it’s so annoying. While I understand it’s tricky to handle so many characters for a writer, I can totally understand, the whole point of a team book is to focus on a large group of characters. That means usually spotlighting the whole team.

This is where Slott really impresses me as he’s really good at handling the full roster. Making sure every character gets a moment and shows up and is important to the story and has their moment and you care about them. Even characters I don’t like such as US Agent and Quicksilver are spotlighted nicely and it really is nice to see Slott put forth that extra effort to make this fee like a team book and focus on all his heroes.

Of course I did love seeing all the specific moments with the reality punching that was going on. I can tell Slott had tons of fun writing this issue with all the crazy things he did like splitting the Sentry and the Void and making the Symbiote go after people. It was really crazy and really cool at the same time.

I was surprised to see him acknowledge prior continuity with the Vision being Iron Lad’s old Armor along with Vision’s old memories imprinted into it. I never expected a mention of it and seeing Slott spotlight that and use it for his story was great. I especially loved seeing how torn Stature was over what was going on.

I did like seeing Wasp give control of the team over to Herc. Ever since Incredible Herc the character has been taken from his mediocre status as one of the blandest Marvel heroes and has been turned into an excellent character and his inclusion in Mighty Avengers has been great so seeing him step up here and keep the fight up was awesome.

I love how Slott is so good at setting up future storylines. Mighty Avengers has been a building epic story rather then just story arc to story arc and that really shined here with his continuing building plots such as building up the epic return of Ultron in a couple of months.

It was great seeing Slott utilize Norman’s dual personality problem. So far I think this is the first time it’s been utilized outside of Dark Avengers and seeing Norman battle with his inner Goblin was really cool and it shows just how mentally weakened he’s become over the past year.

This issue was a solid and enjoyable read and while not perfect it was one of Slott’s best issues yet of the title. Slott is really hitting a new high with this story and really showing off what a great Avengers writer he is and he is telling easily the best arc yet of his run so far.

Sadly not everything was great with this issue. While it was a fun read I didn’t like everything about it. For one as I mentioned there was some continuity problems with Bullseye and Daken not liking each other. They hate it each other, it’s been shown often in Dark Wolverine so seeing them chat on the field like this just felt odd.

I hated the ending and how Norman just gets a magic sword and makes it all go away. I know it fits into Loki furthering his own agenda to make Norman look good and for that it is clever but at the same time it just feels so lazy. This was a really epic battle and to end it with just one stab like that just felt so lack luster and boring.

Slott is a very creative writer and he knows how to make an epic final battle. Looking back at Avengers: The Initiative, he did an amazing job with the final battle against KIA during the KIA arc. It was an epic final confrontation that had a really intense fight and it was great so I know he can do better then this.

I wasn’t too sure of what to think about the final page with Wasp finally finding out it was Loki. While it was clever and the series has been building to this moment I just don’t know what to do now. Is Wasp going after Loki? What’s going to happen next? It’s far too up in the air at this point.

Art Comments: Pham’s art was definitely his best yet. I’m not sure if it’s the inker or colorist but something about his art this month was really top notch and definitely his best yet for the series. While Pham has had a lot of issues in the past with muddy artwork here it seems he’s giving 110% and it looks great. He really captures the action well and he gives us a really epic scope of the battle and he handles it all amazingly well.

While for the most part Pham’s art was great he still had some issues. Something about the way he draws a wide open mouth that looks so odd. I’m not sure but it always looks really weird to me and this issue still had that along with some other odd little moments here and there.

Final Comments: This was a solid fun issue with an enjoyable resolution to the current plot as well as leading into the next issue well. Slott is doing a good job with this series and for anyone looking for a fun Avengers title this is definitely the book for you.

So I’m going to wrap things up with a quick review of Witchblade #134, which would get a longer review if it actually did much but it’s a short issue so it gets a short review.

Witchblade #134

Written: Ron Marz

Art: Stjepan Sejic

Story Rating: 7 out of 10

Art Rating: 8 out of 10

Overall Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Opening Comments: As I said prior, this is a very short issue. It really just serves to familiarize us with the characters and set up the fight to happen next issue. Nothing more and nothing les, still it makes for an enjoyable read.

