Event Comics Reviews - January 7th 2009

3 event comics in one post, too much epico for you all too handle! And for me as well! Yeah, I’ve got a lot of comics to review from both this week and a prior week, so we’re going to cut this up into multiple parts. Tackling the 3 event comics today, I’ll try to get all the other comics into one post by tomorrow but if I can’t, I’ll post half one day and half the next.

But now onto the comics, today we’re tackling 3 major event comics from the 3 companies I love.

Siege #1

Written: Brian Bendis

Art: Olivier Coipel

Opening Comments: My expectations weren’t too high with Siege, I expected an epic and fun start to things just like with Secret Invasion. Sadly my already low expectations where not fulfilled and Siege turned out to have a painfully thin and weak start to the event.

Story Comments: It’s amazing when I look at how weak this issue was. Here Bendis started Secret Invasion off with a bang, making it feel like something that was trembling all through the Marvel Universe. Then Siege just sort of whispers to start it’s major event.

When you’ve got 4 issues to fill, a slow boring start is not the smart way to grab readers! Maybe Bendis wants to do some kind of build up, but you have to have a little payoff by the end of the first chapter if you’re going to use build up.

Another big fault is Bendis has such a small scope so far in Siege. This issue really just focuses on Norman and his Avengers. No one else. We see a few other characters but that’s not until near the end and even then it just felt like such a small storyline. If anything this issue felt like a below average issue of Dark Avengers really.

With an event that’s supposed to cover the entire Marvel U, or at least a good chunk of it, it would be wise to show more then just a small amount of characters. Really this is something obvious that I shouldn’t have to say, any good event knows to cover more then just one team of characters.

Beyond that the use of characters wasn’t all that great either. We see Norman Osborn being an idiot and then his Avengers being idiots along with him. He makes deals to clear them of all charges after the siege, a good idea but not when you’re sending them into a death trap like fighting gods!

Also I still don’t get Osborn’s direction here as to why he wants to take down Asgard. He says it’s a threat, but it’s not. It hasn’t done a damn thing wrong and yet he thinks it should be attacked? Call me crazy if that’s not poking the sleeping beast that isn’t doing a damn thing to you.

Bendis has done a really good job of showing a more calculated and clever Norman Osborn then beyond his Green Goblin persona. That Norman is a smart man who can do smart things and he generally sees himself as a hero and that’s all fine. But then you kind of ruin that whole idea when you make him do the most stupid thing of all time.

I g uses it’s something about cementing his place of power but if anything attacking Asgard is a bigger threat to it then anything else. No one likes being known as the guy who went to war with whatever country. You think any politician who has ever went to war was generally proud of it? (besides Dick Cheney but he doesn’t have a heart so it doesn’t count) no! It’s a bad move and it makes you look bad!

I was expecting Bendis to give us a feasible reason finally as to why Norman wants Asgard gone. Maybe if we see the Asgardians getting pushy or bossy to the town not far from them or something like that, but no. He’s just doing it because he’s an idiot.

Then there’s the set up with the recreation of Civil War, this time at Soldier Field. While I don’t mind it necessarily, I sort of wish something more interesting would happen rather then just “Oh look thanks to one of them we can attack the rest of them” Isn’t that…I hate to put it this way, racist? If one person of another race does something bad it’s okay to attack all of them?

When Thor shows up things get a little better. We get some solid action…for all of 2 pages. Literally, he shows up for 2 pages and then he’s taken down like that. Lovely. So glad Thor contributed so much to the story, Bendis! Thank you!

This event even fails to have any decent action for crying out loud! Even Secret Invasion, failure as it was, had some superb action and was lots of fun to look at. Bendis just seems to be rushing everything nad it’s annoying as all hell. I know he’s only got 4 issues to tell this story, but I think he could have made much better use of this issue.

Then there’s the final page, what a joke. Steve Roger gets angry! Oooh, I’m so shocked and horrified. Compare it to Secret Invasion’s final page of the first issue and it you would swear this was written by someone else.

As a matter of fact, this doesn’t really feel like a Bendis comic. None of his charming witty dialogue is here. There are no interesting or fun character moments and there is no epic and awesome action. It’s just a by the basics boring read and I feel this could have been written by anyone.

Now in the sake of fairness this issue wasn’t horrible. There was nothing about it that made it an awful read, nothing that made it worthy of a Burn It but it never really ascends from mediocrity. It just feels fine being plain and boring and doesn’t dare try to do anything, making a very  boring read.

Art Comments: While the story failed I had high hopes that the art could save Siege from being a total waste of paper. Sadly even that failed. Now I was not a fan of Coipel’s art on House of M. It was rushed, muddy, just really weak stuff.

Then I saw his stuff on Thor, and it was absolutely gorgeous. So when I heard he’d be doing an event comic, I was excited just to see him get to really cut loose! Sadly that doesn’t happen here. His art once again looks very rushed, even if it’s not muddy anymore.

There are some moments of greatness, like the shots of Thor and Asgard as well as the Dark Avengers as they approach Asgard. But often characters look weird. Norman and Sentry at times have thick foreheads that make them look like the Frankenstein monster!

The art never gets horrible but compared to what I expected it’s just okay. I’m hopeful this was just Coipel having a one issue problem and that he’ll be back up to speed as the event progresses.

