The Bill January 26, 2010

No weird shipping tricks this week, just an old fashioned Wednesday release day. Assuming, of course, that you ignore that kerfluffle in The Fantastic Four. Seems interesting-ish, but not enough to get me to buy a polybag again. You got me in the 90s, Marvel, never again!

I did, however, buy plenty of non-polybagged issues. Let me tell you what I think about'em.




Coming To An End:

Chaos War # 5
Writers: Fred Van Lente and Greg Pak
Artist: Koi Pham


I was kind of dreading reading this book. Not because it's bad or anything, but more because it's the end of The Incredible Hercules epic from Pak and Van Lente. But what an ending!

In an era where finale's tend to be let-downs, I'm very happy to report that this one satisfied. If you were reading The Incredible Hercules for big fights, clever plot twists, or some sexy loving, it's all here for you. A fitting end for a fabulous run... Or is it?

The best part about this book? I mean, aside from the massive throwdown between The Chaos King and everyone. The reveal that the Pak/Van Lente Hercules will continue in the much shorter titled 'Herc' in April. Those crafty SOBs, they had me worried for a bit.

April can't come soon enough. Until then, I think I have a run to reread.



Better Than It Should Be:

Avengers #9
Writer: Brian Bendis
Artist: John Romita Jr.


After stumbling out of the gate, Bendis has been doing gangbusters with this story line. It's no instant classic, but it's certainly some of the better Bendis I've read in a while.

This issue dealt with the fallout of the Illuminati reveal last issue and filled in the blanks on how The Hood got out of prison. And while it might not totally jibe with the Avengers Academy version, it was pretty alright. In fact, I would have to say I dug this issue.

But.

You know, because there's always a 'but'. While this issue, and the last for that matter, were pretty good, there's not a lot of momentum building. I can see it swelling, but in a typical Bendis manner, it's a slow swell. My hope is that the next two issues actually have our heroes going and fighting something and not just sitting around and talking.

I'm really afraid that they'll just sit around and talk. Please let them go do something, Bendis. I promise to say nice things about the book if you do...



Man, it is late and I am desperately tired. Questions and comments are always welcome. Especially if you want to give me a heads up on something new to check out. I'm always down for the new.

Until then, more Darkhawk.

The Bill November 17, 2010

Somehow even though some of my favorite books are being or have been cancelled, I still ended up bring home a huge (for me) haul this week. How does that work? What craziness did I buy? What did I think of them?

Well, let's stop wasting time and find out. Shall we?



Worst Chaos War Tie-in of the Week:
Chaos War: Chaos King
Writer: Brandon Montclare
Artist: Michael Wm Kaluta


I had no idea what to expect from this one.

Well, I take that back. I expected this issue to be all about the major antagonist, maybe giving us some major backstory on him and/or his motivations. Hell, maybe give us a glimpse of what it was like the last time he was in charge of things. I most certainly didn't expect what the issue actually was.

I'll tell you, I'm a hard sell when it comes to otherworldly books. Be it Thor, Nova, Guardians of the Galaxy, or The Silver Surfer, I always have a hard time connecting with those types of foreign stories. It's hard for me to find the center, and as a result I find myself not caring.

This issue was otherworldly squared: It focused on the Gods from Norrin Radd's old digs, Zenn-La as they fended off the title character. Needless to say, I was under impressed.

Add to this the overwrought dialogue and the unclear art and you have a nearly incomprehensible read. It was just a chore to get through, devoid of any of the fun that runs through the other (Dead Avengers) parts of this crossover have in spades.

Do yourself a favor and leave this one on the shelf. And if you really need a Chaos War fix this week, do yourself a favor and pick up Dead Avengers instead.



Not A Promising Start of the Week:
Avengers # 7
Writer: Brian Bendis
Artist: John Romita Jr.


I don't know what to do about this book.

