Review: Wolverine by Chris Claremont

Wolverine by Paul Smith
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

KILL BILL!

Or at least that is what I think of when I read this story since both main characters (Wolverine and the Bride) had to go to Japan to fight off their rivals.

Brief Introduction:

When I was looking through the comic book boards and I wanted to know what the best “Wolverine” story was, many fans declared that “Wolverine” which was written by Chris Claremont along with artwork by Frank Miller was considered the best “Wolverine” story out there. So, I went out and got this graphic novel and I have to agree with the fans that this was indeed one of the best “Wolverine” stories out there! This also features the first four issues in Wolverine’s new solo series during the 1980s which I was so impressed at seeing for the first time! Never have I have seen so much drama, romance and action contained into one graphic novel and because of that, “Wolverine” has remained to be one of my all time favorite “X-Men” stories about Wolverine!

What is the story?

Wolverine heads off to Japan to find the love of his life, Mariko Yashida, who is the daughter of Lord Shingen who is the Lord of the Clan Yashida, but discovers that his lover has married someone else, which breaks his heart. Along the way, Wolverine meets up with a mysterious assassin named Yukio who seems to know about Lord Shingen’s plans to take over all of the major crime gangs in Japan. Wolverine must put a stop to Lord Shingen’s evil plans to rule as the ultimate crime lord of Japan before it is too late!

What I loved about this comic:

The premise and Chris Claremont’s writing: I will admit that when I heard about this graphic novel, I did not know what to expect from another book about Wolverine and I actually thought that we would get another “Wolverine” book that is all about the fighting and Wolverine acting tough. However, in this graphic novel, what we got was an extremely thought-provoking and heartwarming tale about Wolverine’s romance with Mariko and his inner struggles with dealing with his “animal” side. I loved the way that Chris Claremont has shown us a more sensitive side to Wolverine as he struggles to get the love of his life back while dealing with the customs of her family, which the importance of honor and pride plays a huge role in his story. I also loved the intense kung-fu atmosphere of this story as it gave this story a more creative approach to Wolverine’s time in Japan and made the story exciting to read through. Chris Claremont has done an excellent job at writing this story from Wolverine’s point of view on the situation as we are able to see how Wolverine reacts to the situations he gets involved in Japan whether he is confessing his love for Mariko or fighting ninjas out to get him. It was also interesting seeing how Wolverine viewed himself and Chris Claremont does a brilliant job at portraying Wolverine’s insecurity about being seen as an animal as he usually uses violence to solve his problems. I really enjoyed the tone shift that Chris Claremont had provided when he introduced the other X-Men (Colossus, Storm, Cyclops, Kitty Pryde and Nightcrawler) in the second story that was apart of “Uncanny X-Men” as Wolverine’s solo series was dark, while the “Uncanny X-Men” storyline was a bit light toned.

Frank Miller and Paul Smith’s artwork: When I heard that Frank Miller was doing the artwork for this graphic novel, I was actually blown away by this information because before I read this graphic novel, I was reading “Batman: Year One” which was a graphic novel that Frank Miller wrote himself and I was surprised that Frank Miller has actually done some artwork during his time at the comic book industry. Frank Miller’s artwork was fantastic as they greatly captured the fight scenes in this story. I loved the colorings that were done whenever the characters were in shadows as there are dark colorings shadowed on the characters’ faces which really gives off a foreboding feel to the situation. I also loved Frank Miller’s artwork on the fight scenes, especially the scenes where Wolverine is fighting a group of ninjas and the scene where Wolverine is punching the ninjas is effectively done. In the “Uncanny X-Men” issues of this graphic novel, Paul Smith did a brilliant job at detailing the fight scenes and the characters’ facial expressions and I loved the way that the colorings are much brighter in these issues than in Frank Miller’s artwork in the “Wolverine” issues.