Final Comments: Because I’m a sucker for these events I’ll keep reading Siege in hopes it gets better. But if you’re not really into Marvel events or aren’t interested I recommend you go buy a better Bendis book, like Ultimate Spider-man. So far this is a very weak start to what could turn out to be a very mediocre event.

Story Rating: 2 out of 5

Art Rating: 3 out of 5

Overall Rating: 2 out of 5

Pass It

Blackest Night #6

Written: Geoff Johns

Art: Ivan Reis

Opening Comments: With Blackest Night hitting a one month delay at least Johns ended it off with an exciting cliff-hanger. Sadly though this issue doesn’t really do much else, but what it does do is still fun as all hell to read.

Story Comments: So this issue is pretty much just the recruitment of the earth heroes into the various Corps really. Sure we get a little bit of fighting the Black Lantern Super Heroes but not much else really.

Still Johns tells a simple issue but still adds a lot of character and personality to it to keep it from being a boring read. We get lots of great dialogue moments and little bits here and there that really are lots of fun to read.

Though as I said, not much else really happens. For one, Nekron shows up for about one panel. He’s supposedly our big bad villain but he’s on the comic for all of one damn panel. He just walks off saying he’s hungry. Wow. Real intimidating badass here folks.

Also Johns failed to fully utilize the black lantern super heroes. We got a nice scene between Wonder Woman and Mera but that was about it. Seems the heroes turned evil don’t really change much. Just more fodder for the Corps members to attack them and that’s not very exciting.

The 2^nd half of this comic is dedicated to showing the recruitment of the new Corps members, Barry Allen to Blue Lanterns, Wonder Woman to the Star Saphires, Mera to the Red Lanterns, The Atom to the Indigo tribe, Scarecrow as a Sinestro Corps, Lex Luthor as an Orange Lantern and Ganthet becomes a Green Lantern. It was all fun to see but it felt more or less like fluffing the comic up really.

Also I despise that Wonder Woman has to wear that idiotic Star Saphire costume. It’s stupid enough when on Carol Ferris (star right on her privates, people, how does no one see that as a moronic design?) but it looks even worse on Wonder Woman and it’s just frustrating to see.

Still it was nice of Johns to finally explain why he was focusing on characters like Mera, the Atom and Barry Allen and giving them a larger role in the series then just as super heroes fighting the Black Lanterns. It boosts them as more important to the story and I liked that.

Also that final 2 page spread just left me grinning. I especially loved seeing Scarecrow as a Sinestro Corps member. All of it was just so awesome and I really loved it as it left me pumped and excited for more next month.

Overall the story wasn’t mind blowing and it was very simple, but it was a fun read and that was nice.

Art Comments: Reis is doing pretty well even in the face of a delay. He really nails certain scenes with the characters and I especially loved the 2 page spread. Just all around some really solid and good art.

Final Comments: Blackest Night is looking up, but with only 2 parts left it’s time for Johns to really start firing the big guns. It’s time for Nekron’s end game to begin and time for the epic clash we’ve all been waiting for. For now though this was still a fun build up to it.

Story Rating: 3 out of 5

Art Rating: 4 out of 5

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5

Check It

Image United #2

Written: Robert Kirkman

Art: Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Jim Valentino, Rob Liefeld, Marc Silvestri and Whilce Portacio

Opening Comments: After an enjoyable first issue I was really excited to see what Kirkman does next in Image United. Sadly this issue is more of the same but even with that strike against it we’ve got a fun read with gorgeous art.

Story Comments: So as I said this is pretty much more of the same, villains attack, heroes fight villains. In between are lots of character moments, most of the solid and some of them are great.

Our opening scene was my favorite as it was between the two Spawns and it was drawn beautifully by Todd McFarlane. Basically Al and Jim go head to head and Jim soon finds that the former Spawn is more powerful then he expected. The scene is really effective in showing that Al is indeed much stronger now and it’s more effective for it.

Though I’ll admit so far his dialogue is rather cheesy. Typical “I want to rule the world, bwah ha ha ha” style stuff and while that’s not necessarily bad I think Kirkman should play to the character’s strengths more and have him come off as more intimidating then just saying he’s really strong. Al can do a damn good job of putting the fear into someone, but that was lacking here. Still a great scene to kick off this issue and I still enjoyed it.

One thing we’re seeing from the villains is that they are getting absolutely ruthless. Attacking hospitals even and stopping at nothing to cause chaos. In most event comics you see villains attack typical places like a big park or a wide open area or a big city area, but the scene in the hospital was more powerful for seeing the villains really trying to do some serious damage.

Also we got a really nice scene with Die-hard. I’m not familiar with the character but his little love confession to Vogue was a really nice scene and it made me feel for the character, even if only a little bit.

One thing that is really cool is we’re seeing more then just the main cast of heroes like Savage Dragon and Spawn. We’re seeing Mighty Man, and the new hero Barricade, and other things and it’s really great seeing these characters get some time in the sun as well as the main cast of heroes and getting to see them all drawn by their creators and interact nicely.

Kirkman really has a love for these characters as well as a solid understanding for them as we see them all interact well and it’s all handled well. Also I must admit there was one line from Savage Dragon “Omega Spawn, that sounds threatening” that made me facepalm. That line just…wow.

