Legen--wait for it---dary Comic Book Highlight for 4/1/09

Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man 590 (Alternate Cover)

Though I wasn't to sure about this Wolverine appreciation month thing Marvel has going I have to admit that I have enjoyed the various cover paying homage to different works of art. Out of all of them this cover of the different versions of Wolverine playing poker by Paolo Rivera in the place of the dogs is my favorite. I hope that they release this cover in poster form as I wouldn't mind having this in my house.

Amazing Spider-Man #590 Highlights

I just surprised Spider-Man, or other heroes, doesn't do this more often as all he fights is people in tights.

Spider-Man and Reed get lost in there own world as they talk about how they will get to the Microverse. At least Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four aren't Trekies right?

Who says superheroes aren't appreciated anymore?

Well believe it Johnny! Spider-Man is..........

Flash: Rebirth #1 Highlights

Well that's one way to get powers.

Well write this "Barry got me back into the hero business" by Jay and the JSA as just another case of Barry worship that we got the whole issue.

So why aren't Tim and Cassie asking Bart questions about his return? This is his first appearance back in the regular DC timeline. Gotta love the delays for Legion of 3 Worlds.

I get the feeling that Iris is also being affected by whatever is happening to the Speed Force as something is off about the look in Iris's eyes.

I just wonder how the Black Flash's body ended up in a corn field .

Yet again DC and Geoff Johns are not satisfied having at least one hero have a positive origin and they have to "Marvel-fy" all their characters origins.

The popular theory going around is that Barry is going to become the Black Flash and I can't say I disagree.

Invincible Iron Man #12 Highlights

While Tony made sure that Pepper's armor was powerful maybe he should have also spent more time on his armor as well.

I wonder how this Controller/Maria Hill storyline will mix in with the Tony on the run angle.

Are we seriously suppose to believe that Tony in his old school armor can beat Namor in a one on one fight.

If Namor a clear A-list character couldn't beat Tony what chance does a D-list character like The Hood to beat Tony?

Teen Titans #69 Highlights

If Wonder Girl was smart she would have taped the fight instead of stopping it and selling it on pay-per-view to make some money.

You do not mess with Aquagirl.

Take Eddie, Bombshell, and Kid Eternity and replace them with Tim, Bart, and Rose that this would be a much more badass team.

Teen Titans Annual #1 Highlights

I am going to call it right now and say that Eddie is going to be the Titan that dies in the "Deathtrap" crossover.

Now time for a crossover. To bad I wont be picking it up. Call me once that story is over with.

War of Kings #2 Highlights

No love for the new Kree rulers.

Is this the birth of the Crystal era in the Kree world?

Got to love these new megazord looking Black Bolt robots. They caused some serious damage to the Shi'ar armada.

I have been really loving all the different technology Maximus has created to fight this war against the Shi'ar and this Zero-G Combat tech is just awesome.

So I'm guessing someone is going to die.

Legacy Shorts: Comic Book Reviews for 4/1/09

Amazing Spider-Man #590

Creative Team
Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Barry Kitson
Inker: Mark Farmer
Colorist: Dean White

Story - Together Again......For the First Time

Review
Now into its second year of the new direction we begin with the question of who really does remember Peter Parker is Spider-Man. In New Avengers #51 Peter revealed his identity to his Avengers teammates making them the first one's to learn Spider-Man's identity post-One More Day. I was a bit surprised that Marvel would allow Peter to reveal his identity for the first time post-OMD to not be in Amazing Spider-Man. It just does not seem right after all the "changes" Marvel made to Spider-Man's history in order for everyone to forget who he was under the mask that his first reveal would be outside his book.

Now even though I enjoyed much of this issue as Dan Slott has a great handle for Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four the question of what really happened with everyone in the Marvel Universe forgetting Spider-Man's identity hurt this issue. If we are to follow the logic of how the Fantastic Four questioned Spider-Man about his identity than it seems that all that is needed is some sort of trigger for everyone in the Marvel Universe to remember Peter is Spider-Man, though it will be different for each case. And if this is true than Marvel is only setting up to piss off a lot of fans if this logic is used for others to learn who Spider-Man really is.

Still I will say I enjoyed a lot of Slott's dialogue as he provided a lot of witty banter between Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. My favorite part of the issue was the geek moment between Spider-Man and Reed Richard's as they discuss how they will reach the Microverse. Also he did a nice job keeping the aftermath of the Menace storyline going as we see what has happened to those affected by the events of the last storyline.

