Comics this week

Deadly Class #27- Don't fix what's not broken, and writer Rick Remender followed that formula this issue as he crafted a good-old-fashioned-revenge story as the origin of Saya. Remender obviously put a lot of thought into her story as this issue fill us with Saya's tale in a way that fits what we know so far and also gives us some needed emotional depth to an inscrutable character. Excellent!

Comics this week

Birthright #23- The problem of having a reputation as a lair is that even when you are telling the truth, people don’t believe you. Mastema faced this problem this issue as her follow mages take her to task for lying to them and while that’s going on, Rya finally meet Mikey again. Writer Joshua Williamson and artist Andrei Bressan are on a roll and I can’t wait to see where they go from here.

Elektra #2- I never got the idea of Arcade. I know a lot of creators seem to like the character but I always thought the villain was stupid. The second of issue of Elektra did nothing to change my mind. The issue has Arcada knowing that Elektra is in Las Vegas and trying to get the assassin into his latest Murderworld. Words cannot describe how stupid that is; she is one of the best assassins in the world and he can’t even keep a bunch of teenage heroes in check in Avengers Arena. Artist Juan Cabal once again did a great job showing how much a badass Elektra is, if only writer Matt Owens had pick a better villain…  

Comics this week

Injection #11- After too long a wait, Injection is back and writer Warren Ellis and artist Declan Shalvey waste no time hitting the ground running. After Maria and Vivek, this arc is on Brigid Roth of the Injection team, aka the female Dr. Who of the team. Much like the previous two story arcs, this issue is full of mystery and you have to love the dry wit on display here. Ellis is clearly having fun with this issue and I can’ wait to see where he go from here.

Monsters Unleashed #5- Since the event started, I thought this event was a lot better than a lot of people think. Unfortunately, Monsters Unleashed stumbles at the finish line with an uninspired finish that undid the good work in the previous issues. Honestly, it looks like writer Cullen Bunn was far more interested in setting up the Monsters Unleashed ongoing series than anything else as the story got out of control in a hurry. Kid Kaiju stepping up to face the Mother was always on the card but creating 5 new monsters out of thin air to take her on? Then having the 5 monsters “combine” to form a giant monster even though at least one of the 5 monsters had been taken out by the enemy? *Facepalm* This is like a bad episode of Transformers. 

Wild Storm #2- No good deed goes unpunished and Angela Spica is about to find that out in a big way as Skywatch, Halo, and International Operations are all gunning for her suit. Writer Warren Ellis is putting his pieces in place for a collision course and there are A LOT OF PIECES. We get fan-favourites like Grifter, Void and Zealot, to supporting characters like Henry Bendix and Christine Trelane, to more obscure characters like Savant (Kenesha). The diversity of the characters is great as well as the fact that although 3 factions are gunning for The Engineer, they are doing it for 3 very different reasons. Can’t wait for #3! 

Comics this week

Astro City #42- One of the great things about Astro City is the fact that writer Kurt Busiek writer superhero stories that most comics just don’t touch on. This issue we got a glimpse of the life of a forgotten supervillain who is marooned on a tropical island. When the chance came to get off the island, the villain jumped at it but then found that, despite himself, he actually enjoy his forced retirement on the tropical island. I thought it was great that the only one who remember the villain was his nemesis and even younger villains who use tech the supervillain pioneered don’t remember him. Another great issue of Astro City!

Copperhead #11- I can’t remember when was the last issue of Copperhead, which should tell you just how long this this sci-fi western has been on hiatus. After all this time, writer Jay Faerber attempt to keep things going by continuing on from where we stopped. On one hand, I can understand this, but I can’t help to think it would be better if Faerber had done a recap or something at the start to remind everyone where the story was at.

Jessica Jones #6- That’s it? After 6 issues, the first story arc is over and I can’t believe this was it. Jessica Jones is clearly a passion project for Michael Bendis but I hope the writer would come up with something better in the next story because the end of this one was very…meh. After all that build-up, the way the villains were taken out was just laughable. 

Garfield is Male!

You would think that’s a given right? I mean how many times has Jon, Garfield’s owner, said “Good boy” to him? How many times has Garfield called himself a “he”? I mean Garfield even has a girlfriend he treats badly! Garfield is clearly male right?

Not according to some and the worse thing is; they may have a point.

It seems that 2 years ago, Garfield’s creator Jim Davis (in a bout of total insanity) was quoted as saying “By virtue of being a cat, really, he's not really male or female or any particular race or nationality, young or old."