So yeah the dialogue isn’t perfect either. While for the most part it’s solid and well done there are a couple of lines here and there that stand out or bug me and I think had Kirkman read over it a bit more maybe he would have realized what cheesy lines must have been writing at the time.

Still the dialogue never goes into horrendous or boring to read. It never drones on and on like it has in Blackest Night and Kirkman really does his best to keep things interesting even when really he’s just telling the same thing of heroes fighting villains.

I did love the scenes with Shadowhawk again. I really wish Kirkman would write the new ongoing series that is in the works, he had a great voice for the character in making Eddie sound young and fun without making him sound like an idiot though.

I was rather disappointed that Witchblade again didn’t really get a lot of page time. She showed up in a couple of pages and got a few lines but hasn’t really contributed as much as the other heroes have and that is disappointing since I really like Sara and was hopeful she’d do more by now.

I loved the scene with Cyberforce and the new character Barricade. It was awesome seeing them interact and Kirkman did a great job of helping show off the new hero and making him a fairly likeable guy as he now seems to be working with Cyberforce and I’m looking forward to seeing more of him through Image United.

One major complaint I had was how little Fortress showed up. He was literally on page for all of a few panels here and there before he was forgotten. I thought this guy was supposed to be our big hero who is our view into the Image world so why does he get all of a few panels?

I figure Kirkman wanted to focus more on the expanding Image Universe rather then just Fortress and that’s fine but I wish we could have seen a bit more of him then just what little we did since he’s supposed to play a big role in this story.

One thing I loved was how well Kirkman is showing the devastation and insanity going on all over the world. Most events just imply the world is under attack and that everyone is in trouble, but Image United is doing a damn good job of showing it and showing all these heroes around the world fighting off the villains and it was really effective in showing what a huge crisis this is.

I did like the ending a lot, it was an exciting way to end it but I’m hopeful that by next issue Kirkman can finally kick this event into high gear.

Overall this was a really fun read, but sadly it really is just more of the same from Kirkman. Villains attack, heroes fight back, rinse and repeat and if not for the great character moments this would be a very thin read.

There’s also the Bloodstrike back up. It’s exactly what you’d expect, Liefeld at his Liefeld-iest. Gore, stupid dialogue and annoying ramblings as well as lots of comments that make no sense and have no context at all. It’s Liefeld, after all. Though it was a decent enough back up to the enjoyable story.

Art Comments: Once again the Image Founders impress me with their skill here. Though I was most impressed by Todd McFarlane, everyone did a great job. Especially Jim Valentino and Marc Silvestri. Sadly Portacio didn’t really have anything to draw but oh well. And again even Liefeld did well. Image United continues to be a gorgeous looking comic.

Final Comments: This book is still something that the long time Image fans like myself will enjoy most. We recognize these characters and the moments they have resonate more with us thanks to our history with them. Still if you’re looking for a beautifully illustrated and fun read then Image United is the place to be.

Story Rating: 3 out of 5

Art Rating: 5 out of 5

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5

 Check It 

Top 5 Most Anticipated of 2010

A while back Kevin, fellow Revolutionary, contacted me and everyone else at the Comic Book Revolution for our top 5 most anticipated comic related things for 2010. I kind of lost track of the time with the holiday but got it done. I figured I’d post my top 5 here for you all, though I may post something later on to show my excitement for other upcoming things in 2010.

Happy New Year, everyone!

5. Arkham Asylum 2 Info

Funny how I’m not really all that excited with the return of the real Batman, but the return of him in a video game has me excited as all hell. Yes the recently announced sequel to my game of the year, Batman: Arkham Asylum, has me jumping with anticipation.

But sadly I’m well aware that we won’t be getting the sequel in 2010, unless it’s very late 2010. Usually game sequels are at least a good solid year apart and that’s for a steady series. So while I’m excited for the game, for now I’m just dying to find out more about it.

It would seem the original team of gave designers are behind it, and it would seem that Paul Dini, Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill and Arleen Sorkin will be reprising all their roles at least it would seem that way but so far we don’t really have anything definitive saying what the game will be like or any info on it.

There’s no doubt the game will be getting lots of press through 2010, trailers, behind the scenes stuff, etc. They would be crazy not to hype up this game after all the hype and praise the first one got. 2010 will hopefully give us a good amount of knowledge about the game in preparations for what I’m hoping will be an early 2011 release.

I love the first game so much and while the downloadable content has been great I’m dying for more. If Rocksteady can wake their magic wand and improve on some of the small problems the first game had then I think we could be in store for something real special here.

4. Blackest Night’s End

A typical choice I know but up until the last 2 issues of the event I probably wouldn’t have said this. Blackest Night was solid, but painfully predictable in it’s first half but now that it’s entered it’s second half it seems like the real show has begun. I’m excited as all hell to see where it goes.

One thing I’m curious about is the Earth Lantern Heroes. Could Ray still be an Indigo Lantern, or Mera still a red lantern? I know damn well that Barry will be back to normal as will Lex Luthor and probably Scarecrow as well but it’s hard not to hope this may change at least one or two of these heroes.

I’m not 100% certain I’ll be reading Green Lantern after Blackest Night. I want to, but it’s a budget thing. Either way I’m excited for this event all over again and I’m really pumped to see what Johns does next with it.