Story Comments: Most of this issue is just set up, which one should expect really when you’ve got a 3 part arc. All the meat will happen next month and for now we get a taster of what it’s going to be like, so I can’t say I’m sad to see how thin this issue was on actual plot developments.

We get a nice introduction to Cyber Data for anyone not familiar with Top Cow history like myself. Marz told it in a way that felt like a real discussion even if it was just covering up back story it was still nice at how he presented it.

This issue read a little too fast for me and even as set up I know Marz could have added a little more to it I think and if he head it would have no doubt gotten a higher rating. But he sticks to the basics of set up.

I did like the little personal moments Sara had with Dani’s mother and Gleason but other then that there wasn’t much to say on this issue. It was a solid read but not much else really. The characters where all handled well and it did a strong job of setting up the story arc.

I feel bad that I don’t have much to say but that’s just my honest opinion. It was a short issue, it was a solid fun read and I can’t really find anything else to say.

Art Comments: No surprise that Sejic continues to impress me. I really like his version of Aphrodite and I loved the final page and how he captured Sara and Aphrodite’s shocked looks so well. This issue looked great.

Final Comments: A solid start to an arc that I hope will impress. Sadly there wasn’t’ too much here though even though it still made a good read. Definitely left me wanting more in the bad way, as I felt there was a bit more that could have been added to it. Still worth a read.

The Week Begins - February 1st 2010

It’s been too long since a new The Week Begins! So here’s one. Now I’ve only got one comic this week but I thought what the hell I should at least mention 2 other comics that have come onto my radar.

Now as for my reviews, I wrote them up Friday but have been lazy. Finals and a 3 day weekend will do that to you, shooting to post them tomorrow.

Siege #2

Written: Brian Bendis

Art: Olivier Coipel

Despite such a weak start to Siege I am rather hopeful that Bendis can turn this around. Its already looking much better from the preview. Bendis has a key 4 month window to tell this event and if he fails to make the main series big fun and over the top action then this event is a failure in my eyes.

But it’s definitely looking up. Both story and art really impressed me from the preview and if this is any sign as to what Bendis will be doing with the rest of the issue then hopefully he can turn this around and do better after such a weak start to this event. I remain hopeful.

Wolverine: Weapon X #10

Written: Jason Aaron

Art: CP Smith

Ever drop a series and really wish you hadn’t? yeah, that’s me with Weapon X. I really wish I’d stuck with this series but at the time I just couldn’t afford it, so after the 1^st great issue I had to drop it. I’ve heard nothing but great things about this series and want to read it again.

So with a one-shot I figure no time is better then now to at least get my fix even if I won’t be adding the series again to my pull list any time soon.  This issue sounds great. Logan’s got a messed up love life but I’m a sucker for chaotic romance stories like his love life so this should be tons of fun to read.

My only real draw is the art. It looks damn good to be honest. Moody, dark, great for a dark and over the top violent Wolverine story. But for what’s supposed to be Logan reflecting on past loves it just seems out of place. I hope that Smith can still fit the story because of this one’s on the shelves when I get to the LCS no way I’m passing it up.

Ultimate Comics X #1

Written: Jeph Loeb

Art: Arthur Adams

You know what is really bugging me nowadays? I keep finding all these comics I’d love to read, the Flash, Green Lantern, Dark Avengers, but I only want to read them for the art. I mean it looks so gorgeous, how could anyone pass up 22 pages of great art like Dough Mahnke, Francis Manupal or in this case, Art Adams each month?

I would love to pick up Ultimate X, but only because I know it’s going to look great. I couldn’t care less about the story. About this emo-looking Wolverine or whatever happens in to him. Maybe it could turn out to be a really cool series, but I don’t care, I just want to look at the pretty pictures.

Now I don’t usually do this but since I missed a Week I thought I really should give you guys a little something extra, so I’m going to comment on 2 comics from last week as well.

