Captain Marvel #14 – Review

By: Kelly Sue DeConnick (story), Scott Hepburn & Gerardo Sandoval (art), Andy Troy (colors)

The Story: Yon-Rogg tries to make a metropolis sandwich—with his mind.

The Review: As we wind down on the biggest and most important arc on this series thus far, it’s become increasingly clear that Captain Marvel launched without much more of a goal than to boost the titular heroine’s profile in the Marvel U.  There’s no denying she deserves it—needs it, even.  But it takes more than an ongoing series to bolster a character’s popularity.  It takes a cohesive vision from the creators and a total love and understanding of their star.

I’m not sure we’ve really gotten that from this title, if both its steadily declining sales and shortage of critical acclaim say anything.  After ten issues, you can’t say that you’ve grown more attached to Carol, nor do you have a much better handle on what makes her tick than before.  DeConnick has established her as strong-minded, compassionate, occasionally snarky—but how does that set her apart from all other Marvel women?  Sadly, you find her second banana, the wisecracking, compulsive eater Spider-Woman, more compelling than Carol herself.

Spider-Woman #1 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Alex Maleev (art), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: Jessica Drew gets recruited by S.W.O.R.D., heading to Madripoor for her first mission to find a Super-Skrull.

What’s Good: In my opinion, this is some of Maleev’s best work.  It’s just gorgeous, gorgeous stuff, sporting photorealistic detail not only in the photo-referenced Jessica Drew, but also in the often very intricate backgrounds.  Even faraway buildings are laden with little windows and cracks.  However, Maleev’s work here is not just that of a detail workaholic; there’s also a tremendous sense of a style here, an odd blend of gritty film noir and dark superhero science fiction unafraid to getting a little creative or abstract.

Maleev also shows outstanding shading and use of color.  He often illuminates an environment by making certain items stand out, such as in a simply gorgeous scene involving Jessica’s yellow umbrella.  He also makes use of his colors and shading to give the best sense of lighting that I’ve seen in a comic in a long time.  A dark room is cloudy and mysterious.  A rainy day is murky and noirish, but oddly romantic.  A night in Madripoor is dense and seedy.  A sunset on the water in southeast Asia is autumnal glory.  The weather and lighting of every scene dramatically changes how the comic looks.  Only enhancing this are Jessica’s powers, which add a weird, sci-fi glow into the mix.

Maleev makes the choice to use a model for Jessica, but it’s a total success, with Jessica coming off as completely natural.  Her looking so life-like actually made me connect with her more.  While not referencing the other characters makes Jessica stand out, it’s appropriate, as this book is about Jessica, front and centre in her isolation.

So far, Bendis is also doing his job well.  It’s clear that he’s in love with this character, and he establishes quickly a very unique, recognizable, and nuanced voice, weighed with a ton of baggage but not without a rye sense of humor that smacks of his work on “Powers.”  This comic mostly works on establishing that voice, and it’s mostly a success; I can say Jessica has a voice all her own and that after this issue, I feel like I’ve gotten to know her a little better.  It’s a very close, intimate comic book, at times claustrophic in its introspection.

When Bendis focuses on her paranoia and her obsessive-compulsive habits, she is at her most human. When she comments on the dirtiness of her hotel bed, she’s instantly likable, almost a friend.  Abigail Brand is also a promising character that I look forward to seeing more of, acting as a more wisened, “been there before,” guide figure.

What’s Not So Good: This comic is a real downer.  In fact, it may be the biggest downer Marvel’s putting out right now.  That’s not a bad thing at all, but Bendis is walking a fine line here with Jessica’s self-loathing.  Her considering suicide was one of the high-points of the book, but I could do without some of the throwaway, snide little remarks within the narration.  I get that Jessica hates herself, but a little more subtlety could’ve been exercised.  Does she really need to use every available opportunity within her narration to throw a little jab or insult against herself?  Towards the end of the book, in Madripoor, it began to feel a little much, bordering on contrived.

Conclusion:  An artistic master-piece with deeply introspective writing.  This is the definition of promising.

Grade: B+

-Alex Evans

Astonishing X-Men #27 – Review

By Warren Ellis (Writer), Simone Bianchi (Pencils & Ink Washes), Andrea Silvestri (Ink Washes), and Simone Peruzzi (Colorist)

The Story: The mystery surrounding the now deceased Subject X and the strange electronic box grows deeper as the X-Men work to unlock whatever secrets may be held. The investigation winds up involving Agent Abigail Brand from S.W.O.R.D. and a five mile chunk of land in China that’s considered to be an intelligence dead zone.