3. Batman Beyond Returns

It was announced a long while back that DC has plans for Batman Beyond in 2010. Not much else has been said since and I’ve been dying to find out what their plans are for him. I just recently picked up the animated film Return of the Joker (unfortunately it came packaged with the mediocre Mystery of the Batwoman movie) and it was great. It reinvigorated my love for the Batman Beyond series.

My real hope is that the team of Paul Dini, Bruce Timm and Glen Murakami all got together for a new animated film. While we did get a good amount of closure from the JLU/Batman Beyond story I still want one final hurrah for this series. Something really big for Terry. He deserves it.

Also I want to see Max again! Whatever happened to her? She was just as important to Batman as Bruce Wayne or Terry’s Family was. She was his main intelligence person. But she never showed up in Return of the Joker or the JLU story. What the hell, DC? She deserves to come back.

But most of all I want Terry to have his one last final hurrah that’s all him. Much as I absolutely loved Return of the Joker, that was more then just Terry’s movie. It served as filling the gap between the original cartoon and Beyond. While I loved that 10 minute flashback, it was my favorite part of the movie, Terry deserves a movie that’s 100% his.

There has also been talk about a new animated series but I think that’s a much more far off dream. DC seems to be focusing all their extra animated power into the animated films like the new Justice League film as well as the prior movies for Superman/Batman and Green Lantern. So a new animated series seems very unlikely, but if that was the case that would be even better!

Though sadly my best guess is that it’s just going to be a mini-series. While that would be nice too, I’m more used to Batman Beyond in animation so that’s how I’d love to see it. Though if the mini was written by Paul Dini with art by Bruce Timm or Glen Murakami that could be great as well.

Either way I’m excited as all hell to see what DC has planned for Batman Beyond. I’m much more excited for this then whatever the hell it is they plan to do with bringing back Bruce Wayne. We all know how that’s going to go. I’m more excited for a more interesting come back.

2. More Image

I really could fill this entire list up with Image Comics if I wanted. Jersey Gods, Invincible, Haunt, Image United, Witchblade, Angelus, Spawn, the list goes on. Image had another great year with 2009 and I expect 2010 to be no different.

Sadly Image United hit a snag as I predicted, but at least Image is trying to fill the void with new material such as Image United #0 having some extra goodies and Interlude, which will have Invincible! Everyone’s been clamoring for something with Invincible and here we go.

I’m reading Image United mostly just for the characters and the art and 2 parts in and the story has hit a snag. Already it’s feeling dull but I’m really hopeful that Kirkman can bring us back with #3 if it can make it to January on time. Supposedly something back happens there so I’ve got my fingers crossed. Though either way I’ll still enjoy the art at the very least.

Invincible returning to his old costume should be a lot of fun. Though a recent cover teases the idea of him leaving Eve over something and that of course worries me. I’m dying to find out what happens to Eve with her pregnancy. Does she keep the baby, abort it, miscarriage, who knows! Knowing Kirkman though the baby will probably die.

My best guess is that Eve either tells Mark and he leaves her. Or she gets an abortion without telling him, that upsets him that she did that without telling him first so he leaves her for that. Both would be heart-wrenching for the readers so that’s’ where I figure Kirkman is going.

Though obviously there’s a lot more to be excited over Invincible for. It’s just the pregnancy that’s at the forefront of my attention, though the looming Viltrumite war is also exciting as all hell and should be great. Also hopefully this means that we’ll have a reunion of father and son finally.

Jersey Gods hit a little delay but that’s okay. This series is good enough for the wait and it has been my favorite new ongoing series of 2009. Definitely the best new series Image is putting out (sorry but I’m not reading Chew) and it is tons of fun to read each month so I’m really excited to see where the book goes in 2010.

 Witchblade seems to be taking a little bit of a breather and having more short and easy story arcs after following up on the somewhat disappointing War of the Witchblades from this year. That’s a good thing since I’ve been enjoying the shorter and more easy arcs since they are a lot more fun and interesting to read then the long dragged out stories.

Also Angelus started this year but it wraps up in 2010 and I’m really excited to see where Marz and Sejic go with the mini-series. I think it could easily have potential to be the mini-series of the year!

Haunt wraps up it’s first arc in 2 months and that should be exciting though really the entire series has me excited for more. 2010 is looking even better for the young series with Greg Capullo actually lending his brilliant pencils to issue #6 which I’m sure will look gorgeous.

Haunt has definitely been a very interesting series and where Krikman takes it after it’s first story arc is crucial. He’s built up the mystery and is slowly unraveling just a few pieces of it but he’s also got to make sure this series works for more then just it’s mystery, that these 2 brothers can still do the hero thing even after all is revealed otherwise this might as well have been a mini-series or something.

I hate to say it but I’m not very excited for Spawn actually, which is why Image is not higher on the list. Spawn for me was the flagship Image title when I was a kid. It was always my favorite Image comic and now it’s just all falling apart it seems. McFarlane seemed to know what he’s doing but now it’s all just crumbled.

For one he can’t seem to get the damn book out on time. #196 was solicited for September of this year, and now it won’t make it until January of 2010. I call bullshit. I did so on twitter and McFarlane said it was his fault. That Rob Liefeld (guest artist for the issue) had done his part but it was on Todd since he was so busy. That doesn’t make this delay any more frustrating.

Then after the big 200^th issue, we get a new team of 2 people I’ve never heard of. Now I am willing to give the new team a try, after all David Hine paid off big time and I’d never heard of him, but it really just seems like McFarlane has do idea what he’s doing with Spawn anymore.