Issue Rating
Story: 6.8/10 - Though Slott provided plenty off good dialogue in this issue the question with the post-OMD continuity hampers what should have been a fun issue.
Art: 7.8/10 - Barry Kitson gives us plenty of quality artwork though it was not as good as some previous issues though that will probably change with the next issue when he is given some more action scenes to illustrate.
Overall: 7.3/10 - In what should have been a fun story arc the continuity problems with Spider-Man in the Marvel Universe hurts this issue.

The Invincible Iron Man #12

Creative Team
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artist: Salvador Larroca
Colorist: Frank D'Armata

Story - The High-End Technology of Ultramodern Destruction

Review
After a strong start to the new status quo for Tony Stark and his supporting cast the issues that followed have not been as strong. The biggest reason for this is that Fraction continues to not only build up the new status for Tony and the Marvel Universe but also he continues his pursuit to integrate as much of the Iron Man movie elements as he possibly can with each issue. I understand the move is done in order to help those getting into the Iron Man comics because of the movie but personally I like that the TV shows and movies have a different continuity to the comics and that is how it should be.

As for this issue I will say this was a step up from the last issue as I continue to enjoy how Fraction has been able to make Maria Hill into a much more likable character. It will be interesting to see how Fraction will integrate this Controller plotline into the war going on between Tony and Norman.

But just with the last issue the fight that Fraction gave us in this issue was not as enjoyable as I think Fraction thought it would be. I was just not buying the fact that Tony could actually last as long as he did with his old costume since even with the Extremis power-up he barely held his own against Namor. I get this is a comic but still I think that it would only take one punch by Namor to take out Tony in his old Iron Man suit. The fight really made Namor look weak and it does not help that now The Hood and his gang are being sent to due the job Namor couldn't. Really! If Namor couldn't take out Tony what chance does a D-list villain have to do the job.

Issue Rating
Story: 5.4/10 - Fraction continues to amaze me with the mediocre dialogue he has been putting out the past few issues.
Art: 6.5/10 - Salvador Larroca's art was better this issue than the the previous few as he mostly got to draw people in armor though I still have a problem with how he draws people.
Overall: 5.95/10 - So far this "World's Most Wanted" arc has been disappointing though with The Controller looking to get involved I have hope this story will turn around (Man I am such a optimist).

Teen Titans Annual #1

Creative Team
Original Story: Sean McKeever
Artist: Fernando Dagnino
Inker: Raul Fernandez
Colorist: Rod Reis

Story - Home Invasion

Review
Since we finally got an official team put together in the last issue of Teen Titans, which also came out this past week, this annual is used as a prelude to the "Deathtrap" crossover between Teen Titans, Titans, and Vigilante. With the past few issues of Teen Titans I have been on the fence if I should pick up this crossover since I would have to pick up Titans and Vigilante to get the whole story but after this issue I think I will pass on this crossover. Maybe if I hear good things about the crossover I will pick it up when it comes out in trade paperback form but for now I have no interest whatsoever to read yet another story with Jericho taking over people.

The problem with this annual is it not only a prelude to "Deathtrap" but if you read Teen Titans #69 than this issue is pretty much the same as that issue. For the first half of the issue it is basically a recap for the reader to get a handle of the new team and it is not until the final half were we deal with the "Deathtrap" tie-in. But the problem is that as soon as we get to the action part of the issue all excitement you may get from the action is killed by the slow pace of the first half. The only bright spot of this annual is that we got to see Static go use his full power to defeat a Jericho controlled Cyborg and save his teammates.

Also I did not like that whoever wrote this issue, as Sean McKeever only got credit for writing the story but not the issue, made all the Teen Titans look like chumps just to make Eddie in his old Kid Devil costume look like he belongs on the team. I am just getting annoyed by Eddie's character and this annual just makes me hope that when I pick Teen Titans up again after the crossover Eddie is not on the team anymore.

Issue Rating
Story: 3.3/10 - The dialogue of this issue was average at best and it does not help I do not have an actual writer to blame for the average dialogue.
Art: 7/10 - Dagnino provide some solid artwork with my favorite part of his art was when Static used his full power to save his teammates as he showed how powerful Static is.
Overall: 5.15/10 - This issue did nothing for me to want to pick up the "Deathtrap" crossover and I will just pick up Teen Titans once that crossover is over, that is if I remember to pick this title up again.