What made me feel uncomfortable about this book:

The only problem that some readers might find with this graphic novel is that there is some violence in the fight scenes. The violence usually has Wolverine cutting into another character and you can see some blood squirt out of the wounds. Now, the violence is actually pretty low-key here as sometimes the blood is not as realistically shown as it usually is in current comics, but the scenes of Wolverine cutting into people might upset some readers.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “Wolverine” is definitely one of the best stories dealing with Wolverine and anyone who is a fan of Wolverine or the X-Men in particular; I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this graphic novel to any comic book fan!

Rating?

Review: Wolverine: Weapon X by Barry Windsor-Smith

Wolverine: Weapon X by Barry Windsor-Smith
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Brief history:

Ever since I heard so much about Wolverine’s past in the Weapon X program and how much that played a huge role in the character he has become, I wanted to try and read more on his back story of being apart of Weapon X. To be honest, “Wolverine: Weapon X” was the first story I have read that details the horrors that Wolverine has to go through when he was apart of the Weapon X program and I must say that I really enjoyed this book much more than I expected!

What is the story?

Basically, this comic details the horrors that Wolverine goes through when he is abducted by scientists working on Weapon X and some of the horrors that Wolverine faces is that he has to go through the terrible experiments that the scientists put him through such as having him kill animals like wolves and bears and attaching his body to so many cords from machines. One day however, Wolverine escapes the program and causes massive mayhem in the lab!

What I loved about this comic:

The story itself: Even though this was the first time I have read one of Wolverine’s back stories on his life with Weapon X and there are like millions of other stories that tells Wolverine’s back story with Weapon X, I found Barry Windsor-Smith’s interpretation on Wolverine’s back story to be extremely interesting and intense. Even though the story is told more from the Professor’s point of view than from Wolverine’s, it was shocking and intense to see Wolverine being treated like a lab animal just so the Weapon X program could turn Wolverine into their own personal soldier. I also loved the way that Barry Windsor-Smith made this story just as effective by not having any kind of narration in this comic to explain the story and instead tells this story by showing the readers the tortures that Wolverine has to go through when he was being held as an experiment for Weapon X and I also loved the way that Barry Windsor-Smith basically had the characters tell the story through their interactions with each other such as the Professor discussing the procedures of experimenting on Wolverine to his employees. I also loved the way that Barry Windsor-Smith gave a frightening and intense tone to this story since Wolverine’s experiences with Weapon X are so terrifying that this actually reads out more like a horror story than an actual “X-Men” story.

Barry Windsor-Smith’s artwork: Barry Windsor-Smith’s artwork on this story was extremely dazzling and intense. I loved the intense artwork on the scenes where Wolverine is being experimented on since so much detail is put into the scenes. I will admit that I am a huge fan of images that has blood and gore in it. I know that sounds a little gross, but Barry Windsor-Smith put so much detail into the gory scenes that I found myself being more drawn into the story because of that. Some of the gory scenes in this book that stood out for me were of the scenes where wires and needles are being stuck through Wolverine and the scenes where Wolverine’s claws shoot out of his hands and you can see blood spurting out his hands as the claws come out.

What made me feel uncomfortable about this book:

This story is really gory and frightening because it details the torture that Wolverine has to go through when he was being experiment on by the scientists working on Weapon X. There are so many gory images of Wolverine being experimented on that might make anyone who does not like gory images cringe such as the images of Wolverine fighting off animals and human beings and some images have shown Wolverine’s victims having their ribs being shown after they are killed by Wolverine. Also, the last few images in this story might be a tad bit disturbing since it turns into a nightmare when Wolverine is loose in the lab. There were also some confusing scenes for me that I had to really read the text closely to understand it and that was mainly towards the end of the story. I will not tell what happens at the end of the story since it might spoil the story, but it had that “things are not what they seem” vibe at the end that sort of confused me.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “Wolverine: Weapon X” was an enjoyable read for me because it actually detailed the horrors that Wolverine faced in Weapon X in such vivid detail that I found myself really sympathizing with Wolverine as he was forcefully thrown into this predicament and I was horrified at the things that the people at Weapon X did to him, making this one of the most disturbing reads from the “X-Men” series I have ever came across.