What’s Good: Warren Ellis is slowly, but surely, unraveling one hell of a science fiction story with his first Astonishing arc. By allowing the reader to learn things only as the team does, Ellis ensures that each issue leaves you wanting more. It works extremely well, and makes for a fairly dense read. This is why it helps to have so much character work and entertaining (sometimes hilarious) dialogue throughout the book. The story could easily become overwhelming without the witty exchanges helping make everything a bit more digestible for those new to Warren Ellis’ style of science fiction.

What’s Not So Good: The artwork and, in a minor way, the pacing. I honestly can’t think of another series that hits such artistic highs and lows within the same issue. For every gorgeous or cool looking scene, there are others that look far too muddy. For every great character shot, there are facial expressions that are absolutely ridiculous or totally inappropriate (for the given scene). It’s the very definition of hit or miss and, quite frankly, this story deserves better.

As for the pacing, I only mention it because all the fun character work does little to actually advance the plot. Normally, I wouldn’t even bother mentioning it because I happen to enjoy Ellis’ banter quite a bit, but some may find the story already moving slow enough without all the added team moments.

Conclusion: An extremely entertaining chapter in what is quickly becoming a fantastic sci-fi story. The only thing holding this one back is the inconsistent artwork, but what damage it does is far from critical. This one’s worth it for the story alone.

Grade: B+

-Kyle Posluszny

Secret Invasion: Who Do You Trust? #1 – A Review

Secret Invasion: Who Do You Trust? is an anthology, gathering together vignettes that concern the Secret Invasion, but didn’t fit in any of the regular books. As anthologies have always been since the first publisher crawled from the Precambrian sea, it’s an uneven mix—with A-listers, B-listers, and some folks I didn’t think were on any list at all.

Going from worst to best (IMHO):

Marvel Boy: Master of the Cube by Zeb Wells (Writer) and Steve Kurth & Drew Hennessey (Artists)
Who is this guy? Seriously. I first encountered him in the Young Avengers/Runaways miniseries. I didn’t like him then, and this story gives me no reason to reassess my opinion. For a character with the stupidest name and the ugliest costume in the Marvel Universe, he sure has a more-badass-than-thou attitude. The Skrulls invade the superhuman detention center—the Cube—that Marvel Boy has taken over, and Marvel Boy fights back. That’s the whole story.

Agents of ATLAS: The Resistance by Jeff Parker (Writer) and Leonard Kirk & Karl Kesel (Artists)
The 1950’s Avengers versus the Skrulls. A minor skirmish, but I enjoyed the contrast of these stupid old characters in a desperate modern setting. The best thing about this story is that the Agents hand the aliens their heads (in one case, literally). With the rest of the Marvel superheroes getting their asses kicked right now, it’s a nice change of pace.

Agent Brand: In Plain Sight by Mike Carey (Writer) and Timothy Green III (Artist)
This is a relatively subtle piece, one that requires a little thought… and when you think, you remember that the Trojan Horse is from the Odyssey, not the Iliad… but no matter. Like Hawkeye, I dig a woman with green hair and lips. Agent Brand, agent of SWORD, is assigned to the Peak, to watch over the various alien ambassadors stationed there, and she knows something is up with that shifty Skrull, but she just can’t figure out what it is. Until, of course, it’s too late.

Captain Marvel: Farewell by Brian Reed (Writer) and Lee Weeks (Artist)
This story is basically a bridge to the Secret Invasion from the Captain Marvel miniseries, and it has the same feel, the same moral ambiguity. Captain Marvel (who, as we learned in the mini-series, is actually just a Skrull who thinks he’s Captain Marvel) tells the Skrull army he wants to help their invasion by taking on the Thunderbolts. What are his real motivations? Does he want to do the right thing? And even if his intentions are good, will he end up making things better, or worse?

Wonder Man and the Beast: Seems Like Old Times by Christos N. Gage (Writer) and Mike Perkins (Artist)
This one harkens way back to when David Michelinie was writing the Avengers. During the Skrull/Avenger/dinosaur fight, Wonder Man and the Beast are separated from the others, and have to fight their way out of a cave filled with King-Kong-style giant insects. The problem is, it’s the modern Wonder Man, but the old, pointy-haired, devil-may-care Beast from the 80’s, and either one of them could be a Skrull. While the Beast takes this all in stride, Wonder Man’s discomfort is apparent from the beginning. He misses his old buddy, but he can’t trust him. Unlike most of the others in this anthology, this story doesn’t lead into anything bigger. It just takes two interesting characters and puts them in a unique situation that causes them to play off one another. Which is what every good vignette should do.

(Grade: B)

– Andrew C. Murphy