Teen Titans #69 Review

Creative Team
Original Story: Sean McKeever
Artist: Allan Goldman & Yildiray Cinar
Inker: Julio Ferreira
Colorist: JD Smith

Story - The New Deal: Finale

Review
No it is not a typo instead of the credits saying "Written by" it actually says "Original Story by" Sean McKeever. In this past weeks Lying in the Gutters Rich is the first to point this out and it does beg the question who actually wrote this, and the annual, issue. Going into a crossover between Teen Titans, Titans, and Vigilante it is hard to see if that crossover will be worth getting as we don't even know if McKeever and Wolfman will be the writers. Hey maybe Dan Didio is writing all of the issues and is just working off those writers outlines. Who knows? Still it is pretty sloppy work by Didio and Cunningham that they don't even give credit to whoever actually wrote this issue.

That aside Teen Titans #69 ends the the 4-part recruitment arc that in truth has been going on since the end of Infinite Crisis. The one thing that this issue proved was that instead of wasting so much time with the recruitment process that it would have been better if the Terror Titans mini-series was actually a storyline that was going on within the pages of Teen Titans as that mini-series had much more impact on this title than the previous 3 issues of Teen Titans. At best this recruitment arc should have been only 2 issues instead of 4.

And as you can probably tell from the cover the new team for this title is: Wonder Girl, a depowered Red Devil, Blue Beetle, Aquagirl, Static, Bombshell, Miss Martian, and Kid Eternity. This is not a bad line-up as Wonder Girl, Blue Beetle, Miss Marian, Aquagirl, and Static give this team some serious power to match up against other teams. If Tim and Bart actually do return to the team once the mini-series they are involved in are over I think their addition would make this a pretty badass team no villain would want to mess with. And I don't really have much of a problem with Kid Eternity being on the team though I would have preferred it if Zatara would have been the team's magic based hero as I see him as a character with a lot of untapped potential.

The only real problem I have with the line-up of this team is the membership of Bombshell and Eddie. For Bombshell it is not even funny with how they are trying to make her Ravager's replacement. And Bombshell only comes of as a poor man's (or woman's) Ravager though it looks like we will be stuck with the character for a while as Rose will be starring in the back-up feature in Teen Titans for at least a year. And I think the Ravager back-up will only hurt Bombshell being on the team as in this issue I remember the short Ravager scene more than anything Bombshell did in the whole issue.

Now maybe the most frustrating member is Eddie still being on the team. No offense to Eddie fans but after more than 30 issues worth of the character being on the team, with at least 4 issues of Teen Titans spotlighting him, I think it is time for this character to go. At this point he has nothing to add to the team as the comedic relief is brought in a much more effect fashion by Blue Beetle and Static. Even when Eddie had his powers I still felt that the character to be a questionable addition to the team and now that he does not have his powers I don't see what Eddie can add to the team other than playing the angsty character.

On art side of things I found Goldman and Cinar's artwork to be not half bad. The artwork for this issue had a sort of Mark Bagley quality to it during the middle part of his run on Ultimate Spider-Man. They did a nice job bringing enough energy to this issue so that it did not feel as slow as it should have been though I did find their art to be odd at times as they over-did-it with how much muscle tone they gave some of the characters in a few panels.

Issue Rating
Story: 3.3/10 - Whoever wrote this issue finally brought this boring recruitment arc come to an end.
Art: 7/10 - The artwork by Goldman and Cinar was serviceable though I would like it if we would finally get an artist to stay on this title for more than two story arcs at least.
Overall: 5.15/10 - We finally get an official team now but who wants to bet that at least one member will leave, or die, before the Teen Titans/Titans/Vigilante crossover.

War of Kings #2 Review

Creative Team
Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Artist: Paul Pelletier
Inker: Rick Magyar
Colorist: Wil Quintana

Story - Every Last One of Them

Review
Two issues in and DnA are quickly showing with War of Kings how to tell a big event. While Sinestro Corp Wars did an excellent job showing how a crossover event is done War of Kings is showing how big events in a single mini-series is done.

War of Kings #2 shows that you don't have to choose a slow burn approach (ala Final Crisis) or a brawl fest (ala Secret Invasion) over the other but that each issue should have a nice mix of both. Just like the first issue the first half of this issue deals with the aftermath of what happened in previous events, this time around the Shi'ar's attack on the Kree world. It is very cool to see the political side of a world and how even though Ronan has accepted Black Bolt and the Inhumans as the savers of the Kree the people that inhabit the Kree world have yet to accept them. It is a nice contrast to what is going on in Earth with the public and government officials quickly accepted Norman Osborn as the leader of H.A.M.M.E.R without question. While it is hard to believe how Marvel transitioned to Norman being in power DnA have done an excellent job making the Inhumans rise to power feel realistic, well as realistic as a comic book can get.