I know that there are other stories about Wolverine’s history with Weapon X, so please feel free to recommend me some other good titles about Wolverine’s Weapon X stories!

My Rating?

Review: Wolverine Old Man Logan by Mark Millar

Wolverine: Old Man Logan by Mark Millar
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Brief Introduction:

Now, everyone knows that I am a huge fan of Wolverine, so when I heard about this unique little story called “Wolverine: Old Man Logan,” I just had to try this comic out! Luckily, I was not disappointed with this story as “Wolverine: Old Man Logan” was one of the most intense and possibly terrifying stories I had ever read about Wolverine! With spectacular writing from Mark Millar and dramatic artwork by Steve McNiven, “Wolverine: Old Man Logan” is definitely one comic book you just have to check out!

What is the story?

In the future world, the United States is being ruled by the villains of the Marvel Universe (Dr. Doom, Norman Osborn and the Kingpin) and all of the superheroes were killed off, except for two heroes: Wolverine and Hawkeye! Wolverine is now living peacefully with his family as he swore off ever using his claws ever again since a horrible incident happened that dealt with him using his claws. One day however, the evil Hulk Gang wanted their payment in rent from Wolverine and if they do not get their rent money, they will kill Wolverine’s family. So, Wolverine goes on a cross country journey with his partner, a now blind Hawkeye, to get some money for Wolverine to pay the rent. Unfortunately, even though Wolverine is trying to live a peaceful life, he will soon realize that in a world ruled by villains, he will always be a target and he might have to compromise his stance on not fighting anymore once his life and family are being threatened!

What I loved about this comic:

Mark Millar’s writing: After reading Mark Millar’s fantastic run on “Ultimate X-Men,” I just knew that I had to give this book a try and when I did, oh my goodness, I was totally blown away by this story! Mark Millar had done a fantastic job at giving us a really dark and dystopian world where super-villains ruled the United States and Logan decides to give up being “Wolverine” after a tragic event happened in his past. I loved the way that Mark Millar developed Wolverine’s character and the fact that there would be a day where I would see Wolverine become a pacifist was really surprising to me. I also enjoyed the back story about why Wolverine became a pacifist and what happened to him in the past was a truly terrifying and emotional moment in this book that will make you really sympathize with Wolverine’s predicament. I also loved the idea about this being a “what if” story about what would happened if the super-villains ruled the world and all the super heroes were killed? It rose up so many interesting scenarios in this comic about what the super villains would do once they take over the world and how the world would look like. Apparently, the world is full of people being killed for no good reason and the endless changes to the United States such as California now being called “Hulkland.” I also loved the way that Mark Millar portrayed Hawkeye and Wolverine’s relationship with each other as Hawkeye is always cheerful and can still fight extremely well even when he is blind and I loved the fact that they still remain friends after all the hardships of living in a villain ruled world.

Steve McNiven’s artwork: Steve McNiven’s artwork was just so fantastic in this comic! I loved the way that Steve McNiven made the characters looks extremely realistic. The characters’ facial expressions are done extremely well as there are shadows on the characters’ faces whenever they are having dark thoughts. I also enjoyed how detailed the bloody scenes were as blood squirts everywhere whenever the characters are cut up as it gives the scenes a much more frightening feeling.

What made me feel uncomfortable about this book:

~A huge warning for anyone reading this comic~

This comic has oodles and oodles of blood and gore throughout! I had never seen a “Wolverine” comic that had so many scenes of people being killed in the most brutal ways (being cut up) and anyone who does not like seeing any kind of strong violence in a comic might want to skip this comic. Also, there is some language in this comic, although not as strong as something you would see in Scott Snyder’s “American Vampire” or Neil Gaiman’s “Sandman” series, so for anyone who does not like reading language in a book, they might want to skim over these words. I took off half a star because I felt that the beginning was moving a bit too slow and it was not until the middle of the story where things really started to pick up. Also, the story might be a bit confusing for anyone who does not read “Avengers” or any other Marvel comics since it manages to combine most of the Marvel characters into one story (I know I got really confused when the Avengers were mentioned since I barely read the “Avengers” comics (big X-Men fan here).