Witchblade #134

Written: Ron Marz

Art: Stjepan Sejic

I decided to wait a week to pick up this issue since it was the only thing waiting for me at the LCS. But I am really excited to check this one out since Marz really blew me away in late 2008 when Sara and Aphrodite fought. Not much to say other then I hope this issue is as good as the last time they met.

Green Lantern #50

Written: Geoff Johns

Art: Doug Mahnke

I know what happens in this issue. It’s awesome. But for some reason I still want to pick it up. Partially because it’s an anniversary issue, but even more so because what I know about it is so awesome I want to read it for myself. If this one is on the stands at the LCS I’ll definitely pick it up. 

Solicit Commentary - April 2010

So April is just around the corner folks and with it a bevy of new solicits. Seems to be a pretty big month and I’m excited for it, lets check it out!

Image Comics Solicits for April 2010

DC Comics Solicits for April 2010

Marvel Comics Solicits for April 2010

Image Firsts

A great little idea by Image to reprint first issues of their best selling comics. Though I admit this is an odd idea since a lot of these comics are long out of touch with their earlier days it’s still an ice idea and for only a buck I’ll be picking up most of these. Especially Invincible #1 for sure. I already have Spawn #1 so no need for that but hey I’m really hyped to pick up all these firsts.

Haunt #7

Capullo is taking over for good with #6 but hey this is where he starts drawing the series on a regular basis and that is awesome. I’m excited as all hell for Haunt right now as it’s looking to be one of the best ongoings of the year at this rate. With top notch art and some great stuff ahead I can’t wait for more. Also that’s a cool cover by McFarlane.

Image United #4

Uh-huh…sure this issue will make it out on time. Sure. With issue 3 having hit a delay (From what I hear McFarlane and Silvestri have yet to do anything for it) I’m questioning if this issue will really make it out on time either. Not that I’m surprised mind you but still, hard not to feel saddened.

Now I like the solicit because it sounds like things are getting epic now. Up until now Image United has been very simple but if Kirkman can kick this into overdrive it will be great.

Spawn #202

UGH…why does TMP solicit these issues when they never are going to make it out anytime soon! Come on this is just stupid and annoying. No way we’ll get that many issues by April. I doubt we’ll even get issue #200 by April! Now I have nothing to say about the solicit itself, it sounds all right but that’s it.

Cowboy Ninja Viking TPB

I’ve heard a lot of good things about this series and apparently it was so good it got turned into an ongoing from a mini. Impressive. I’ll definitely give the first collection a read and see how it fares.

Elephantmen vol. 3: Dangerous Liaisons HC

I’ve been interested in the Elephantmen series for the longest time. I heard about it when the ongoing series was first out but I always kind of just would look at it from afar and ponder over if I’d buy it or not. Now I regret not getting on earlier and I’ve been looking for a good jumping on point. I think I’ll start picking up the collection books and go from there.

Jersey Gods vol. 3: Thunder Road TPB

Well this looks awesome-wait…collects…issues 10 and 12? Waitaminute waitaminute! #10 (released earlier this week!) is the conclusion to the arc The Abandoned…so why is it being put in with a different arc? I’m so confused…I hope this is some kind of weird typo or something.

Invincible #72

Conquest is back? And it’s a rematch with Invincible? My heart just stopped for a moment with the pure awesomeness that solicit contains. I am so pumped for this story arc I cannot wait for it. This is going to be epic, the stuff legends are made of! Easily one of my most anticipated story arcs of the year! Oh and did I mention that I love Conquest?

Magdalena #1

With an awesome team like this it’s hard to resist this upcoming series. Still I’m not a big fan of the series and I can’t really afford to add a new ongoing right now so for now I’m going to be passing on this, but it sounds cool.

Angelus #4

Kind of a simple solicit, not much to talk about except for this mini sounds like it will continue to rock.

Pilot Season: Hardcore #1

I love that cover so much, but the story sounds okay at best. I’m not sure if I’ll be picking this up or not but it does look cool at least and I do like the idea. Definitely going to keep my eye on this one.

