Quick Hit Reviews Week of Feb. 16, 2011

Some weeks it is just insane how many comics get published.  Despite the intrepid efforts of our writing staff here at WCBR, we simply can’t do a full review of every comic.  Thus, we bring you the quick-hit reviews where we say a few words about some comics that were pretty darn good and some others that are not so much…

Silver Surfer #1 – The story here is pretty good stuff.  It isn’t the best story ever regarding the Surfer, but a very solid story involving Earthly affairs with a surprising guest starring role from the High Evolutionary.  This action seems to dovetail with the High Evolutionary story occurring in the Iron Man – Thor miniseries from Abnett & Lanning.  What really puts this issue over the top is the art.  Stephen Segovia and Victor Olazaba do an awesome job drawing and inking (especially inking) the Surfer and Wil Quintana contributes great cosmic colors.  I am trying to pare down my “non-essential” Marvel titles, but this display of art will probably have me sticking around.  Grade: A-  — Dean Stell

Wolverine & Jubilee #2 – This is a great series so far that casts Wolverine in his best role: as mentor to a younger hero.  Not only is this my favorite role for Wolverine, but it has always been the best way to bring new members into the X-universe.  Jubilee isn’t new, but she is in a new “role” as she adapts to her vampiric powers (which we learn more about in this issue).  Kathryn Immonen even works in some very funny bits such as Wolverine’s revelation that one can apparently get one’s tongue stuck to Colossus if it is really cold outside.  I DEMAND that that story be in the next Strange Tales!  This issue is also telling a neat story that shows Logan and Jubilee finding zombies in Siberia and it would have gotten a better grade if not for a wholly confusing final page.  Seriously, the final page made me wonder if there was a printing error and I’d missed something.  Phil Noto’s art is again wonderfully pretty.  He draws such pretty eyes on his women.  Grade: B+  — Dean Stell

Venom/Deadpool #1 – No character but Deadpool could pull off a comic like this, and I highly doubt that many writers other than Remender could have written it. This fourth-wall slaughtering romp through the Marvel U is a great deal of fun, with in-jokes, creative references and absurdity to spare. The artwork is big and bold (as well it should be for this kind of a tale) and the story itself–Deadpool is on a quest to find the Continuity Cube, thus making himself the single most relevant character in the Marvel Universe–is a very funny concept that both Remender and Moll execute very well. I must admit, I’m glad I bought the single, $2.99 comic rather than trying to piece together the four mini-chapters that were spread out over four different books. The story is good enough, and fun enough, that $2.99 feels just about right. Any more cost–or effort–than that would be a little much though, even for a ‘Pool-addict like myself.  Grade: B    — SoldierHawk

Justice League of America #54 – What a difference new art makes!  Bagley’s time on this title was pretty drab, but I really, REALLY like the work that Brett Booth is doing in this issue.  Booth’s classic figures (with a beautiful fine line from inker Norm Rapmund) combines really well with Andrew Dalhouse’s understated colors.  I so enjoy this muted color scheme to brilliant and shiny colors.  The story is pretty good too showing Eclipso coming “back” and beginning to recruit shadow-powered villains.  Very little actual JLA in this issue, but that’s fine.  Hopefully this is the arc where James Robinson’s turn on the series finds its footing.  Very promising.  Grade: B  — Dean Stell

Captain America: Man Out of Time #4 – This series continues to be a wonderful character showcase for Steve, and a more overarching look at his current relevance to the Marvel Universe. I especially like Cap’s being forced to face the less-savory parts of American history he’s missed (rather breezily–or perhaps, very calculatingly–passed over by Tony Stark’s version of the temporal tour.) I am and always will be a huge Tony Stark fan, so the contrast we see between his America, and General Simon’s America, was fascinating, and a lot of fun to read. My only complaint is that, in this issue especially (and mostly for the sake of pushing the story along), Steve seems awfully naive. I understand that both he and the 40s are supposed to represent a more innocent and morally straightforward time, but…c’mon. Cap’s a soldier. He fought the Nazis for crying out loud. He’s seen the absolute worst of what humanity has to offer…and he’s really THAT shocked by the fact that, yes, crime and Bad Things still exist in America today? I do understand why he might be disappointed, but Waid and company spend far too much time milking that for the sake of a larger message.  Grade: B-   — SoldierHawk

Quick Hit Reviews – Week of Jan 5, 2011

Here at WCBR we all have pretty extensive pull lists.  Every week, despite our best efforts, there are a few comics that get read, but don’t get the full review treatment.  Without further ado…