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “Wolverine: Old Man Logan” was a really interesting read for me since I usually do enjoy the usual dystopian future storylines and this one was really creative and unique to read through. Wolverine fans will definitely enjoy this fantastic one shot story of everyone’s favorite claw wielding mutant!

Rating?

Review: Wolverine and the X-Men, Vol. 6 by Jason Aaron

Wolverine and the X-Men, Vol. 6 by Jason Aaron
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

 

 

 

Dog Logan is not a character I ever care to read about again. Woof!
This was such a disappointment in what has been an otherwise fun title, that I wish it could just be magically wiped from my memory.
sigh
The main story is that Logan takes a group of the students on a trip to the Savage Land to learn teamwork…Wolverine Style!

Instead of it turning into one of those corporate Trust Retreats, Wolverine’s time-traveling half brother Dog shows up to ‘Learn Them Kids a Lesson’, and prove that he’s the better brother.
*vomits, wipes mouth, gets back up*

Lots of ridiculous dialogue and a few flashbacks later, they load up and go home, after learning the most important lesson of all.
Friendship = Family
*vomits again, lies beside toilet for a few minutes*
Plus, it’s always fun to see what a pussy Logan was before his mutant powers manifested!

The last issue is some weird Peek Into the Future, where Logan learns that just because you have access to time machines, doesn’t mean you should use them.

There were a couple of (almost) interesting developments with Idie and the Hellfire Club that make this one useful, but the vast majority of this volume is garbage.

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Review: Ms. Marvel, Vol. 2: Generation Why by G. Willow Wilson , Adrian Alphona (Artist), Jacob Wyatt (Artist)

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 2: Generation Why by G. Willow Wilson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

 

 

 

Please don’t hate me, but…
I didn’t love this as much as everyone else.

The first part with Wolverine was a lot of fun, and, at the same time, sort of touching and sweet. The art was pretty ugly in spots, but I’m learning to suck it up and move past that sort of thing. Kinda.

Warning: Some Spoilers Ahead!

I also enjoyed Lockjaw showing up to be her pet, but the whole ‘he couldn’t come inside because he was unclean’ thing sort of threw me. I guess this is part of her religion, but I wish it had been explained better. Then again, a lot of people don’t allow animals in their house for one reason or another.
I have to say, between the clothing restrictions, dietary restrictions, drinking restrictions, sex restrictions, and now pet restrictions, I’m certain I’d never be able to hack it as a Muslim.
Heh. Who am I kidding? I’d never be able to hack it with any religion!
Anyway, back to the point, I liked Lockjaw & Kamala.

Ok, Kamala finally finds out that she’s not a mutant, but an Inhuman. That was an alright storyline with some cute moments. I didn’t love it or hate it. It was just…there.

Then we move on to the Grand Finale with the Inventor!
Uuuuuuugh.
By the time I got done with the whole Kamala’s Nemesis Showdown, my eyes were rolling out of my head.
First off, he’s a bird.

But I could have given that a pass, because lots of villains are kinda stupid.
Professor Pyg, anyone?
The thing that really made me sigh and moan was getting beat over the head with the Moral of the Story.

Our generation isn’t lazy and whiny. We have lots to offer the world!

And that is true about some kids.
Also, Kamala’s face in the panel below me just begs me to punch her. That’s the face every annoying kid makes when they’re wah-wah-wahing about how undervalued and underrespected they are.
*strangle, strangle*
Ugh. You have no idea, you little shit!

But after the millionth time Kamala gave that speech, I was over it.
Yeah, yeah, I get it. Shut the fuck up, and punch something already.
And I totally realize that I’m a crotchety old fart for feeling that way, but I just can’t help it. It was annoying and ham-fisted.
Plus, the resolution was a
We Can Do It If We Work Together!
cliche.