I love Spawn and I always will but nowadays it’s just getting harder and harder to read this series. It’s the comic that got me back into a comics a few years ago and if not for Spawn I wouldn’t be writing this very post for you all. But I feel like I’m in a relationship with someone who I’m totally committed to and care about, but who doesn’t give a damn about me or anything else.

I really am glad that McFarlane gave some new changes to Spawn. It’s nice to see him trying again but really it just seems like he totally lost all focus and direction. First he fired Brian Holguin from writing the series which was a huge mistake. If McFarlane wants someone to write Spawn, get Holguin for god’s sakes. He’s a 1,000 times better writer then McFarlane ever has been and I can already tell he’s better then the new guy.

Maybe I’m just a scorned fan who feels like he’s been done wrong. But I love Spawn a lot so seeing the series just so unfocused and rocky is really hard for me. I’m really hopeful that by mid-2010 McFarlane can get his crap together and fix his series or I may do something I never thought I’d do, drop Spawn.

Image as a whole though seems to be having a really exciting year with 2010. Every series is doing something new or interesting and I can’t wait to read more as the new year rings in.

1. Young Avengers coming back

Ever since the initial first series ended the YA have been in a bit of a limbo. Inching their way through the Marvel Universe in waiting for Heinberg and Cheung to return for one last hurrah with the characters they created. It’s been a long time coming.

Now luckily Marvel hasn’t totally let the team just sit around and do nothing. A random mini-series here and there to keep them up with the current status quo. Teaming up with the Runaways and recently the excellent Dark Reign mini-series. So far the YA have still been fairly prominent but it’s obvious that they have yet to really come full circle from prior developments of the original series.

Sure Patriot and Hawkeye got together, sort of, and Vision and Stature got together but other then 2 hookups the characters haven’t been able to really go too far with the limitation that was set when Heinberg planned to eventually return to the characters. They haven’t been able to do all they can do.

But now that’s all finally changing as the creators are returning and hopefully going to wrap up all their developments and set a new status quo for the team that other writers could take and run with later on. It would be great to finally see all these points come full circle.

For one there’s Kang of the future, his younger self who wants to be a hero. We saw a glimpse of him in the second half of the first series but since then he sort of just disappeared. I can’t tell if I want him to come back or not. While he was a decent character, him coming back would create a love triangle with Kang/Stature/Vision and I’m rarely fond of a love triangle. They are often very boring.

Then there are characters like Patriot and Hawkeye who both have some legacies to live up to. With Cap coming back I’d think they should touch on Patriot’s thoughts on this and I’m sure Hawkeye wants to talk to Clint Barton some more. These seem like 2 obvious things they should touch on.

I would hope that Stature and Vision would still take place in the series but with their current roles in the Mighty Avengers it seems unlikely that the mini could change them too much since it could have trouble matching up with their current status. It’s all up in the air at this point.

There’s also Wiccan and Speed and the possible return of the Scarlet Witch. I believe Heinberg said he wanted to bring her back and since it would clearly impact these 2 that would be a really fascinating twist and a really interesting read.

There are other things like Hulkling and his ties to the Skrull and Krees but those seem like more far off possible stories. Right now I just hope the 8-issue/bi-monthly mini can wrap up all these plot points so we can have some closure and maybe even a fun shake up of the team. So while 2010 is looking to be an exciting year for new possible stories, I’m mostly excited for a story that wraps up a long developing group of stories. Go figure. Well I’ve always loved the YA so I can’t wait to see more of them come Summer 2010.

The Week Begins - December 21st 2009

Of course the week I’m out of town is the week 3 comic I’m dying to read all come out. Life has its fair share of cruel jokes doesn’t it? Well no use complaining now. Hopefully I can find a comic shop to get these this week. Now onto 3 excellent looking titles this week.

I also wanted to state that while I do have a Most Anticipated of this week, I’m highly excited for all 3 titles. Just one more then the others a little bit.

Angelus #1 *Most Anticipated*

Written: Ron Marz

Art: Stjepan Sejic

With Dani out of the picture of Witchblade, Marz has a huge chance to really put the character into a totally new element and make an excellent story out of it. Dani’s got a lot to overcome after all (having a psychotic ancient light force in your head can be a bit of a bother from time to time I figure) and I’m really looking forward to seeing where Marz takes the character.

I figure this first issue will mostly set us up with Dani’s new status quo and set up the events that will transpire in the 5 following issues. Though Marz is great at making an enjoyable set up issue still without making it feel like the typical “putting the pawns in place” chapter that so many mini’s have.

Also really looking forward to seeing even more Sejic a month. He’s an amazing artist so seeing him on 2 books is a serious treat. Can’t wait to check this out as soon as possible.

Image United #2

Written: Robert Kirkman

Art: Todd McFarlane, Rob Liefeld, Jim Valentino, Erik Larsen, Whilce Portacio and Marc Silvestri.

I must admit I am very impressed with the Image guys for getting this issue out. Major props to you guys for really buckling down and getting it done. I was almost certain this would be delayed by at least a month or so since this is the Image Founders we’re talking about here.

I’m really excited to check this issue out mostly for the promised battle between the 2 Spawns. McFarlane handling both his creations sounds like an amazingly fun time and I’m stoked to see more of Omega Spawn and his interactions with Jim, even if it will mostly just be punching.