Witchblade #137

Another guest star, huh, I wonder if Cyber Force will be showing up next. Well I’m not familiar with Necromancer so I don’t have much to say on this issue really. It sounds like a lot of wicked fun though and I’m always up for that!

Brightest Day #0

I officially have no interest in Brightest Day. Sorry folks but you won’t be seeing a review out of this one from me. Nope. Looks like a boring 26 issue waste of your money.

Green Lantern #53

Hope you don’t mind us spoiling Blackest Night for you all! Everyone makes it out just fine, all the Green Lanterns, the New Guardians, everyone is peachy! UGH.

I’ve been debating if I should read Green Lantern after Blackest Night and it’s still up in the air at this point. I’d love to read it for the art alone honestly but I can’t really see any reason to read it outside of that so I probably won’t.

The Flash #1

Similar to Green Lantern I want to read Flash only for the art. I know damn well it’s going to be a gorgeous looking book. But the story from the solicit sounds boring and I can’t say I give a damn at this point.

Detective Comics#864

David Hine is writing Batman, that alone makes me want to read this issue. While I’m confused as to what happened to Greg Rucka I’m still curious about this story, it sounds awesome. But I hope Detective Comics doesn’t fall into a pit of fill-in writers at this point.

Streets of Gotham #11

Okay, seriously how long can you drag out this Zsasz storyline? I just don’t get it, every solicit has been exactly the same! Batman and Robin team up with Abuse to take on Zsasz! Tell me more DC, please! Ugh…other then that I’m looking forward to more Streets of Gotham…

*Note: This was before I read Streets of Gotham #8 and saw that Mike Benson was doing a 2-parter. Not cool, DC. NOT COOL!

Batman Black and White: Arkham Asylum

MUST. HAVE. NOW.

That is just awesome in 10 ways from Sunday. My only real complaint is why is this a Black and White statue? I would have worked better in color but I still love it so I must have it!

Siege #4

This is one of those instances where a solicit pisses me off. This is the most lazy goddamn solicit I’ve seen in a long time. “Everything changes, holy shit it’s epic, OMG!” god I despise these solicits. If anything this makes me unexcited for Siege #4 and I bet anything we’ll get a stupid cliff-hanger ending that will make me need to buy 20 other goddamn books.

Mighty Avengers #36

Already said my thoughts on the Avengers cancellation, but I wanted to mention the only Avengers book I’m reading that I am really hopeful gets a reboot. Slott is really hitting his stride with this book and while it’s poetic for it to go out with one of the biggest Avengers villains, I really hope it gets a reboot.

Now it also sounds like Slott is having to cram all of his other things into this like Pym Space as well as a marriage that I’m sure he would have normally waited a long time to get into it all but instead has to end it right here which is frustrating. I hope he can make it work.

Thor #609

Okay, this sounds absolutely awesome. I am considering picking up this issue just for this fight with Clor, sounds epic as all hell! Can’t wait to see how this one plays out.

Siege: Young Avengers

Not cool, Marvel! Not cool! You can’t announce a Young Avengers one-shot, getting my hopes up, and then not tell us who the team is or teasing what happens in the solicit. That’s just wrong! My heart is crushed now…I hope you’re happy!

Deadpool Corps #1

Rob Liefeld drawing Deadpool, joy to the world for everyone but me. Now I guess this is an ongoing series now since it doesn’t say anything about being a one-shot…awe damn, a 4^th Deadpool ongoing? I sure hope not…

Ultimate Comics Spider-man #9

Oh hell yes I am very excited for this issue! The return of Lafuente as well as Spider-woman, it doesn’t get much better then this! Now I am hoping Bendis follows up on Johnny having a crush on Spider-woman in this issue because that is one of the most twisted and hilarious things he’s done in a while. Can’t wait to pick this one up for sure.

Avengers: The Origin #1

A great creative team and this looks to be an interesting mini. Now I’m not sure it’s all that necessary, everyone knows the origin easy enough but I guess it could make some cool moments for Avengers fans. Maybe I’ll pick up the collection if I hear good things.

