Damaged #1 – Review

by David Lapham (writer), Leonardo Manco (art), Kinsun Loh, Jerry Choo, & Sansan Saw (colors), and Todd Klein (letters)

The Story:  Old-timer police captain Frank Lincoln, on his way out, realizes that his little brother Henry has returned, determined to bathe the streets in criminal blood.

What’s Good:  There are certain things in storytelling, particularly genre storytelling, that simply works time in and time out.  This is particularly the case with crime comics, and Damaged certainly hangs tight on numerous tropes.  For instance, we get the haggard, world-weary detective and we match him up with the young, bright-eyed newbie.  We’ve also got the gritty narration by said old-timer and, naturally, the Mayor and the higher ups in the police force are jerks.  It’s all sort of familiar, which naturally limits how good this comic can be.  However, it also limits just how bad it can be as well.  Reading Damaged at times feels like putting on an old, favourite shoe.  It’s  unremarkable, but it’s also comfortable.  If you like crime comics at all, you won’t have any strong dislike for Damaged.

Certainly, David Lapham does do some things quite well.  The narration by Frank Lincoln, politically unpopular police captain, is well executed and full of exactly the sort of downcast mood and atmosphere you’d hope for in a comic like this.  Indeed, Frank’s voice is strong enough that the narrated pages end up being some of the book’s strongest.  The tableside political banter between the mayor, the police department’s higher-ups, and the new recruit is also well done and feels natural and, again, comfortable.

Uncanny X-Force: The Apocalypse Sollution HC – Review

Written by Rick Rememder, Art by Jerome Opena with Leonard Manco, colors by Dean White and Chris Sotomayor, cover art by Esad Ribic.

The Story: Though Cyclops has ended X-Force, Wolverine and Archangel decide to continue operations, bringing in Deadpool, Psylocke, and Fantomex. Their first mission? Kill Apocalypse! As if this would be hard enough, the team has to deal with the fact that Apocalypse is now a small boy.

The Review: Some stories work better as trades. Some work better as monthlies. But rarely does a story work  well in both forms. That’s what The Apocalypse Solution has managed to do—be amazing as a monthly series, and yet be equally as awesome as a graphic novel. Based on this first arc, it’s a shame that Remender didn’t get an Eisner nomination. This is superhero storytelling at its finest. Every character gets to shine, the villains are interesting and dynamic, and while it’s not all about Wolverine, it also doesn’t undercut his character. This first arc was truly about the entire team, how they function, and what it means for each of them to be there. And about killing Apocalypse. That’s important too.

What benefits this story greatly is the length. Remender said in many interviews that this started as a six-issue arc—as the seems to be mandated by Marvel to produce trades—but he cut out all the fat and everything that wasn’t necessary to create four issues of pure substance. That’s what Marvel needs to have all their writers do (I’m looking at you, Fraction).  There is not a wasted panel here. Everything is crucial to the development of the characters and/or the plot.  Even when we’re introduced to the Final Hoursemen of Apocalypse, Remender develops them fully for us as we watch Apocalypse and Nostradamus  go through history choosing them, and then give us nuggets of their story after. It’s clear that they are not simply four horsemen, but have a dynamic as a team. Sanjar (Death), even uses Pestilence’s name when he accidentally attacks her, asking her to forgive him. Rarely are the horseman of Apocalypse shown to have any sympathy or remorse, but here we get it—hopefully we’ll see them again.

Remender also pulls a trick on us. He makes us believe that this is a test for Archangel. In the beginning of issue 2, the team (minus our winged hero) is training Psylocke to be able to Warren, her boyfriend, if he is ever fully taken over by Apocalypse again. All throughout the arc, we see Angel struggling with the Archangel. But we also get a lot of Deadpool, Psylocke, and, especially, Fantomex. I don’t want to ruin the ending for anyone, but this is just as much Fantomex’s story as it is Archangel’s—maybe more so. And we have Wolverine in the middle, the glue of this team. Oddly, this works. You wouldn’t expect Wolverine to be able to hold together the Avengers, but when it comes to this team, he knows what each member needs.