No one really cared about the quote 2 years ago but then a satirist dug the quote up and updated the Garfield Wikipedia entry to reflect the fact. Cue a war on Wikipedia between the various editors and Garfield's gender was changed no less than 20 times before an administrator of Wikipedia stepped in to lock the gender as “male”.

Right now, the war had died down because Davis released a statement saying "Garfield is male; he has a girlfriend, Arlene." Good to know Mr. Davis, but it really shouldn’t be a question in the first place.

Comics this week

Champions #6- The writings been on the wall for a few issues already, but the problem of this series is for all to see this issue. That problem being the lack of a overall plot. It seems writer Mark Waid know the problem as he introduced The Freelancers this series as a kind of counterpoint to The Champions. It didn’t quite work as it felt kind of tack-on. Hopefully, this issue is just a bump in the road.

Monsters Unleashed #4- The idea behind Marvel’s latest event is simple; superheroes fight giant monsters. If you want to be technical, there’s also giant monsters fighting against giant monsters, but you get the idea. If you don’t like the idea, then don’t read this series because writer Cullen Bunn and artist Salvador Larroca are running with this idea and having fun with it. With a good balance of action and humor (watch for the Luke Cage/Iron Fist/Fin Fang Foom scene), this issue is great!

Motor Girl #4- Give this Terry Moore; he is a man with a vision. He knows the story he want to tell and has enough confidence in his story-telling to just let the scenes flow. There are pages and pages in this issue where nothing happen and…it works! If you are looking for a unique story that’s like nothing else on the shelf, then you must pick up Motor Girl. It’s not just different; it’s great! 

Comics this week

Astro City #41- After 22 years, Astro City finally got to the 100^th issue! In celebration, writer Kurt Busiek gives us a 40-page extravaganza that introduced us to the hero Astro City was named after; the Astro-Naut! As usual, we get to see the action through the eyes of a normal human living in the city, even if this normal human is the former mayor of the city. However this is more than just the story of a hero; it is the story of Astro City from before the start of World War II to the end of it and the beginning of Astro City. This is an amazing 100^th issue and I hope there are 100 more!

Elektra#1- First, don’t let the cover fool you. This is the Elektra fans love, and not the watered-down version Marvel had pushed whenever Elektra get a series of her own. No; this Elektra is an assassin who is most comfortable when she is killing and writer Matt Owens is smart enough to let artist Juan Cabal tell the story when he need to. Juann Cabral's art is great. He showed Elektra so full of life when the action and deaths starts but also a little stiff when she’s off the clock. Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words and it tells readers so much about Elektra without any words for us to read. A very good debut. 

Monstress #10-A journey ends and another begins as Maika and gang finally get on the Isle of Bones. Credit has to be given to artist Sana Takeda for making the isle so eerie and creepy but while the sea journey is over, more questions are asked as the Isle of Bones is nothing like what Maika and her small crew expected. Great art, deep story; brilliant! 

Comics this week

Monsters Unleashed #2- Come on! I know Marvel is desperate to push the Inhumans but having an Inhuman with the power to summon monsters is just nonsense. How difficult would it be for writer Cullen Bunn to make Kei Kawada’s power come from some magic or mystic source? An Inhuman? That just hurts the whole miniseries which is too bad because this issue actually moves the story along very well and provide us with some good moment. Earth monsters against Space Monsters? That’s just great right? Too bad Marvel had to force an Inhuman angel on all of us.

Trinity #6- This issue closed off the “Better Together” and I honestly feel that writer and artist Francis Manapul would have been better served if he held off the ending for at least another issue. This issue felt rushed, as if Manapul had to wrap it up before he ran out of pages. Too bad because this was, till this issue, a very impressive start to the series.

Wild Storm #1- I bought this strictly because writer Warren Ellis is writing it. I mean DC is basically giving him free reign to reboot the entire Wildstorm universe. The idea seems like a winner and this issue did nothing to disperse that feeling. As with many of his works, Wild Storm #1 has a dark cynical feeling to it and artist Jon Davis-Hunt’s work fits his story to a T. It will probably take a few more issues before we can decide how good the reboot will be but thus far, it looks good. 

Comics this week

Birthright #22- Last issue, writer Joshua Williamson gave us a new perspective on the world of Terrenos by telling the world from the view of Rya. Lightning strikes twice as we now know the backstory of one of the 5 mages, Mastema. Like last issue with Rya, it works beautifully! Not only do we know now that Mastema is Lore’s daughter, we also get a glimpse of the breakdown of the Rhodes family when Mikey first disappeared. An excellent issue all around!