Sorry. That just wasn’t my cuppa.
Now get off my lawn!

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Review: X-23: Target X by Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost, Michael Choi (Illustrator)

X-23: Target X by Craig Kyle

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

 

 

10 stars!
Read this! Just…read this!

This is a continuation of Kyle’s X-23:Innocence Lost, and it does not disappoint. If anything, it’s even better than the first one.

Everything is being told in flashbacks from Luara/X-23’s point of view, while she is being detained by Captain America…and represented by Daredevil.

X-23 goes looking for her mother’s family. In the last volume she and her cousin were both much younger, and her mother sent Laura in to save her niece from a serial killer.
Her cousin was told none of it happened, but she still has nightmares. Also, X-23’s aunt has hooked up with a smarmy boyfriend that isn’t helping the situation out any. The family dynamic was done very well here, and I loved that the aunt immediately took Laura into her home.

Meanwhile, the folks from the place that cloned her are hot on her trail. And they’ve sent in her handler, Kimura, who is a psychotic assassin that Laura is conditioned to be unable to harm.

*Important Spoilery Stuff Happens*

Since Laura was cloned from Wolverine’s DNA, and she has very limited self-worth at this point, she sets out on a mission to track him down.
And kill him.
Because she thinks if she’s nothing but a weapon that destroys everything, then how much worse must the guy she came from be, right?
Awww, yeah! It’s a
SNIKT!
fight!

Wha..?!
Yeah, it’s a surprisingly tender Snikt! fight. Which made more sense than if Wolverine had just carved her up, and left her bleeding.

Now that Matt and Steve have heard her story, it’s up to Cap to decide what to do with this little girl. He wants to prosecute her for all of the crimes she committed while under the control of the Facility that raised her, but Daredevil thinks that even if he turns her over to S.H.I.E.L.D., she’ll just be used as another weapon.
So what do they decide to do with her?

READ IT!

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Review: X-Men: No More Humans by Mike Carey , Salvador Larroca (Illustrations)

X-Men: No More Humans by Mike Carey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

 

 

So this really happened, but everyone agrees to never talk about it again.
Does that mean I can count it as a What If story? Unsure.

This was fast-paced & fun, which is all I really ask out of a comic book. Not to mention, it’s doesn’t exactly leave any loose ends dangling, so it’s outside of the normal soap opera stuff. A stand alone, if you will.
Yes! You have my vote Stand Alone Comic!
Sorry.
I spent all day baking in the sun at a lake with the kids, and I’m a little loopy.
What I’m trying to say, is that I really liked this.

Ok, so I know I’m not an expert on all (or even most) of the mutants in the X-men’s universe, but I honestly had never heard of Raze before this.
Evidently, he’s Mystique and Wolverine’s kid?

Wha..? When did that happen?!

As far as I can tell…and don’t quote me on this…but I think he’s from the future.
Or a future, at any rate.
And, shockingly, he’s kinda evil.
I can’t imagine why, though…

Does Wolverine have any kids who aren’t jacked up?
Apparently not.
Anyhoo, Raze has teamed up with all kinds of bad guys (from every dimension) to create a beautiful utopia for mutants.
And, subsequently, the humans gotta go.
Now the X-men and the Uncanny X-men, with the help of Magneto, have to work together to bring them back. Ish.
This leads to some great dialogue between Logan and Scott over who’s the real douchebag killer.

There’s also an appearance by the not quite as Dark Phoenix from another dimension.

Have you guessed how everything gets fixed yet?
Yeah, ok. It’s a pretty easy way out, but I gave bonus points for not turning this into a 30 issue crossover event involving the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Fantastic Four, and a few Hulks.
Plus, an extra star for not trying to stick any Inhumans in this thing.
Thanks, Marvel!

