Ms. Marvel #37 (Dark Reign) – Review

By Brian Reed (Writer), Patrick Oliffe (Pencils), Serge LaPointe and Livesay (Inks), and Chris Sotomayor (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: I’ve been a fan of the Ms. Marvel series for a while now, but the “Ascension” arc has left me pretty disappointed. It started off rather strong, but it quickly became unnecessarily convoluted as the twists and turns piled up. I still have hope for a strong finish however, so let me just get to the review.

The Story: Carol Danvers, using the powers that could be killing her, confronts a super-powered Ghazi Rashid to end things once and for all. And it does not end well. Dark Reign indeed.

What’s Good: I’m now glad that I stuck with the series despite my growing frustration with the current arc. The fight between Danvers and Rashid is suitably epic, features some strong character work, and ends in a fairly surprising manner. On top of that, the twists and turns surrounding “Ascension” manage to wrap up in a satisfying, somewhat incomplete, manner.

What’s Not So Good: It really bothers me when a good comic is held back by artwork that just doesn’t seem suitable for the action or story it features. The visuals in Ms. Marvel #37 just aren’t up to the task of revealing Carol Danvers’ fate. At times sloppy, at times rushed, and at times just plain inadequate, the character (and series) deserves better. That said, Oliffe and his team do a pretty good job when things slow down, so it’s not all negative.

Conclusion: With some good and some bad, the latest issue of Ms. Marvel stays above average thanks to a fairly surprising event and effective character work. I can’t help but wonder how much better things might have been with a different art team at the helm…but what can you do? It will be interesting to see where the series will go from here.

Grade:  C+

-Kyle Posluszny

Amazing Spider-Man #573 – Review

By Dan Slott, Mark Waid (writers), John Romita Jr., Patrick Olliffe (pencils), Klaus Janson, Serge LaPointe (inks), Dean White, Rain Beredo (colors)

The Story: Anti-Venom and Spidey have their showdown with Green Goblin and the Thunderbolts. When the fight kicks into high gear (within the confides of Oscorp no less), the layers begin to peel back and the connection between the Chinese immigrants (last seen in part 1 of this story arc) and the Osborn family is revealed. You get all this and a surprise back-up story by Mark Waid featuring Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central’s Colbert Report for $3.99.

What’s Good? Aunt May getting owned by Mr. Negative is ridiculously funny for all the wrong reasons. Besides, she should be dead anyway.

John Romita shows off his dazzling ability to show ferocity with battles taking place on two fronts. We get lots of big panels, lots of action lines, and tons of dynamic action. This is par for Romita, who excels at this kind of stuff, and it’s this effortless storytelling that makes this comic so good. Having Pat Olliffe return to draw a Spider-Man story is a nice touch, too.

Dan Slott writes fun and hammy dialogue and does his best to tie up loose ends while adding to the intrigue of Harry’s disappearance and his “other life”. The Thunderbolts may be wolves in sheeps’ clothing, but there’s a nice honorable moment here that shows that some of these guys aren’t beyond redemption.

What’s Not So Good? Dan Slott’s dialogue is a bit “too hammy” at times. Spidey saying, “You-you-you suck,” is straying into Ultimates 3 territory. There also seems to be more questions created from this arc than answers. It’s frustrating. Spider-Man completely owns the Green Goblin so easily is feels out of place. The guy barely put up a fight! Lily’s sudden feelings for Peter is way too forced.

I love Stephen Colbert, but the back up story isn’t as funny as it should be. It’s not that the story is bad – it’s silly and cheesy, that’s for sure – but completely unnecessary. I’d rather pay $2.99 and not have the back up story than pay a dollar extra for this. This story would be better served in an Amazing Spider-Man Annual than in a regular issue.  

Conclusion: At $3.99, this issue stings. The final chapter does a good job of delivering the goods, but the newer plot points introduced is making Brand New Day feel a bit too convoluted. We need answers before more plot is introduced.

Grade: B

– J. Montes

Wolverine: Killing Made Simple #1 – Review

Christopher Yost, Todd Dezago (writers), Koi Turnbull, Steve Kurth (pencils), Sal Regla, Serge Lapointe (inks), Beth Sotelo, Joel Seguin (colors) Cory Petit (letters)

How would you go about killing Wolverine if that scenario ever came up? I can tell you this: without special powers you’re screwed. Killing Wolverine attempts to answer this age old question and is a “close but no cigar” book for me. What’s shown is creative and interesting, but ultimately misses that something “special” to make it a must buy.

