Previews are coming late, and I've got a good bit to go over, so I'll be brief here. It's another non-DC week for me, and in the week that Fear Itself begins, even though I'll mention a few Marvel books, in what I'm really considering, Image wins the day. Find out why after the jump.
So, Fear Itself begins in earnest this week with the first issues of the main series and The Home Front, as well as an overview/primer/not-sure-why-you'd-get-this one-shot. I, myself, cannot get very interested in this. I guess it's not a bad idea, but it seems like it's coming from nowhere and I tend to heavily reject things that looks like they exist for marketing purposes, and really, how can you look any other way at an event that happens to feature the title characters to Marvel's next two big summer movies? So, unless something's really compelling or happens to fall into a book I'm already reading, I'll probably opt out.
Also from Marvel this week are a couple of Spider-Man books: Amazing Spider-Man Annual #38 and Spider-Man: With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility #1. The annual falls into the “why do you have to make everything a crossover” category. This is the start of a three-part crossover with the Deadpool and Hulk annuals. (Are they one-upping DC's Detective Comics and Batman annuals' crossover?) If I were to get this I'd have to commit to not one but three $4 comics. Now, it is written by John Layman of Chew fame (which I adore), but it'll have to be amazing for me to squeeze this into an already full month (and from Marvel's point-of-view, a very full month, and months to come with Fear Itself out now).
Spider-Man: With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility is an interesting idea. It seems they're taking the $4/3-issue floppy idea to a new level. This is a series of seven issues, the first of which collects three issues of Ultimate Spider-Man. Subsequent issues look like they'll include reprints with some new material, but I'm not sure how much of each or how it'll be presented. I'm not even sure if they're sticking to the Ultimate universe or if it's a basic overview of Spider-Man over the last decade or two. Interesting idea.
This is the last thing from Marvel, I promise. Hailed as “a comic book based on a video game based on a TV show based on comic books,” Super Hero Squad Online Game: Hero Up! — while an obvious marketing push, which I abhor (see above) — is only 50¢, so it may be worth it for the kids. If it's not a 32-page ad, that is.
And this is the last thing overall. A new B.P.R.D. miniseries, The Dead Remembered comes out today. I've loved everything from the Hellboy universe that I've read, but I'm woefully behind, especially with B.P.R.D. This seems to not need much knowledge, though, as it looks at Liz Sherman in her teenage years, after her power has manifested. Still, I think these are exclusively trade-wait books for me.
Okay, now for the really good stuff!
Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth #2
- Written by Malachai Nicolle
- Art & Cover by Ethan Nicolle
Axe Cop isn’t an ordinary cop! He’s the best crime-fighter the world has ever known, thanks to his amazing team of partners—Dinosaur Soldier, Sockarang, and his pet T. Rex, Wexter!
But right now, Axe Cop is in trouble on a distant world full of dinosaurs. If he can’t make it back to Earth before a team of invading bad guys strikes, we might soon be living on bad guy Earth!
Full of hilarious characters unlike any you’ve ever seen, and exploding with insane adventures like interplanetary warfare and time-travel, Axe Cop is the new comic-book series that everyone is talking about!
This is fun comics, people. I won't say more than I have to, so: Buy this, buy the first issue if you haven't, and buy the next (and last) one. You won't be disappointed.
Status: Buying It.
Herc #1
- Written by Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente
- Pencils by Neil Edwards
- Cover by Carlo Pagulayan
- Variant Cover by John Romita Jr.
This explosive new ongoing series sets Marvel's baddest bone-breaker loose on a raging one-man beat down of the Marvel Universe's vicious criminal underground. And he won't be relying on his fists alone! Armed with the keys to Ares' abandoned armory, Hercules is ready to unleash three thousand years worth of brawling experience upon his foes while preparing to confront the perils of FEAR ITSELF!
It's Hercules like you've never seen him before as he sets out on an action-packed epic of monumental proportions that will keep fans on the edge of their seats and demanding more!
Discover what happens when the Earth's most formidable warrior is forced to cut a swath of destruction through the very core of the Marvel Universe in the all-new, all ruthless Herc #1 & 2 double-shipping this April!
Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente have made me fall in love with Hercules (not in the way the ancient Greeks may have thought, though — a modern, “I have a great interest in this character but do not wish I could fornicate with him” way). Also Amadeus Cho who, sadly, is not in (at least the early issues of) this comic. I realize now, after reading the preview of this, that one of the biggest things I miss now that their massive Hercules saga has ended (kind of herky-jerky) with Chaos War is the focus on mythology. Like, for reals mythology, not just “oh we'll invent some never-heard-of-before Serpent King” mythology. Pak and Van Lente do their research and have heavy doses of actual characters, items and lore from actual myths. I've always had a big interest in mythology and I enjoy how they use and incorporate the stories into their tale. And this seems to continue that (from the first several pages, anyway), even though Herc is now a mortal. So, I'd really like to be able to fit this in as of now. I'm going to have to take a long, hard look at this and future months to see if I can add an ongoing.
Status: In Consideration.
Nonplayer #1
- Writing, Art & Cover by Nate Simpson
The future kind of sucks, and that goes double for Dana Stevens — she's stuck in a dead-end tamale delivery job, and she's way too old to be living with her mom. But in the online fantasy world of Jarvath, she's an elite warrior. When she slays the wife of celebrity game character King Heremoth, her fame seems all but guaranteed — that is, until the game spins totally out of control.
I've really been digging the new comics from Image lately. This one features awesome art, beautiful colors, and an interesting premise. It's also only four issues (always helps to be able to fit these in), so it's not a huge monetary commitment, but it's a big month with some more at least as big on the way, so we'll have to see.
Status: In Consideration.
Who is Jake Ellis? #3
- Written by Nathan Edmondson
- Art & Cover by Tonci Zonjic
Does Jake himself know who he is? Europe closes in around Jon, who is faced with the choice of fight or flight: Will he continue to hide in alleys and nightclubs, or will he fight back — even if doing so means losing his only defense?
This has been really good. I don't have much else to say, other than I'm eager to see more of Jon and Jake's pasts (or is it just one past?) and of what lies in their future(s).
Status: Buying It.
0 comments:
Post a Comment