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Review: Fear Itself: Uncanny X-Force/The Deep by Rob Williams

Fear Itself: Uncanny X-Force/The Deep by Rob Williams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not sure why the X-Force story was put together with The Deep story in this.
Maybe they both needed a few more issues to be sold as a volume?
Yeah, they both have to do with the Fear Itself storyline, but they don’t intersect with each other.

Anyway.
It shouldn’t surprise you that I loved the issues of X-Force.
Dark, irreverent, funny, and I still love the hyper-slick look of the artwork!
So win-win all around for me!

The X-Force is going after a religious zealot who is using the Fear thing as an excuse to kill. Only this guy is planning on killing not just mutants or superheroes, he wants to kind of kill off…everyone
You know, to save their immortal souls from the fires of Hell, or some such nonsense.

I loved it!
And the moral of the story is this: If you try to nuke Manhattan, Wolverine and Deapool will stab you.

The Deep was a bit of a disappointment.
It’s not that it flat-out sucked, it’s just that it could have been so much better.

This one had a great cast of interesting characters, but it barely held my interest.
Namor, Dr. Strange, Loa, Silver Surfer, and Savage She-Hulk!
Hello? This should have been an easy win! Instead, it was sort of boring.

The Fear (toxin? spirit? what is it?) gets Namor, and he has to *cough* learn to Fight His Fear to save the day…
Imperious Rex, bitches!
Only it wasn’t that cool.
Seriously, couldn’t the freakin’ Silver Surfer have taken out CanofTunna?
Sorry. I mean, Attuma.

With all the heavy-hitters on the team, I never felt like only Namor can save us!, you know?
However, it wasn’t an awful story, just a lot of wasted potential.

5 stars for the X-Force, 3 stars for The Deep.

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Review: Age of Ulton Companion, by Various Artists (including Rick Remender and Mark Waid)

Age of Ultron Companion by Marvel Comics
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another book where I have like no context, except that I know who Ultron is, and what he likes to do.

This book is like one of those packs of 10 mini boxes of cereal you used to eat on vacation as a kid; there’s a lot of Corn Flakes and Bran Flakes and Rice Krispies, but not enough Fruit Loops or Corn Pops, and Frosted Flakes taste shitty after the first few bites.

That’s what this is, a grab bag, some good, some not, and some meh-ish.

The Uncanny Avengers one (Remender of course) is interesting, the FF is a rehash for me (Matt Fraction, but still powerful in its own way) and then theres some Superior Spider Man, Wolvie and the X, and Mark Waid closes the volume with a story about Ultron’s daddy; Hank Pym.

The Waid story might have the most lasting value; pretty much it explains how his parents weren’t all that supportive, wanting practicality, and it was his grandma Pym who encouraged him to think outside the norms…so far in fact, that it was a Catch-22, because Ultron happens, and he reveals how he solved that, but also the last panel is a truly terrifying vision of what Pym’s renewed confidence will lead to.

Waid uses the book to paint the layers of Pym’s psyche, and reveal why he might be the most dangerous man in the Marvel U.

Other high points: Ultron outthinking Otto-Spidey; Captain Marvel going out in a blaze of glory, and alternative reality Havok being martyred.

It was interesting, and for each bite that tasted like filler and horse-meat byproduct, there was just enough tasty gluctose-fructose corn syrup-y Red #6 goodness.

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Review: A vs. X by Brian Michael Bendis and Friends.

Avengers vs. X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Underwhelming.

I am glad I didn’t hold off reading all the stuff that comes after this (pretty much all of AvsX leads into the Marvel NOW! Relaunch-y-ish-type thing. Makes a bit more sense now, but I had already pieced it together based on HOW GODDAMN OFTEN THEY TELL US THAT THE PHOENIX FORCE WENT INTO THE X-MEN IT DID!

UGH.