Jessica Jones #5- How do you balance a story in the mean streets of New York with a story about cosmic madness. Most would say it can’t be done, so you have to give credit to writer Brian Michael Bendis for at least trying. The issue didn’t quite nailed it but the idea of a simple man who went mad after surviving the destruction of his world does rings true. That, by itself, makes this a brave issue.

Ms. Marvel #15- After last issue, I was expecting a light-hearted romp about the dangers of the internet. Well, I got the danger of the internet part correct but this was anything but a light-hearted romp as writer G. Willow Wilson went deep. Not only does she show the danger, she also shows the effects your online life can have on your real life. Artist Takeshi Miyazawa’s sleek and expressive art also managed to capture the gravity of the story nicely. Great issue all around! 

Comics this week

Champions #5- When I read last issue that Gwenpool was coming to Champions, I was not impressed. I still don’t like the character but I must admit writer Mark Waid worked her into the group very well. Right now, the Champions are filled with serious teenagers who all want to do the right thing in the right way and a guest star offering an alternative perspective is a welcome development. Makes me wonder what other teenager heroes/villains might be coming…?

Monsters Unleashed #2- Okay, let’s get this out of the way first; the change of artist in this issue was jarring. I won’t say artist Greg Land’s work is poor but it is very different from Steve McNiven and that’s a problem. With that out of the way, this issue of MU was on the whole pretty good. We have a lot of monster action as waves and waves of monster lands on Earth and the heroes of the Marvel Universe are trying various ways to repel them. Captain Marvel, Alpha Flight and S.W.O.R.D tried to head off the monsters in space while the Avengers, X-Men, Inhumans etc fight the monsters that managed to land on Earth. In the midst of all this, Elsa Bloodstone finally met up with Kei Kawada and the unlikely duo may be the people who could save the planet from the monster apocalypse. Action with a bit of mystery thrown in for good measure? Count me in; just fix on one artist please.

Moon Knight #11- And further down the rabbit hole we go…that’s the feeling I got when I finished reading this week’s Moon Knight. Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Greg Smallwood once again put together a compelling piece of work that show us Marc Spector’s troubled life as well the deep shit he’s currently in. Great work! 

Comics this week

Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #6- Well, it was bound to happen. The weekly release of the event finally caught up to DC as artist Howard Porter had to rush to finish the series on time. The conclusion was satisfactory though we could have done without writer Joshua Williamson trying so hard to setup the new Justice League of America series. It was kind of forced and just took away from the finish. Overall, a surprising good event! 

Comics this week

Monsters Unleashed #1- After the terrible Civil War 2, Marvel has gotten the hints from fans and got their latest event off to a flying start. From the opening, writer Cullen Bunn and artist Steve McNiven have monsters dropping from the sky and refused to let up on the action for a single moment. They even had all the teams on hand for the event so in this issue you get to see everyone from the AVENGERS to the CHAMPIONS as they clash with the monsters. Having said that, the most interesting things in this issue were the hints dropped that the most important people in this event are Elsa Bloodstone and the boy who summoned Fin Fang Foom. Hopefully it would prevent this from becoming a total slugfest…

Spider-Gwen #16- There’s a crossover? I didn’t know Spider-Gwen was having a crossover with Spider-man till I opened this issue and saw that this was Part 2 of the story "Sitting in a Tree". Basically this issue continue the story from SPIDER-MAN #12 which finds Miles and Gwen on Earth-65 looking for Miles’ father who somehow became a SHIELD agent. Since I don’t collect Spider-man, I have no idea what’s going on and can only say Marvel need to do a much better job marketing their crossovers.

Trinity #5- The answers to the mystery of what the hell is going on are slowly revealed this issue as writer and artist Francis Manapul setup the conclusion of the opening arc. At times very slow, I have to say this has been a good opening arc to the Trinity series. Not only do we get great character moments with the Trinity, we also see a uniquely sympathetic villain in Poison Ivy. DC needs to bring more issues/series like Trinity. It’s great. 

Comics this week

Birthright #21- The flashbacks are back but this time, it worked! I had said several times in the past that writer Joshua Williamson overdid it on the flashbacks but this issue showed how well it could if it is not overdone. Also helping the matter was that this flashback was told through the eyes of Rya, the winged warrior that was Mikey’s lover on Terrenos and the mother of his child. Excellent!