On the one hand, I'm a crazy fanboy when it comes to the Infinity Gauntlet and would love to see it brought back. On the other, I hate Bendis' pacing. To be fair, this isn't really a terrible issue. It's just very unsatisfying.

In this installment we follow ol' Bendis favorite Parker Robbins (AKA, The Hood) as he searches for another replacement for his powers, this time in the form of the Infinity Gems. Also, Iron Man and Thor have a mild heart to heart with Wonder Man, who was last seen breaking shit in the Avengers Tower five months ago. It's... interesting?

See, here's the thing. The book isn't horrible, it's just kinda... underperforming for me. There's some interesting things going on here, but there's not enough of it. It's almost typical Bendis where he takes his sweet time with stealth action scenes, has some nice interplay moments, only incrementally inches the plot forward, but this time it just feels very empty.

I dunno. I know I said this before, but I think I'm going to give this book one more chance and then no more.

It's up to you issue 8, don't let me down.




And there you have it. I bought a few other things too, like Thunderbolts and Osborn, but I'll talk more about them on my twitter. You should stop on by and say hi.

Or you can drop a line here, whatever works for you.

The Bill October 20, 2010

Only two books this week, one from each big Marvel event happening right now. Let's just skip the preamble and get to it!




From The Event I'm NOT Reading:

Power-Man #3
Writer: Fred Van Lente
Artist: Mahmud Asrar


I'll tell you, I don't know what to think about this one. The first two issues, which I picked up a bit belatedly, were great; it was the perfect update of the Power Man idea for this Internet Era. This issue... well, not so much.

It was probably just a mood I was in when I was reading it, but this seemed to be lacking some of the fun of the previous issues. Was it the lack of Luke Cage? An overabundance of Cottonmouth? The lack of gratuitous punching? I dunno. All I know is whatever it was, I missed it.

That's not to say it was all bad. For a book that marked up pretty heavily with the 'Shadowland' branding, I don't feel like I'm missing anything by not reading the main book. Also, I'm really digging the inevitable team up of this new Power Man and Iron Fist, it won't be the same without Luke though.

Here's hoping this is just a bump in the road, and not a sign of things to come...





From The Event I AM Reading

Chaos War # 2
Writers: Greg Pak, Fred Van Lente (That guy again!)
Artist: Koi Pham


I kind of mentioned this two weeks ago, but: This book rocks!

It's no big secret that Pak and Van Lente have been pulling out all the stops with Hercules for the past few years now. They have, single handedly (or double handedly), turned Hercules from a take-it-or-leave it character to a totes awesome, can't-miss, I-will-fight-you-if-you-don't-agree-this-is-the-coolest-Herc-interpretation-ever, character that I'll forever love.

Anyway, this issue is smack dab in the middle of the big mega story that's been buliding in Herc since... what Secret Invasion? Herc shows off his fancy new powers, Venus busts some classic jams, and my favorite world devourer shows up pretending it's the Secret Wars all over again; yeah, it was pretty rad.

I'm pretty stoked by the start of this event, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out. (I bet it ends with Galactus and Herc drinking. Or rather, I wish it would...)





That's all I got. If you wanna ask me about the other books I got, well too bad, I only got two. But maybe I'd get more if someone gave me some suggestions...

The Bill July 21, 2010

Super super quick reviews tonight because everything was so great I just couldn't not say anything. So let's get to it!



Change of format too, I'm just going to rundown what I got and what I thought.

1- Avengers #3. Starting to fall into that Bendis I don't like where the story stagnates for three issues before an unsatisfactory ending. Maybe it would be a good idea to make your villains show up more than just a cameo in the first issue. Just saying.

2- Scott Pilgrim in his Finest Hour. Super great! I want to read them all in one sitting, just in case I missed anything, but I liked it. Even if I didn't totally get all that 'glow' nonsense.

3- Thunderbolts #146. I need this book to come out faster than once a month. The writing and art is super fantastic, one of the best books out there right now.