Marvel Zombies 5 #1 and #2

I officially despise the Marvel Zombies. Even with Fred Van Lente on writing the series is just dead by now and there’s no praying for a resurrection. Even with Machine Man kicking ass in this mini I don’t give a damn. I’m avoiding this one like the plague.

World War Hulks #1

They actually did it. Marvel actually made a comic title so lazy and idiotic it makes me facepalm so hard I broke my nose. I mean…World War Hulk is an okay title, not great but decent…but to lazily just add an S at the end is pathetic. As for the comic itself? It sounds like shit and I hope it burns upon being printed.

Deadpool and Cable #25

Going, going…aaaaand gone. My sanity has just shattered into a million pieces and I’m ready to beat my head into the wall until there is nothing left. Seriously, Marvel? Deadpool isn’t in enough comics? We needed to put him into ANOTHER? ANOTHER?! They even bump Cable’s name back behind Deadpool’s, when it’s Cable’s ongoing! That’s just total bullshit.

Nemesis #2

I’ve been debating on collection waiting this or not, but it sounds too good to pass up so I’ll be adding it to the pull list real soon. Or at least I think I will. Knowing me I’ll be debating getting this or not until the day before issue #1 hits the stands. But it sounds awesome so I’m hopefully going to pick it up.

Infinity Gauntlet Premier HC

Whoa, I did not see this one coming. I’ve heard a lot of great praise for this storyline and I’ve been wanting to see what all the fuss is about. I’ll definitely be picking this up to see as I’m really excited to check this story out.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii Review

My first game system was a Gameboy, and the first game I played on it was the widely popular Super Mario Land. Since then I’ve had a great history with the plumber but I’ll admit I’ve sort of lost interest in his more recent games.

Nintendo set out to reclaim the lost nostalgia that fans had for the classic series with New Super Mario Bros. on the DS and now they are trying to work that magic again for Mario’s first 2D platforming game on a console since Super Mario World. With that in mind it’s hard not to have some high expectations for Nintendo’s latest Mario hit.

So will this game be an instant classic or get lost in the nostalgia? Let’s find out!

All right lets start with my first nitpick of the game. The title. “New Super Mario Bros. Wii” just sounds like a mouthful. Why not Super Mario Bros. 4? It is the spiritual successor to the old 2D games so I can’t see why they wouldn’t just go with the obvious title. Unless Nintendo is planning on making more games like this, I can’t see why they went with such weird title.

Now that I have that little complaint out of the way, let’s talk about the story. Or uh…I guess what I can consider a story. So big shocker, Peach gets kidnapped (I know, I didn’t see it coming either!) and you’ve got to rescue her. Now while the story is nearly non-existent I would like to comment on the ending.

The ending is surprisingly nice and well done. Sure it’s simple but it carries all the charm the Mario franchise has had all these years. It’s sweet, fun and hilarious all at once making for a great way to end the game. So good work on one end there Nintendo.

Now when I mention the story I should also mention the characters. It was great seeing the Koopalings after all these years. I honestly thought they where lone gone to never show up again but seeing them here was great and I loved seeing them all again. I have a long history with these troublesome kids so seeing them again just was a real treat and I hope they show up again. Also seeing them alongside their little brother Bowser Jr. was also great.

I did appreciate how Nintendo gave the Koopalings and Bowser Jr. new battle designs rather then just going with the same designs they’ve had in prior games. Each Koopaling battle feels different from the last (well, most of them at least, not all I admit) and is a fun, even though easy, fight.

Now about the 2 forgettable 2 Toads that accompany the Mario Bros. if you’re playing with all 4 players, I’ll admit I wish Nintendo hadn’t been so generic with this. While I know there weren’t many other characters that would work as well, it just seems so lazy to go with 2 random Toads.

Now for the look of this game, Nintendo did a great job. While most of the time it’s hard to notice the detail since Mario is so small compared to other games but when you get a real good look at the design, the style and the graphics it really is great stuff and the colorfulness that’s so popular with the franchise shines beautifully here making for a great looking experience.

Now the music is another solid part of Mario Bros. Wii. While the music itself never gets amazing, some fun remixes of classic tunes and one hell of an epic final boss fight song all make for a great listening experience as well.