Jessica Jones #4- After 4 issues, I can safely say this about Jessica Jones; writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos are doing this for the fans. If you are a fan of Jessica Jones before, you will love this new series. If not, Bendis has no interest in getting you on board. The main problem of this issue was the reveal that Jessica is a mole for Captain Marvel. It came out of the blue and didn’t quite work, but fans would still love it for the snarky interplay between Carol and Jessica. If you’re not however…  

Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #4- Writer Joshua Williamson sure likes his cliffhangers! After last week’s reveal of the origin of Max Lord’s group, the end of this issue has Max getting his hands on the item he was looking for and it was big. He also gave artist Fernando Pasarin a lot of room to show his talent with plenty of epic, blockbuster action. As I had said earlier, this event has been better than expected thus far and on that front, nothing has changed. It’s still very good.

Comics this week

Justice League #12- I must say Maxwell Lord is a character I don’t usually get. Several writers think of him as a great villain but I just don’t get it. This issue at least changed my view a little on the character. Serving as a prequel to Justice League Vs Suicide Squad, this issue reintroduced the character to Rebirth and it was one hell of a reintroduction. Writer Tim Seeley got a good handle of the character and even gave us a good rundown on Checkmate. Outside a misstep at the end on Amanda Waller, this issue was excellent.

Justice League Vs Suicide Squad #3- Taking a breather from the action, writer Joshua Williamson slowed things down by giving us some background on Max Lord’s team and their beef with Amanda Waller. There’s some interaction between the JL and the SS which reveals the characters of the teams and some of their history, but this issue is Lord’s team. In a way, not a lot happened in this issue and it is the weakest issue so far but everything must be put into context. It’s been a pretty solid series thus far. So after 2 issues, this is the first misstep of the series, but I would say it was a pretty minor one. Read it!

Moon Knight #10- Wooh! I thought this series was good before but I didn’t know what I was saying because this issue made the previous few issues looked like crap! Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Greg Smallwood made magic as they dove into Moon Knight like never before, including how Marc Spector’s problems began all the way from his childhood. This is a must-read people; read it! 

Comics this week

Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #2- I have to say this to writer Joshua Williamson; he knows how to mix things up. A fight between the Justice League Vs Suicide Squad should, on paper, be a simple thing but Williamson put enough spin on things that it made the final outcome plausible. Yes, Enchantress against Superman loos kooky but overall, the fight works. I especially like the fact that Williamson made no bones about the fact that Amanda Waller may be the Big Bad in this story as even Maxwell Lord’s team has a rightful bone to pick with her. In short, #2 is the same as #1. The story is much better than expected!

Monstress #9- Anyone who thinks his family is dysfunctional will think otherwise after reading this issue. Flashbacks have been a part of this series from the beginning but we never seem much of Maika and her mother together. We do now. Many characters had told Maika that her mother deserved to die and we could now see their point of view. More importantly, writer Marjorie M. Liu and artist Sana Takeda made us sympathised with these characters and glad the bitch is dead. Considering how the series thus far has been about Maika chasing after the legacy of her mother, that took guts. Another great issue in this series!  

Comics this week

Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #1- I went into this with low expectations despite DC advertising this as the first major DC crossover since Rebirth. I was pleasantly surprised. The idea of Justice League vs. Suicide Squad is simple. Batman and the JL have discovered that Amanda Waller is running a covert assassination squad comprised of their enemies, and they intend to put a stop to it. Writer Joshua Williamson’s story is pretty by the book but he did the job. He seems to have a good handle on the characterises of both teams, but what really impress me in this issue is the art. Artist Jason Fabok was excellent. His detailed and cinematic style was perfect for this. Good start!

Spider-Gwen #15- The Christmas issue, but a good Christmas? Yes, there’s such a thing as writer Jason Latour and artist Robbi Rodriguez show Gwen and cast at Christmas and how the holidays affects them all. I must say this Matt Murdock is growing on me as Latour shows him putting his pieces in place and some small history of the character. The Western Sun of the Hand? The Kingpin of Crime? Friends with benefits with Superior Cindy Moon? Current the boss of Spider-Gwen? Now this is one character I want to read more of!

Trinity #4- This series has been good in a very surprising way. Whereas in the past, this team-up has always due to world-shattering event, writer Francis Manapul is going the other way here by having a low-key and introspective examinations of the 3 characters and what makes them tick. More importantly, he showed what them tick with each other! I can understand why some people think this series is slow and dull and if you are looking for high-action fisticuffs, this is not for you. However for an in-depth look at the Trinity, this is the series you want.  