Also while the story isn’t my main reason for wanting to read this series, I will say that I am hopeful that Kirkman does a good job of giving us some twists soon and really upping the ante for the series. All around I’m really excited to read this issue.

Invincible #69

Written: Robert Kirkman

Art: Ryan Ottley

Invincible has been on such a hot streak for so long I would be crazy not to be excited for more greatness this month from Kirkman and Ottley. I’m really curious about this new villain(?) and finding out what her role is in all this and what effect she will have on the Sequid invasion.

Though lets be honest here, I’m mostly excited to see if Eve tells Mark about her pregnancy or what she is going to do about it. I know they will probably be really busy with the whole invasion thing (those do tend to get in the way from time to time) but it’s the most interesting development yet and I’m dying to see what happens next. I’m doubting it’s anything good with a recent cover reveal for February showing a crying Eve. Awe damn…this series has me excited to see what happens next no matter what!

Witchblade #133

Written: Ron Marz

Art: Stjepan Sejic

Twice the great creative team in one month is awesome, but twice the great creative team in one week? Absolutely great. While last issue wasn’t anything special it was an enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to seeing where Marz takes the Troll plot by wrapping it up.

Week's End - November 29th 2009

Week’s End is here, and with it a note that I’m taking another Month off from Month’s End, rather I’m just going to say the comic of the month and the most anticipated comic of next month. Month’s End is sort of tricky because often it feels like I’m recycling old Week’s End posts so I want to boil it down to just 2 key parts of the end of the Month and see how that works out.

Now with that said let’s move onto the comics.

Comic of the Week: Image United #1

I’ve stated in the past that some comics aren’t going to get the win just for a higher score. Image United is a good example of that as this week’s issue really blew me away with some gorgeous art and a lot of great character moments but at the same time the plot was very thin.

Though the thing plot was made up for as the characters where all written incredibly well and the artwork was absolutely gorgeous. A stunning view to the eyes and having each character drawn by their creator was such a brilliant idea.

While this issue was really something that Image fans will probably appreciate more then anyone else I still loved the hell out of it and for me it was the best comic this week.

Moments of the Week: Black Lantern Batman, DIE and Omega Spawn

Seeing Batman as a Black Lantern was absolutely awesome this week. It’s a damn shame he wasn’t a major player in the story because I really did love this moment and it was just so awesome seeing him. DC Direct, take note of this and make this figure with Blackest Night series 3.

Of course the awesome final 2 page spread that just left us all excited for more. Sure, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow are all sure to be back to normal pretty soon but I’m certain that Ice will stay dead or maybe even Donna Troy.

What really makes this moment work is the build up. We see all the heroes assembled to fight this great menace, you’ve got the heavy hitters like Superman and Wonder Woman, Nekron doesn’t stand a chance. Then we get thrown over a loop and they good guys are now the bad guys, with very few major heroes left to combat this threat. Awesome way to end the issue.

While this moment was spoiled a month ahead of time as well as with that awesome Jim Lee cover I still loved it. I’m dying to know why Al went bad and even more so I’m dying to see Jim and him go head to head. This moment just appealed to the Spawn fan in me in so many ways, I can’t wait for more next month.

Cover of the Week: Image United #1 Jim Lee variant

Santa, if you’re out there, this baby is at the top of my Christmas list. Seriously this cover is just so awesome in so many ways. For one Lee does a great job of putting in all the characters without making it feel cramped in any way.

Of course what really makes it work is how wicked Omega Spawn is, that evil laugh you can tell he’s chuckling as Ripclaw desperately tries to wound him but fails. It all just looks so great and seeing Lee draw all these characters again was so much fun, I love this cover.

Artists of the Week: Rob Liefeld, Erik Larsen, Jim Valentino, Marc Silvestri, Whilce Portacio and Todd McFarlane.

Making a rare exception here by giving 6 artists the spot rather then 1. But I give top billing to Rob Liefeld, yes that Rob Liefeld the same Liefeld who’s art usually brings me sorrow and anger but really impressed me with some incredible lay out work and solid work on his characters.

Though everyone impressed me. From Erik Larsen, to Todd McFarlane. Marc Silvestri even with his 2 pages of extra character art from outside the opening scene. It was all gorgeous looking stuff from all the artists and I loved every page of it.

Character of the Week: Nekron

Much as I loved the character work in Image United #1, I have to give it to Johns for revealing Nekron to be a serious badass who turns out to be a more major threat to the DCU then anyone figured. I wasn’t sure how this  villain would come across but Johns did a great job making him a total badass and making me want to see more of him.

Comic of the Month: Invincible #68

This month had plenty of good and great reads but I have to give it to Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley for really impressing me this month with a great way to start  back up with Invincible. Some jaw dropping moments and beautiful art made this one an easy choice.

Movie of the Month: Turtles Forever

I rarely get to go to the theater, but when I do I often review whatever movie I just saw. Now this one will probably be a rarity at the end of the month but it’s still something I want to try and what better movie to kick this off then a movie that really does feel like the end of an era.

If you missed my Turtles Forever review, to sum it up, it had some issues but deep down I still loved it and it really appealed to the TMNT fan in me. I really hope we get a DVD of this one real soon as it is a really great movie that no TMNT fan should miss.