Avengers: The Childrens Crusade #4 – I’m enjoying this series as much as anything with an Avenger’s tag on it.  The big news is that the Scarlet Witch is back…. kinda.  The story is lots of fun as we have Wiccan trying to save his mother and the rest of the Young Avengers trying to save Wiccan, while Wolverine tries to kill Wanda, etc.  Just really good stuff.  Cheung’s art is also just top shelf material.  He draws a great Wolverine.  The only thing that has me a little concerned is that this is issue 4 out of 9.  With a bimonthly schedule, it’ll be done around November-ish.  So far, this title has been fun enough that the continuity alarm isn’t going off, but I wonder if they’ll be able to sustain that feeling once Marvel cycles through their next FEAR ITSELF event.  Grade: A- — Dean Stell

Thanos Imperative: Devastation #1 – I had mixed feelings going into this issue.  For all the bitching and moaning from fanboys over Marvel scaling down their cosmic franchise, I kinda felt it was time.  I enjoyed the cosmic stuff, but didn’t think the Thanos Imperative was setting the world on fire.  It was a fine miniseries, but nothing that screamed: You must continue to tell cosmic stories!!!!!  So, I figured this one-shot would be a kind of death-rattle for the cosmic line-up.  WRONG!  It was really awesome!  The basic story is that Cosmo the dog is carrying out the last wishes of Starlord (Peter Quill who died at the end of Thanos Imperative).  Peter had urged Cosmo to continue the Guardians of the Galaxy, but with heavy hitters and not the cast offs that the Guardians were.  So Cosmo ropes in Gladiator, Silver Surfer, Beta Ray Bill and a few other A-listers to form a few team.  I’m excited.  The only thing holding this issue back from getting an A was the art.  I just don’t think this is what Sepulveda was born to draw.  Grade: A- —  Dean Stell

Choker #5 – I quite enjoy the Bens (McCool and Templesmith) miniseries from Image and think it’ll be a great read in trade.  We’re really close to the final resolution of this series and while I’m (honestly) a little confused by some of the machinations going on and who is who, I’m still enjoying it. Templesmith’s art is just one of a kind and is perfect for this type of dark noir infused tale of steroids gone overboard.  The corpse vacuum even makes a return!   The thing hurting this series is the release schedule.  It’s not realistic to say, “they should have all 6 issues in the can before they solicit the comic at all” because the creators kinda need that cash flow to finance the creation of the next issue.  I just wish that the single issue buyers who are at least partially funding the creation of the art got a less punctuated reading experience than the folks who kept their money in their pocket and waited for the trade.  We should get a better experience than the folks who sat on their wallet, but we don’t.  That just seems backwards to me.  Grade: B — Dean Stell

Iron Man – Thor #3 – This comic was pretty good as we see Tony Stark trying to resist the High Evolutionary’s grand plan to make Tony a new “God” and then Thor gets into the act.  I think this would be fun if you just absolutely need more Thor or Iron Man in your life and Eaton’s art is really nice to look at.  The biggest negative for me in this issue is how the heck Diablo got powered up to the point where he could hang with Iron Man, Thor and the High Evolutionary.  He is a a career B-lister who got taken out by Black Cat a few months ago in ASM.  There’s nothing wrong with this comic, but it is an average Big 2 superhero comic.  Grade: C  — Dean Stell

Vampirella #1 – Review

By: Eric Trautman (writer), Wagner Reis (art), Marshall Dillon (letters) and Inlight Studio (colors)

The Story: Vampirella gets updated for a modern age and sets out to battle some problematic vampires.

What’s Good: The art is pretty good.  The characters all look good and appropriate.  No oddly proportioned bodies.  Everything is nice and dark and moody.  This art will work for this series.

What’s Not So Good: Pretty much everything else.  It isn’t bad per se, but the overall direction of this comic is a little troubling.  Do a Google image search on Vampirella.  Chances are you are going to get a lot of cheesecake.  So when you slap the name “Vampirella” on the cover and have cheesecake cover art, you have some expectations of getting the 1970’s style Archie Goodwin/Frank Frazetta goodness.  I wanted a slight amount of campiness and I wanted cheesecake from this title.  Instead what we are served under the deceiving cover is an okay female vigilante story.  Vampirella now wears normal clothing and is a vampire killer.  And there is nothing wrong with that, but they just shouldn’t call it Vampirella.  Of course, if they called it something else, it probably wouldn’t sell very well.

The biggest problem with this book is that without the camp and cheesecake, there isn’t much to differentiate it in a very crowded comics landscape.  What we have is a mixture of Blade, Buffy and Batwoman.  Except those stories are already written.  I don’t need another one.  When I read a comic that isn’t Marvel/DC, I really want something that is edgier than what corporate editors at Marvel or DC would feel comfortable with…and this comic didn’t deliver.