Now I wanted to get all of that out of the way first since I don’t have too much to say on those parts of the game. Their all solid and do a good job of doing what they should. Now we can get to the meat of the game, the gameplay.

Now getting the basics of gameplay out of the way I of course have to mention the set up. It’s classic Mario, you run right and jump. Not too much to really say on this, it’s solid Mario platforming and Nintendo gets it right. Especially with the holding the Wii-mote sideways use which feels as classic as ever.

Nintendo does a solid job of implementing the motion control into the game. It’s only for specific parts of a level, like controlling a search light as you travel on a floating boat, or leaning a platform left or right. Also it comes into play but giving Marvel and extra spin move in the air, also activating the Copter Mario. So overall Nintendo did a great job making this a game that implements the Wii controls nicely.

Supposedly Nintendo was going for Contra hard difficulty with this game. A funny goal but not one they came close to achieving. This game is indeed a solid challenge but as far as difficulty it’s anything but unbeatable. But I’ll admit compared to the usual breeze easy games we’ve gotten from Nintendo in the past the harder difficulty was very welcome as I love a good challenge.

Now as for the difficulty for other players, I’ll admit right now if you’ve never played Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario World you’re going to get your ass kicked in some places. Nintendo definitely made a game for the hardcore fans that can handle this kind of difficulty. Even I died a lot and found myself repeating levels again and again.

For those unlike me and my friends who can’t jump 3 turtle shells and then use a fire flower to precisely hit a piranha plant before I land on the pipe they gave the Newbies a Super Guide. Now I didn’t even get the Super Guide available until the final level so I can’t speak for all levels but from what I’ve seen after trying it out, it’s a great idea.

You can take over at any time during the level to finish it as Luigi which is really cool. Only real downside to it is that Luigi moves at a snails pace so if you, like me, love to blaze through these levels then you’re going to end up sitting around for an annoying amount of time.

Now I should mention the 4 player co-op since it’s something the game is heralded for. I’ve played it with a few friends and while it is fun to get to play Mario with all my friends at once, at the same time it adds an extra layer of difficulty. This can either be from your friends being jerks or accidentally jumping around on each other.

Still the co-op is a lot of fun and of course my biggest complaint there is that Nintendo isn’t making this game online. That is total bullshit and I find that unacceptable. This game would be so much more fun if I could get online and play with my friends in an all out 4 player match. Nintendo really missed the ball on that one.

Though now we get into some of the flaws of this game. Its biggest flaw is also a part of its strength and that’s it simple Mario fun. While as a Mario game, this is one of the best out there now. Even going so far as to surpass the original game I think. Though as a game in general they could have done so much more with it. It stops at good when it could have easily hit greatness.

My first point is how they go with the generic 8 worlds, Mushroom Kingdom, Desert, Ice World, etc. It’s the same damn thing we got from prior games and it’s annoying to see Nintendo so blatantly copying past worlds. Nintendo can do better then this and there’s no excuse for such boring and stupid recycling.

My biggest complaint is how this game really does try at times. There are some levels that feel incredibly inspired, unique and interesting and I loved them. Levels where you jump from floating globes of water and jump along the backs of flying manta rays. These levels are exciting and incredibly fun, but sadly they are too far and few throughout the game.

It almost feels like this game had 2 developers. One was a young excited new developer who wanted to really give the Mario franchise some exciting twists, the other was a bored old guy who’s been there for 20 years and knows how to program a simple Mario game with his hands tied behind his back and he developed 80% of the levels.

In all honesty there’s nothing wrong with the levels, their all decent to fun but they feel too familiar. I’ve played these levels before and I know this terrain all too well. It honestly feels like half the time they weren’t trying to do anything new they where just eager to pump out more levels.

To be fair you can skip a few of the levels on your adventure through the map which is nice if you, like me, are in a hurry to get to the last castle. I beat the game at first without beating all the levels, then went back and beat the ones I skipped and it’s really cool that I can do that since it rings true to another beloved Mario Game, SMB3.