Most Anticipated Comic for December: Angelus #1

While this series hasn’t been at the forefront of my radar, I still added it to the pull list as it’s Ron Marz and Stjepan Sejic the great team behind Witchblade. Though lately Witchblade hasn’t been quite as enjoyable as when I started reading, so I’m really excited to see them with this mini-series in hopes that they can recapture some of that magic while focusing on Dani and making her a more interesting character.

Image United #1 Review

With so much hype around this one issue, I decided to give Image United the solo review treatment. I did pick up Blackest Night #5 but I’ll be posting that review on Friday as tomorrow I’ll be posting the Comics to be Thankful for here and at the Revolution.

But now to Image United, one of the most highly anticipated comics of the year for me!

Creative Team

Written: Robert Kirkman

Art: Todd McFarlane, Erik Larsen, Rob Liefeld, Jim Valentino, Marc Silvestri and Whilce Portacio

Opening Comments: Image United #1 does a good job of starting up the event and setting everything in place. Though it doesn’t do too much else. Still a good start to something that could be great.

Story Comments: Most of the story is just the various Image heroes doing their thing. We see Dragon and Youngblood team up against Overt-kill and we see Cyberforce take on some Savage Dragon villains like Mako and this is all the while Fortress is trying to get his bearings.

It’s a very simple set up really. Someone or something is behind all these villains attacking the world at the same time. Not exactly a brand new concept but for the most part it’s a good reason to get our heroes riled up and ready for a big fight.

One thing that excels here are the use of all these diverse characters. Kirkman does a great job of finding the characters and their distinct voices then bringing them to life properly and having them sound as we would expect them to.

I especially liked things like the nod that Savage Dragon hates teaming up with Youngblood since he’s a mature adult and they are very immature young heroes that are mostly glory hounds. There’s no secret that Dragon hates Youngblood so seeing him not want to work with them was great.

Another thing I liked was this twist for the character of Shadowhawk. How he wants to join Youngblood. It sort of reminds me how the original Shadowhawk was disappointed that he never joined a team and I can’t help but wonder if this was a little nod to that great hero.

I’m not too familiar with Cyberforce but what I have read up on them leads me to believe that Kirkman did a good job with them as well with the team dynamic they have going.

Really Kirkman did a good job with the 2 teams on this book. Youngblood was the usual brash overly excited group of young heroes they always have been and Cyberforce where fairly smart and interesting to watch. Especially when they discussed if they should act as the villains keep attacking.

Another thing about Shadowhawk that I liked was how Kirkman showed us the young somewhat nervous hero he is. Eddie is probably the youngest hero of the Image United heroes (Maybe he’s older then Fortress, I’m not sure really) so his nervousness at joining Youngblood really fit his character well.

I admit I’ve never liked the Youngblood cast of characters. Though Kirkman did a pretty good job with them even if they still don’t appeal to me he at least presented them in a way that wasn’t as annoying as they have been in the past.

I did like the opening a lot. Kirkman wrote it sort of to give us our action and show that there is a major throw down ahead in the series but that while we’re not exactly getting that now we at least got a taste and it was really great seeing this.

Fortress is an interesting new character into the Image fold. We can assume he’s our “Main Character” of sorts but at the same time he still is there as just one piece of the puzzle and thankfully Kirkman doesn’t push the character at us so much that we lose focus of the other important heroes to this story.

And that’s where Kirkman excels most in this issue is giving all the characters a lot of moments and making them all feel important. No one feels like they where forced into the story and everyone’s moments felt important to the larger story.

Though Fortress may be our main hero in all of this, since clearly he’s tied to whatever is going on and is seeing visions of the future. We still feel like all the other heroes are important to the story and add a lot of depth to what otherwise was a somewhat thin read.

I really like the use of the Image villains here. Especially having Overt-kill be at least a somewhat credible threat. Sure he does get blown up by the end of the issue but seeing one of the best early Spawn villains get so much time and at least posing as somewhat of a major threat was really cool.

I also liked seeing Mako being attacked by Cyberforce. Rather then just having the heroes all fight their regular villains they are doing a good job of showing how the villains are going after everyone not just the heroes they personally hate and that was a nice touch.

Then of course there’s the new Jim Spawn meeting Al Simmons, or as he now goes, Omega Spawn. I must admit this was a really cool moment, seeing the 2 Spawns face to face but I’m not exactly sure how this is all going to work out. Al wants Jim to work for him but Jim already doesn’t seem too fond of Al.

We get a mention of the “unfaithful” husk that Jim is wearing. I’m wondering if this means that Jim is indeed wearing the K7 Leetha suit and that it left Al for some reason and this is all effecting Jim. It’s just a random theory that popped into my head but it seems that Omega Spawn is bitter that Jim is now Spawn.

We did get a nice moment between Dragon and his kids. I really like the characters of Malcolm and Angel so seeing them get a quick moment of wanting to help their father was nicely done.

Now the biggest issue Image United has to it is that really not much happens yet. Villains are attacking everywhere, our heroes are all in place and now the main villain has revealed himself and is looking for a new recruit who I have the funniest feeling won’t be so eager to join him. (It was mentioned that the 2 Spawns will fight in issue #2, something I’m really excited for)

Though really there’s not much else. Besides some great character moments this issue was a pretty thin read with not much bulk to it besides some good moments and handling of the characters.