I have to Karnak as he suggest war is the only thing that will get the Kree people on the Inhumans side. It was interesting see how quickly all the members of the Royal Council came to agree on a declaration of war being their only solution. And I am still interested to learn if Medusa is really speaking for Black Bolt or for herself as it seems at times she is the one influencing her husbands decisions. It is feeling like DnA are setting up the moment when Black Bolt is ready to talk and let his voice be heard (literally) at the end of this event.

Also I really dug the megazord looking Black Bolt robots Maximus built as they give the Inhumans some serious power needed to against the Shi'ar armada. Pellitier's artwork was just great in that scene, and the whole issue, as he shows just how powerful the new machines built that are powered by Black Bolt. All of this new technology that being powered by Black Bolt does a nice job setting up Black Bolt as a very powerful person that has me eagerly awaiting the moment he uses his full power on Vulcan, Gladiator, and all of the Shi'ar that get in his way.

I also liked how DnA are using the Starjammers and Inhumans working together to defeat the Shi'ar armada. It was cool to see that even though they have never work together before that they were able to work like a well oiled machine as they kicked some serious Shi'ar ass. I also like that now that the Inhumans are battling in space that they have picked up an aquatic form of fighting as fighting in space would be similar to fighting in water.

My favorite part of this whole issue was "The People's Princess" role DnA have given to Crystal. On a side note did anyone hear The Rock's voice when Maximus said the Kree were calling Crystal "The People's Princess." Anyways this is a very cool role that they have given Crystal and befitting her character. Before this issue it seemed that she would only provide the "voice of reason" to her sister Medusa harsh attitude. But with this new role Crystal has quickly become much more important to Black Bolt and the Inhumans new rule of the Kree and it should be interesting to see if this will make Medusa jealous over her sister's rise to power as we got a little hint of jealousy after Maximus called Crystal "The People's Princess."

The only complaint I have about this issue is that it was to Inhuman centric and we got very few pages dedicated to Vulcan and the Shi'ar empire other than them getting their assess kicked by the Inhumans, Kree, and the Starjammers. Though this is only a minor complaint as it looks like the next issue will be more Shi'ar centric with Vulcan is out for blood and looks to start with Lilandra.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.4/10 - DnA continue to do a fantastic job with nailing the huge cast of characters they are handling and also making each moment feel bigger than the last as this war only looks to get bigger than it already is.
Art: 9/10 - Pelletier continues to give this series a great look with his artwork as all the space battles feel like you are watching something epic.
Overall: 9.2/10 - War of Kings #2 was another great issue to this event and if you have yet to jump on the Marvel cosmic bandwagon War of Kings is the best way to get into this corner of the Marvel Universe.

Flash: Rebirth #1 Review

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Ethan Van Sciver
Colorist: Alex Sinclair

Story - Lightning Strikes Twice

Review
When Flash: Rebirth was announced I was mixed about having Barry Allen return to the DC Universe and from reading this first issue it still does not feel right. For me when I think of the Flash I think of Wally I do not think of Barry but that is because I did not start reading comics until the early 90s.

With that said the thing with The Flash: Rebirth #1 is a case were we get a strong opening, a weak middle, and a strong ending. Though I did not really like 2/3 of the issue the mystery of the Speed Force killing and affecting all the characters that derive their powers from the Speed Force is going to keep me collecting this mini-series. Also it helps that this series has the excellent artwork of Ethan Van Sciver on it. The real test for this series, for me, is if at the end of Flash: Rebirth I will pick up the relaunch of the Flash title(s), because right now I have no interest in reading a Flash title once this series is over.

What is funny about the opening and the ending of this issue is that unlike everything in between those two parts is that it is not a Barry love fest that this issue felt like. Instead it involves everyone that has been involved with the Speed Force in some capacity, past and present. And it feels like this mini-series will hinge on how far this mystery of what is happening to the Speed Force can be stretched through this series without feeling it is being dragged out.

Another part of this story that I found interesting is the Rogues reaction to now there being four different Flash characters around sharing the same space. Out of all the reactions to Barry's return I think the most realistic and exciting part of the characters return. I am really interested to see how the Rogues will try and improve, whether it is by power ups and/or grow in numbers. Hopefully they will get more than an Aquaman Final Crisis appearance on this series, which I they probably wont.