But again most of the levels are just so average and decent when they could have been exciting and new and much more fun where I feel like Nintendo just didn’t want to give us a fully new experience which is sad seeing what they could have done with the more exciting levels if they’d tried harder on the average levels.

Another thing about the difficulty is it’s all over the place. A good example of that is world 8.  The first level is pretty intense and you’ve got to be moving constantly but then the second level is really easy so it’s jarring for the player to have one level so hard then one level so easy.

A big gripe I have with this game is Yoshi. Now I was really excited that this game had it where you could ride Yoshi. That was my favorite part of Super Mario World, saving him and taking him with me through all the fun levels was excellent and I loved every minute of it.

So imagine my excitement when I see Yoshi on the cover, very prominent, hinted at being a key part of the game…then he’s in like 10 or so levels of an 80 level game. I see Yoshi on the cover, I want my goddamn Yoshi! Even worse, he can’t come with you after you beat the stage. That I don’t get at all, what the hell? Was Nintendo afraid he’d break the game by making it easier? Newsflash, the Copter Shroom already does that.

No it was total bullshit that Yoshi got the shaft like this. My favorite Mario character and he barely gets a cameo in this game. No excuses, Nintendo. Don’t put a character on the cover and make him look like a big deal when he’s hardly there.

Now for the bosses. All the bosses are the Koopalings, along with Bowser Jr., Kamik and Bowser himself at the end. Each Koopaling fights you twice per world and I enjoyed simply seeing them, though the fights on the other hand weren’t so great. Most of them where pathetically easy, by World 6 I expected a real challenge but he was the easiest of them all!

Only 2 of the Koopalings are ever a challenge, Iggy and Ludwig Von Koopa. Iggy is a challenge because of his pet Chain Chomp chasing you everywhere as you desperately try to jump on Iggy without getting eaten, and Ludwig Von Koopa is simply hard because you have to time when you hit him. Other then that the bosses are all cakewalks.

I did love the 3 Bowser Jr. Boss battles, even if they where easy like the rest of them. They where the most unique and memorable fights (next to the final boss that is) as they involve you using a Koopa-Copter, hitting Bowser Jr. with his own bombs and it’s just really fun and I wish we’d gotten more of them.

While I’m on Bowser Jr. I should mention the airship stages you fight him in. While this only happens 2 times, they are all incredibly fun and really bring back the nostalgia of Super Mario Bros. 3 with how epic it really is. I loved it.

Now the final boss was just…amazing. I honestly don’t want to spoil it, it was so good. All I can say is it is easily one of the most memorable final boss fights in Mario history and it blew me away at how great it was.

I want to mention the map part of the game. Straight out of Super Mario Bros. 3 the map stage is interactive as well with the game. From you going to houses to get 1-ups or more power ups it’s great. Also though you can run into enemies on the map and you have to fight them which was just great since there is an awesome incentive to do so which makes it even more fun.

The map is more like SMB3 then Super Mari World which I think was a good choice by Nintendo. It’s fun, interactive and does more then just serve as the hub to pick what level to do which is great.

I did love the mini-games for power ups and one-ups. Really fun and creative things that again feel like a call back to SMB3. Nintendo made collecting power ups fun which isn’t as easy as you’d think.

Now for something that’s as popular in Mario as the plumber himself, the power ups. We get 3 new power ups but I’ll be honest, I only like 1.

The Penguin suit is okay for the ice world but everywhere else it feels out of place and stupid. While I get what they where going with, the Raccoon leaf would have been a thousand times better.

The Ice flower was a neat power up but because it can’t kill enemies, you have to throw them; it can get a little hectic trying to throw ice blocks when in a heated situation so it’s just okay.

I love the Copter Shroom, it’s just so awesome. While I’ll admit it makes everything a lot easier I still love it because it’s just so helpful and so much fun to use. If Nintendo keeps anything from this game, I hope it’s the Copter Shroom because it’s easily the best of the bunch.