You know what? The story served it’s purpose. I can see how some think it’s a bit lazy to bring Scarlet Witch out of nowhere to be part of this, but I enjoyed it. Even the characters are like WTF is SHE doing here? I’m willing to see this as a cyclical karmic balancing of House of M. However, I like that the answer has to do with Hope AND Scarlet Witch, not just one of them. It’s the cooperation fostered that I think should be the telling moment of the series.

Instead, it’s how quickly can shit escalate to 11.

Cap and Cyclops are pretty much the same character. “I will take the burden of leadership. I am a great leader of people, everyone counts on me”
Except then they both shit the bed in terms of actually sitting down and TALKING about this.

Of course the fighting is very cool.
The FIRST time…
The other problem is that NONE of the characters outside of about a dozen actually factor in at all.
(Cap, Tony, Logan, Cyke, Emma, Namor, the Rasputins, and a few others).
I was pleased to see Iron Fist get an actual speaking role! With some importance! It’s a first for Danny Rand in a real event book.

However, other than the 5 X-Men who get the Phoenix force, the rest of them are just shunned to the fringes of irrelevancy.
Maybe they’re more present in other AVX books? But, other than a little bit of Storm, and a touch of Rogue, all we get is the 5 of them going all supernova.

This is a spot where I feel like they lost the chance to give Magneto a much more crucial part (even though they did in a way).

There should have been a LOT more focus on Logan and his pull between the 2, especially since both Scott AND Steve treat him like a loose cannon asshole, when in fact, he’s probably the most realistic about the whole issue.

The thing is, this book misses a LOT of opportunities to actually go into character relationships. Other than Black Panther/Storm and a little bit of Scarlet Witch/Vision, we don’t get much on the relationships here, much is just thrown out the window so the artists can do punchy mcpunchersons again.

I think with the writers here (Bendis, Aaron, Brubaker, Hickman and Fraction), they have the Top of Marvel’s heap, yet it seems like they were forced to do this one, and the different voices actually take away from the cohesion of the whole story. I would like to blame some of this on editorial staff, because otherwise it means some of my favourites actually wrote some horridly turgid shit here.

There’s just such a rich history to delve into here, and it just turns into: how many ways can Cap throw Avengers at Cyke and the Phoenix 5 until Tony Stark figures some shit out?

Oh ya, and where the F was the FF? (Other than Benny) You think Reed is going to let this all happen without involving himself or his brain? The FF is the perfect go between here, because they’ve served as Avengers, but they’re separate and they understand what changes like mutations do (ESPECIALLY BENNY!).

Oh and, I’m hoping someone will explain why Hulk doesn’t show up until the end? They make a huge deal of Cap asking him for help, and then he’s barely used at all…was this a point at which Banner was unavailable? Because otherwise, he, Pym, McCoy and Stark should have been working on some answer.

In the end, what might have been will never be known, because this milquetoast shit happened instead. Other than making Scotty into the biggest badguy since Magneto (irony of ironies, Erik was the one trying to talk him down). I am glad to see that they took the events here and used them to the best they could (Scott/Logans X-Men, Uncanny Avengers, etc.)

I just really wish they’d DONE something instead of throw every character at the books and hope things would stick. We really didn’t need Luke Cage, Daredevil, Red Hulk, and a lot of others if they weren’t doing anything. It should really have been called “The entire roster of Avengers and reserves from the last decade+ versus the Mutant Power Couple, Namor and the Ruskie Sibs.
(speaking of that, who decided that Peter would have ABSOLUTELY NO PERSONALITY WHATSOEVER???? Based on who he is/was, he should have been the first one to reject the Phoenix power. There’s some few lines about not liking Ilyana’s angry rage, but that’s about it).

OK I’m going to stop, because I realize I could go on and on raging about what went wrong here forever. That’s not the best result for a major event book like this.

Do yourself a favour and focus on the aftermath instead:

Prof X is dead at Cyclops’ hand, which opens the door to him being the badguy mutant outlaw, which actually suits him better and makes him more interesting. So in that regard, SUCCESS! Now to wait for the return.

Miss this and save the headaches.

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