Kirkman does a solid job with what he can do for a debut issue but sadly because this issue exists to set up the pieces he can’t really do much more. All the real major stuff starts next month and lets be honest this is typical of an event comic so I’m not really complaining much.

Still if Kirkman could have done a little more I think this issue would have been a more exciting read. Just a bit more to really push this issue into a level of excitement and intrigue. So far everything is set up and now the real fun begins next time and while this issue is a good start it leaves you wanting more both in the good and bad way.

Another big flaw is that it’s not exactly new reader friendly. If you’re not familiar with Shadowhawk, or Spawn, or Savage Dragon then you’re probably going to be confused as to who some of these characters are and their back story. While we didn’t need an entire reiteration of their histories a little bit of back story would have been nice for new readers probably.

Now there was also the Haunt back up. I don’t have too much to say on it other then it was a great 6 pages that really used the 2 characters and how they interact very well and also how we see their powers as they try to figure them out. For 6 pages this was a really great read and if you’re reading Haunt you’ll probably like this moment.

Overall the story is a solid and enjoyable read but that just barely misses the mark on becoming an absolute must read.

Art Comments: there’s a lot to say about the art of Image United what with 6 artists, all of them handling their own characters and creations.

First I want to say that Rob Liefeld did a great job on the layouts of this comic as the panels are all designed very nicely. Also while I may not be a big fan of his art, this was pretty good looking for Liefeld art. Still has some weird things like Diehard have an oddly sculpted ass but whatever. Still good art.

McFarlane did a great job both with the 2 Spawns and Overt-kill who looked absolutely awesome in this issue. He really adds that beautiful detail making for a great looking villain.

Larsen did his usual great job and while his style has changed the most over the years it still retains that classic greatness.

Silvestri continues to turn in gorgeous stuff as Cyberforce and Witchblade are very nicely drawn. My only complaint is Witchblade is only in the opening scene so Silvestri didn’t get to draw more of her.

Valentino turned in solid work though I don’t think this was his best. My biggest problem was he draw Shadowhawk only for 2 pages. I love the character so I was really disappointed that he showed up only 2 times.

Portacio turns in some solid work for Fortress. I really like the design of it all and he does a great job with the emotion the character is conveying through his frustration to try and help and make sense of everything.

Overall the art was absolutely gorgeous.

Final Comments: For me and other longtime Image fans this series is a must read. It’s got a great use of the characters we all loved growing up and is absolutely beautifully well drawn. Though if you’re not familiar with Image this issue isn’t exactly great for you. I say give it a read if you’re interested and you may find something fun.

Really this was a good start but Image United needs to make that extra break for greatness now that it’s all ready to go. If Kirkman and crew can really up the ante with next moth’s issue then Image United has ability to be one of the best Event comics out there.

Story Rating: 3 out of 5

Art Rating: 5 out of 5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

Must Read 

My thoughts on "Image United"

Here's a bit of a quick post, but I wrote this up shortly after hearing the Image United announcement at the San Diego Comic Con

Image United

Robert Kirkman recently announced his partnership with Image Comics, a once small company that was started in the early 90’s by once hot artists for Marvel. It was founded by a select group of men, and while I won’t go into that, among them were Todd McFarlane, Erik Larsen and Marc Silvestri. But those are only 3 of the founders.

Image really lead the revolution of independent comics through the 90’s. Paving the way for companies like IDW. While the band broke up as the years went on, no one ever forgot who started it all. Image is mostly known for the creation of Spawn, a popular character made by Todd McFarlane, who is returning to the comic in December.

Other characters and comics where made popular as well though, Youngblood, Witchblade, Savage Dragon, Shadowhawk. For the first time in years, these characters, and their creators, are teaming up again to do a special project called Image United. While Jim Lee is a little busy at DC to help, all the others are returning.

This is how it works; it’s a 6 issue mini-series tying all these comics together. Spawn, Witchblade, Savage Dragon, etc. All these characters and more will meet up again within this comic. However, there is…a twist. Each character will be drawn by its creator. So if you see a page with Spawn talking to Witchblade, Spawn will be drawn by Todd McFarlane and Witchblade will be drawn by Marc Silvestri.

It’s pretty exciting and huge news. But the thing I’m most excited about his seeing Shadowhawk drawn by Jim Valentino. He was a bit of an underrated character compared to Spawn and the others, but I though Shadowhawk was great. Seeing him in regular Image Continuity again is exciting. I especially hope for a throw back to the old days when Spawn and Shadowhawk teamed up.

It sounds like a tough comic to make, after all, these guys all live in different places around the USA. Robert Kirkman confirmed that he will be writing the story, and that pages will be sent around via Fedex. It sounds challenging, but if they can pull this off, it could be the most amazing crossover in years.

My only worry as far as writing is that one, Kirkman already has like…9 comics he’s writing. McFarlane is writing Spawn, with Portacio drawing it. I wouldn’t be too surprised if there where some delays somewhere. Also, Kirkman is an amazing writer, but he’s had his serious low points. Most Notably Ultimate X-men. But I’m hoping this will be more like Invincible than anything else. It’s said to be a very serious dark action-epic, which sounds just about right.

Obviously I’m hyped; I grew up as an Image fanboy and still love their core characters. To get to see these characters together again, along with these creators together, it’s awesome. No word on when Image United will be solicited.