Now as I said the problem is the middle of this issue. Maybe the biggest problem with this issue is the involvement of Bart Allen. I understand that his story of how he returns to the present is suppose to be told in Legion of 3 Worlds. The problem there is that not only am I trade waiting for that miniseries but also it has yet to finish with an actual date for its last issue to come out. And because Geoff Johns is writing both series there is no excuse he cannot reference the fact Bart is back by having Tim and Cassie, his two best friends, either act more surprise he is back or have a conversation with Bart about his return. But again this is what happens when their are such huge delays in comics since it will almost always cause fans to scratch their heads about what is happening in another.

Also I had a problem with Bart's reaction to Barry's return doesn't seem to be similar to what has been established before. In the past Bart has talked highly about his grandfather and how he has always wanted to run next to him as a partner. But now for him to make a complete 360 in attitude doesn't feel right, even though it is because it is supposedly about Max Mercury not being back but Barry is.

My idea is, and what probably Johns is making happen, is that the mystery with what is happening with the Speed Force is affecting all of the Flash characters personalities to turn more negative. Just looking at how Barry, Wally, and Bart were acting throughout this issue it does feel that they are being affected by however is going to be the big bad guy of this series. It just doesn't seem right this is how these characters who have been some of the most positive characters in comics to become so negative.

The second problem I had with this issue is the dialogue of Barry, Hal, and Bart read like conversations I have had about Barry's return with some of my friends. Barry and Bart were basically talking for the Wally fans and Hal was speaking for the Barry fans. Though this did not bother me as much as I think Johns has an interesting idea of making Barry similar to Steve Rogers's man out of time aspect that character used to have but hopefully this does not become a recurring conversation in this title as I have read that dialogue many times before.

I also had a problem with how Johns was trying to make Barry into this God-like character by having all the old JSA members saying how Barry was responsible for bringing them back to being superheroes and how all the other heroes were just gushing over Barry's return. Especially with the JSA scene all of the dialogue felt uncomfortable and felt that it was similar to what Johns did with Hal by putting him over other characters by them speaking super-highly of him or him being put over other A- and B-list characters.

Now the biggest problem I had with this issue is the sudden dark turn of Barry's origin. The Flash family has always had one the more positive origins in comics. In a time were almost every single comic book character has some sort of dark origin were someone was killed, tortured, or something else horrible happen in there past that it is refreshing that at least one group of characters have some sort of positive origin were they use their powers they receive by accident to become heroes because they have that drive to help people because that is who they are. But now that we are presented with a dark origin of Barry Allen, which has never been mentioned in the past stories, it kind of takes away from what makes the Flash Family special within comics. I really hope that this is only fake memories Barry has due to how much time he has spent in the Speed Force and he just has mixed memories of all the different Speed Force users that made him think he has a dark past.

Issue Rating
Story: 6.5/10 - Geoff Johns like always does a fine job getting his character voices down but a lot continuity problems and having characters make Barry into a God-like figure makes the dialogue feel awkward at times.
Art: 9.2/10 - Ethan Van Sciver does an excellent job as always with his artwork and really helps give this series an epic feel that the return of a character of Barry's level deserves.
Overall: 7.85/10 - Even though my review was more on the negative side there was still enough for old and new readers to enjoy from this from the writing and the art side. I am looking forward for the rest of the series to see what role all these different Flash characters will have in the DC Universe at the end of this series.

Legen--wait for it---dary Comic Book Highlight for 3/25/09

Just found this awesome video I think everyone will like. Bruce Lee vs. Iron Man, nuff said:

Cover of the Week: Daredevil #117

This is yet another great cover by Marko Djurdjevic. Not only is it a great looking cover but tells all you need to know when you open the comic.

Amazing Spider-Man #589 Highlights

Maybe now The Spot will be taken more seriously.

Who hasn't tried to do the Christian Bale Batman voice?

This never gets old.

Batman's got nothing on Spider-Man.

Captain America #48 Highlights

See this is why you do not mess with Namor.

Hasn't Bucky learned yet: He should not keep anything from Black Widow because she will find out.

Daredevil #117 Highlights

The Kingpin is back and he is out for blood.

Master Izo is one serious badass. This is one old man you do not want as an enemy as some Hand ninja found out.

Who will survive this war between Kingpin, Daredevil and The Hand?

Guardians of the Galaxy #12 Highlights

Quasar gets his bands back.

This one seriously badass looking dragon.

I think this is a much better look for Phyla and should lead to a much more interesting place for her character.

Nova #23 Highlights

Even though this is only for the short term I think Richard as Quasar is a much better fit.

Oracle: The Cure #1 Highlights

Is it just me or does Barbara look more like a redhead Dinah?

See kids this is why your mom says you should not spend so much time on your computer.