Dark Reign: New Nation #1 – Review

Some Thoughts Before The Review: What it all comes down to regarding Dark Reign: New Nation is whether or not you feel comfortable plunking down about four bucks for what amounts to a handful of extended previews — some of which you already may have seen a bit of in last week’s Dark Reign one-shot (Marvel calls them prologues, but let’s be realistic here). I, for one, decided to take the plunge on the assumption that, in the long run, I would probably be saving myself a bit of cash. Since it would be a bit unfair to judge each story in the one-shot as I normally would an entire comic I will instead give a few thoughts about each and then give a grade to the overall package as a whole.

Secret Warriors: Declaration

By Brian Michael Bendis & Jonathan Hickman (Writers), Stefano Caselli (Art), and Daniele Rudoni (Colors)

Of all the books launching during Dark Reign, I believe Secret Warriors has the most potential. Though, to be honest, the creative team actually draws me to the title more than the concept. Jonathan Hickman’s past works have been quite outstanding and the art team of Stefano Caselli and Daniele Rudoni made Avengers: The Initiative one of the most visually impressive books month in and month out. With all that said, the prologue to Secret Warriors definitely leaves something to be desired. While the artwork looks great, there really isn’t a whole lot to chew on. Nick Fury visits a memorial to Captain America and reflects on the ways Cap is one of the inspirations behind the team of “caterpillars.” That’s about it. While I will still be checking out the series when it launches, the prologue doesn’t consist of anything likely to draw in those that aren’t already interested.

Agents of Atlas: The Heist

By Jeff Parker (Writer), Carlo Pagulayan (Pencils), Jason Paz (Inks), and Jana Schirmer (Colors)

Great looking artwork and an intriguing concept are definitely the highlights of the Agents of Atlas prologue. While I’ve never read the Agents mini-series from 2007, I can easily see the appeal of such an offbeat group of characters. The purpose and information gained from the titular heist does a nice job of building (or creating) interest for a series that is probably going to end up being overlooked by many.

War Machine: Crossing the Line

By Greg Pak (Writer), Leonardo Manco (Art), and Jay David Ramos (Colors)

War Machine’s encounter with someone from his past does a nice job of establishing the character’s mindset and his new place in the Marvel universe. While I’m not exactly sure if War Machine is a series I would follow, the impressive visuals and fairly complete story make “Crossing the Line” the most satisfying prologue in the book.

Skrull Kill Krew: Breakfast in America

By Adam Felber (Writer), Paulo Siqueira (Pencils & Inks), Amilton Santos (Inks), and Chris Sotomayor (Colors)

The Krew’s appearance and subsequent path of destruction in Avengers: The Initiative was one of the more memorable things to happen during Secret Invasion. Now the question is whether or not the fun and brutally over-the-top nature that made the Krew so much fun during the event can be successfully carried over into a new mini-series helmed by a brand new creative team after it. If the cow slaughter in “Breakfast in America” is any indication, it can (and quite easily, I might add).

New Avengers: The Reunion: Suspicion

By Jim McCann (Writer), David Lopez (Pencils), Alvardo Lopez (Inks), and Daniele Rudoni (Colors)

I found The Reunion prologue to be the weakest of the bunch but, the again, I’m not part of the target audience. Since I have no emotional investment in either Hawkeye or Mockingbird, I am pretty much indifferent to the whole mini-series. While the artwork looks nice enough and the storyline definitely has some hooks, I am now actually less interested in The Reunion now I was prior to reading the prologue.

Conclusion: Dark Reign: New Nation serves up a nice taste of the new Marvel offerings, but it is far from essential. Just know what you are getting into if you choose to buy it. I found it to be worthwhile, especially considering that it helped establish my level of interest towards a few things. That said, the price point does sting a bit now that I’ve thought about it a bit more.

Grade: B-

-Kyle Posluszny