Chris Yost’s story is all about Wolverine’s healing factor and how it can be beat. His dialogue for Logan is great – it’s blunt, cynical, and to the point – I just wish the parts about him dying tied better into the story. It seems like we can’t have a Wolverine story without a mention of the magic sword that can kill him. Thankfully it’s not the focal point here. Metal poisoning (without his healing factor), being shot into the sun, and decapitation (with the sword), are among the list of ways to kill Wolverine. Logan talks about it like it’s common knowledge which is a nice touch. Sadly, Yost’s offering is too light on story.

Todd Dezago’s Disturbing Consequences is a nice quick end to the book. Here, Logan is sent to investigate a secret facility some government lost contact with. From there it’s a cool looking fight with the infected sole-survivor from an experiment gone wrong. I wish elaborate more on the details, but that’s really it! The mission is a favor, but for whom? What were these guys studying? And most importantly, what would these people have done if Wolverine’s healing factor didn’t cure the virus?

Koi Turnbull has the stronger pencils in my eyes. A dead or dying Wolverine is always interesting to see because he’s rarely in that kind of danger. The nastiest image has Wolverine’s body de-aged and then trying to repair itself. It’s one panel, but it looks every bit as horrible as Yost’s description. Steve Kurth draws an awesome fight. It’s always cool to see Wolverine fight another savage with his feral instincts.

Killing Wolverine is a fun read, I’ll admit that. However, neither story feels as full or satisfying as it could, so it’s hard to justify the four bucks with so many other better titles out there. If you’re tight on cash you might want to pass on it, but hardcore Wolvie fans or those with some extra dough may want to give it a shot. (Grade: B-)

– Ben Berger

Spider-Man: Brand New Day – Extra!! #1 – Review

By Joe Kelly, Zeb Wells and Marc Guggenheim (writers), Chris Bachalo, Pat Olliffe, and Marcos Martin (pencils/colors/art), Tim Townsend and Serge LaPointe (inks), Antonio Fabela, Rain Beredo, Javier Rodriguez (colors)

This feels like an annual more than anything – but with longer stories. Spider-Man: Brand New Day – Extra!! is essentially a packed, double-sized issue consisting of three stories that revolve around Brand New Day related characters or plots. Maybe Spidey’s “brain trust” of writers finally realized that some of the under-developed subplots needed more attention. If that’s the case, then they’re correct. It’s quite silly how a near weekly title can lag so badly on its multiple subplots but it has. And while these stories aren’t resolved in this issue, they certainly serve as a nice primer of what’s to come down the line.

Story #1: Hammerhead
One of the sillier Spider-Man villains, Hammerhead, finally gets his past unwrapped by Joe Kelly with Chris Bachalo on art chores. As usual, Bachalo’s art is beautiful and his storytelling awful. The monochromatic choice of colors also works against the story. I understand why the choice was made (there’s lots of blood spilled), but the gray tones hamper the story due to the fact that (at many times) it’s hard to distinguish who’s who. Still, while the fleshing out of Hammerhead’s character is an odd choice, it’s well presented. The way Mr. Negative enters the scene and changes everything reminds me of Frank Miller’s Robocop 2. Anyone else feel that way?

Story #2: Harry Osborn’s Birthday
Let’s face it. Ever since Harry Osborn’s returned to Peter Parker’s world he’s been nothing short of a douche. I prefer the older Harry, but whatever, we’re stuck with this one. The story starts off a little hammy, and if you look closely, you might even catch an (almost) sexual joke regarding Peter getting some gunk in his hair. As you can expect, things start off with Harry in usual douche mode, but by the end he surprisingly redeems himself. Zeb Wells does a good job turning this story around and displaying the comradery between Peter and Harry. Pat Olliffe is the perfect vehicle for this pedestrian tale and it really makes me miss the fun work he did on Spider-Girl.

Story #3: Spider-Man on Trial
Finally! Spider-Man goes to trial for the Spider-Tracer killing! And who better to represent him than Matt Murdock. Marc Guggenheim goes into Eli Stone mode with this story, throwing out laws, codes, and legal jargon that’ll either have you interested or bored out of your mind. This story is completely dialogue driven and Marcos Martin does a wonderful job keeping the story rolling and fresh. I didn’t like how things were overcolored at times (let’s face it, Martin’s art looks better with flat colors), but we can’t win ’em all. The story is actually not predictable, and the way it concludes has left me wanting more. Can’t wait to see what happens next.

At $3.99, this book’s worth every penny especially when you compare it to similarly priced books from the Marvel line (Spider-Man: With Great Power, anyone?) – no silly cardstock covers or gimmicks – just good stories. Check this book out, and don’t let the awful Greg Land cover deter you. (Grade: A-)

– J. Montes