Thunderbolts #158 – Review

By: Jeff Parker (writer), Kev Walker (art), Frank Martin, Jr. (colors), Albert Deschesne (letters), Rachel Pinnelas (assistant editor) & Tom Brennan (editor)

The Story: Fear Itself comes to the Thunderbolts.

What’s Good: Well, it makes more sense why Juggernaut got booted off the team a few issues ago, huh?  I have to hand it to Parker for handling this so effortlessly because I’m sure he didn’t say, “Why don’t you just take one of my main characters for your little event?  Great idea!” but he came up with a very seamless way to make Juggernaut available to Matt Fraction and the main Fear Itself story.

In addition to the tight integration with Fear Itself, this is another fun and solid issue of Thunderbolts where you get a LOT of bang for you buck.  In just this issue, Parker wraps up the “Underbolts” mission to Iraq, recaps the Juggernaut centric bits of Fear Itself #2 and establishes the problem facing the Thunderbolts/Underbolts team up when they return to the Raft.

Parker does a great job of maintaining the dynamic of tension on this team.  This title would lose its appeal pretty fast if you ever forgot that these characters are villains.  Now suddenly, Songbird, Mach V and Fixer are facing the prospect of leading this team of criminals into battle on the Raft when they may have very questionable control over them.  The Underbolts clearly appreciate that if they’d just stayed in jail, they would be free right now.  What’s ironic is that it makes the reader think that the Tbolts like Ghost and Moonstone are somehow “reliable”, but I’m sure they’ll be pretty tempted to pick up and run too.  Can’t wait for next issue.

Weekly Comic Book Review’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: American Vampire #15 – Wowie!  What a strong week for comics: AV #15, Detective #877, Butcher Baker #3, Walking Dead #85, Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #6….  When there is a murderer’s row of comics like that, I tend to break the tie by which comic was the most memorable and this week is was AV #15.  This series is showing NO signs of letting up and there is no excuse to not be reading this excellent series that hasn’t had a single grade lower than B+ during it’s run.  Snyder’s script of U.S. Marine/Vampire Hunters on a Japanese held island during WWII coming into contact with some funky and feral vampires really gives Rafael Albuquerque a chance to show off.  Wow.  Runner-up: Butcher Baker #3

Most Anticipated: Criminal: Last of the Innocent #1 – A LOT of anticipated books this week, so I’m going to go with one that is least likely to let me down.  I don’t think I’ve ever read a poor issue of Criminal.  Even when the story isn’t grabbing me, it is always noirish as hell and has great art by the Sean Phillips/Val Staples team.  Comics would be better (and taken more seriously by other adults )if we had fewer Batman, X-Men and Flashpoint titles and more comics like Criminal.

Other Picks: 50 Girls 50 #1, Haunt #16, Turf #5, Fear Itself #3, SHIELD #1, Who is Jake Ellis #4, Thunderbolts #158

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Mighty Thor #2 – Everything really just came together this week for Matt Fraction’s Thor.  Tone-wise and character-wise everything was in place and I felt that we were now getting a Thor book that not only more forged ahead than rode JMS’ coat-tails, but also one that I could see continuing for years to come.  That alone is praise enough, but when you factor in Olivier Coipel’s fantastic art and my love of Thor, well, this is an easy choice for me.

Most Anticipated: Fear Itself #3 – It was neck and neck between Fear Itself and the first issue of the new Criminal.  Yeah, I know, the two books couldn’t be any more different. But I went with Fear Itself (*boo* *hiss*, I know) because, much like Flashpoint, it’s an event that’s succeeded in making me excited and wanting to read more.  Granted, that’s for entirely different reasons than Flashpoint.  For Fear Itself, it’s because this looks like an event that actually puts story first, and not status quo changing events or stuffing as many characters and as much flashy action on the page as possible.  So yeah, with Fraction’s promising a major event/twist in the story with every issue, I’m really curious to see what he’s got coming up this Wednesday. But wait….Flashpoint #2 is coming out as well?  Well…um….I’ll go with Fear Itself because….I’m the one reviewing it?

Other Picks: Criminal: Last of the Innocent #1,  Flashpoint #2, Secret Six #34, Amazing Spider-Man #663, Moon Knight #2, SHIELD #1, Uncanny X-Force #11, Sweet Tooth #22

DS’ Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Kirby Genesis #0 – The third installment of Carbon Grey was a strong contender, with a wild story and great art, but there was an irrepressible exuberance to Kirby Genesis #0 that really felt like I was watching something great being revealed. Kirby’s bursting creativity has been gone for a long time, but his inheritors are giving his works life again.

Most Anticipated: X-Men #12 – This is the second installment of the Evolutionaries story that began in Giant-Size X-Men #1 and left us on a cliff-hanger as Scott remembered an encounter with these genetic shepherds way in the past of the original X-Men. I’m eager to see where Yost is taking this high-concept piece and loving the art.

Other Picks: Criminal: Astonishing X-Men #39, Dark Tower: The Gunslinger – The Battle of Tull #1, Ozma of Oz #7, Uncanny X-Force #11, X-23 #11