Comics this week

Jessica Jones #3- Writer Brian Michael Bendis has made no bones about the fact this Jessica Jones series is a continuation of his Alias series. With this issue, he proved the series will be much more than that. Civil War II may be one of the worst Marvel crossover events in recent memory but Bendis seems willing to go back to that disaster to mine new stories. The re-introduction of the Alison character from Civil War II is a little jarring but the interplay between Jessica and Alison and how well Alison read Jessica saved the return of the character. Another interesting character into the mix that is Jessica Jones.  

Motor Girl #2- Just when we thought we got the main character figured out, writer and artist, Terry Moore, pull a shock on us by implying that Samantha Mooney's delusion may just be that; delusions! Instead of aliens who stop by the junkyard for quick repairs, this could be just the delusions of a very damaged woman. Where is the line between delusions and reality for Samantha Mooney? I don’t know but I will be here to find out.

Superwoman #5- Some comics are the sum of all their parts; some are not. Superwoman is a title that falls into the latter category. There’s a lot going on and writer Phil Jimenez tried to give everyone a moment to shine but…well, there’s almost too much goings on! Jimenez need to focus on Lana’s role as Superwoman and saved space for the main character. I mean we never even seem the end of the issue where Lana lost the battle! If Jimenez could focus more on Lana, this series would be so much better. 

Comics this week

Champions #3- After 2 issues of setup, which exactly works very well, who would have thought the Champions’ first mission would be so “meh”. Writer Mark Waid tried to set the tone of the issue with political commentary in a more realistic world setting, but it was honestly poor. I have no problem with comics coming straight out against social issues (see my review of the latest issue of Ms. Marvel) but having a bunch of American kids and a robot going halfway around the world to defend 1 small village so that the women and girls there could have education is just too ridiculous even for comics. What? The Champions can’t find any problems to solve closer to home?

Justice League #10- After some many missteps, writer Bryan Hitch finally got it right. This issue wasn’t great but it was fun. Hitch threw the kitchen sink at readers this issue and it worked. This was a goofy issue with some fun twists in the midst of it. Hopefully, this is a sign of better things to come.

Moon Knight #9- Sometimes the setup is so good, the payoff must be great to make it worthwhile. Unfortunately for writer Jeff Lemire, this issue was just merely good. On its own, this is a very good issue but considering how great the previous issue was, it just pale in comparison. Yes, Warren Ellis and Jeff Lemire had spoilt us. Artists Wilfredo Torres, Francesco Francavilla, and James Stokoe, all did stellar work that enhanced the story. Each of them did one of many iterations of Marc Spector and it works! Good issue! 

Comics this week

Deadly Class #24- Writer Rick Remender took a huge risk a few issues ago by killing almost all the main cast. With this issue, I am beginning to see why he did so. With the new cast, Remender could go back to the first few issues of the series when Marcus and gang were all freshmen. Marcus and his crew may not be around anymore, except for Saya of course, but with the new freshmen, Remender could restart the cycle and at the same time also show the intrigue and politics of the student body of the second year students. In many ways, this is a setup issue but it is a great setup issue. Read it!

Monstress #8- What’s there to say about the art of this series that hadn’t been said before? Nothing because artist Sana Takeda did another stellar job this issue that’s par for course for her. Her work isn’t just influenced by Japanese anime but by Japanese art and it is very refreshing. Writer Marjorie M. Liu’s story and world-building is good but Sana’s work is just great. Pick this series up!

Ms. Marvel #13- Between writer Gail Willow Wilson and artist Mirka Adolpha, this issue managed to do a most strange thing; it made the superhero heroic without having to do any of the usual superhero stuff. This issue had Kamala running around the city trying to get people to vote. I think this must be an American thing because of the recent election. Not a bad issue, but you most probably need to be an America to fully understand it.

Comics this week

Spider-Gwen #14- What happened? The first half of this issue was excellent with Matt Murdock finally making a play to make good his deal with Gwen. Then…the art went to shit. I had said several times I do not agree with Marvel’s use of duel artists on an issue and this issue is Exhibit A on why. The difference in style between artists Robbi Rodriguez and Chris Visions is so huge, for a moment I thought there was a printing error. It was just terrible and that’s bad because writer Jason Latour threw the kitchen in this issue with a guest star from Jessica Drew and showing how awesome of a villain Matt Murdock would make. Too bad about the art switch.