Really I think Nintendo missed a huge chance with this game though in the power ups department. For one they didn’t bring back the blue shell from New Super Mario Bros. DS which was easily my favorite part of that game. But even more so why not bring in all the power ups? Yeah! Mega Mushroom, Raccoon Ears, Tanooki suit, all of them!

I mean it’s not like there wasn’t space for it. It’s a 2D Wii game for crying out loud. No way couldn’t they have added them. If they had then this game would have been much better.

Now before I wrap this up I need to mention a key part of this game and that’s the nostalgia to it. Lots of games have some nostalgia based to them, Sonic, Resident Evil, Street Fighter are all good examples. But Nostalgia can be a good thing or a bad thing.

When comparing this to another nostalgic game, no better game comes to mind then my favorite game of 2008, Megaman 9. Megaman 9 was both a celebration of the Megaman franchise and all it’s done before but at the same time was still a fun unique game that was distinguishable from prior games.

Whereas New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a celebration of all that once made the classic 2D Mario games great at the same time it is lacking in feeling totally distinguishable from it’s older brothers. In the end it’s trying so hard to remind me of SMB3 that it sort of loses it’s own identity in doing so.

I could play Megaman 2 and 3 and then play 9 and feel like I had 3 separate and enjoyable experiences. But I could play SMB3, Super Mario World and NSMBW and feel like I got a very similar experience with all 3 that weren’t all that easy to tell apart. NSMBW is trying so hard to be like it’s big brothers that it forgets it’s a new game and needs to do more to define itself for me and make it more memorable.

While there are a few levels and moments here and there at the same time I could just as easily put in SMB3 into my NES and have the exact same experience, minus the Yoshi. But he’s hardly there anyway. Nintendo made a great Mario game but in the run of games in general we’ve been here before and it was better back then since it was more interesting and original back then.

So while for a long time fan like myself I did love feeling the nostalgia of fighting Kamik again and stomping on the Koopalings I still think that it’s not trying hard enough to do it’s own thing. Had Nintendo put in that extra layer of more exciting new level design and more interesting new worlds I think this game would have been much better.

So time for my closing comments.

Longtime fans of Mario will find a familiar but fun game here that is up there with some of the best in the franchise. It’s got a fun difficulty, some great levels here and there and is all around a solid fun experience. If the developers had gone that extra mile it could be one of the best games out on the shelves right now, but they settled with just good and the product suffers for it. Definitely a solid fun experience that anyone with a Wii should get.

Score: 7.5 out of 10 

The Week Begins - January 22nd 2009

After a week of no comics I’m back and more Andrenn then ever. Lets get to this week of comics.

Jersey Gods #10

Written: Glen Brunswick

Art: Dan McDaid

Despite a one month delay I’m excited as always for more Jersey Gods greatness. Always one of the best titles out there I can’t wait to check the epic finale to The Abandoned and see how it plays out. My bet is on this being the most epic issue of the young series so far. Can’t wait to pick it up and see how it all plays out, definitely an easy pick for my most anticipated this week.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #8

Written: Paul Dini

Art: Dustin Nguyen

This story arc of Zasz and his evil reign over the abandoned children of Gotham seems like it may be running on for a little too long. But it’s by one of the best Batman writers of all time, Paul Dini so I’ll put my trust in him to still kick plenty of ass. As for the story in general I’m excited to read it, and I absolutely love that cover by Nguyen. Another highly anticipated read this week.

Mighty Avengers #33

Written: Dan Slott

Art: Koi Pham

Another anticipated read for me this week is the conclusion to this fun 2 part story. Slott’s giving us a fun Super Hero Team Up with this issue and it looks to be a lot of fun. I’m finally having a great time with this series and am excited to see more as well as the future issues as Mighty Avengers is really hitting it’s stride…damn shame it’s being canceled. I’ll have to enjoy what’s left of it.

Green Lantern Corps #44

Written: Peter Tomasi

Art: Patrick Gleason

Really tempted to pick up this issue, like I was the last issue last month. With Kyle’s death and resurrection (insert comic resurrection joke here) I’m really tempted to be reading GLC. But with a tight wallet it’s on hold for now, but hey, maybe something will change when I reach the shop this week.