4- Prince of Power # 3. Whenever this thing comes out, I'm surprised at how clever it is. Case in point, my favorite page of the week and the aftermath of Amadeus getting the Egyptian goddess of destruction drunk:



What a fantastic way to kick off the convention. Speaking of, don't forget to follow me on twitter and/or try to run in to me on the floor. I think I'll be wearing my Aargvark shirt.

See you soon!

Getting Ready For War!

Late last week Marvel announced their next big crossover: The Chaos War.

Picking up on the plot threads from the past few years of The Incredible Hercules, The Chaos War has my favorite immortal face off against the returning chaos god, Mikaboshi who was last seen subjugating the Skull's pantheon for his own gain. But the good times don't stop there! Herc isn't facing off against this big threat by his lonesome; he's assembling a brand-new God Squad. The squad will boast the membership of heavy hitters like Venus and the Silver Surfer, obscure 90s heroes like Sersi, and my personal favorite: Galactus!

Given their past, I'm VERY excited to see Galactus and Herc meet up again. Here's hoping it'll live up to it, if not with the drinking, then definitely with the awesomeness.

I can't wait until October!

The Hercules Everyone Hates

The GirlFriend and I have a constant argument about Hercules.

To her, Hercules is Kevin Sorbo, a fun loving guy who goes on wacky adventures with his pal, Iolaus, in the annuls of syndicated television. I argue that Hercules is the beer-loving, womanizing, Prince of Power from the Marvel Universe. I have yet to make her see the errors of her ways.

But there's one thing we do agree on: Disney's Hercules is the worst.


Hercules was released in that dark period of Disney animation between The Lion King and... well I guess present day. As such, neither the GirlFriend or myself really paid attention to it when it came out.

Well, that's not really true. To be honest, we both confessed that we wanted to see it, but the combination of bad reviews, Disney Fatigue, and getting older just kept us from the theater. I remember always admiring the design of the movie, it's strong angular lines and stylized approach; it was a nice departure from the normal Disney fare. I was also really intrigued by the strong male hero, because most of the Disney movies were for girls, and all I had to root for was Aladdin (which isn't a bad thing). It was these expectations that set up my ultimate disappointment in the final product.


When it comes down to it, the problem with Disney's Hercules is that it's not Hercules. Herc, traditionally, is a man of two worlds (the gods and the mortals) who uses his extraordinary abilities to sleep with as many women as he can while dealing with a bitchy step-mother (Hera). Meanwhile, the Disney version has Herc as a god who is stolen away, then raised by kindly farmers who instill him with a foundation of good, before becoming a hero to the masses so he can rise to godhood again. To be fair, I realize that the Disney version couldn't be a womanizer, or be the by-product of an affair, but it seems more Superman than Hercules.


Disney didn't stop at just getting the character wrong, they ignored Hercules' greatest feats. I don't know about you, but when I think about Hercules I think about the 12 labors. The stables, the apples, fighting the lion (The only lion in Disney's version is a throwaway joke!), all that, that's what makes Hercules Hercules. The Disney version opts to forgo all that to make up a story about Hades freeing the imprisoned Titans so he can topple Zeus and his kingdom.

As a quick aside, I feel really bad for Hades as a character in fiction. Talk about getting a bad rap for nothing. Poor guy is given the choice between ruling the seas or ruling the underworld, and he's forever demonized for it. Just because he's the ruler of the underworld doesn't mean he's Satan! It's not like if you're a good Greek you'll end up running around Mt. Olympus. Everyone who dies goes to the underworld and it's his job to make sure the place stays open. He needs a better PR agent. But anyway...


To top off their trifecta of terrible, the animation is just uninspired in Disney's Hercules. Aside from the fantastic Motown inspired Muse musical sequences scattered throughout, the whole movie just feels lazy. Medium shot after medium shot of the characters standing and talking with very little dynamism. I'm not asking for crazy Anime stuff, it would just be nice to see a little variation here and there.


In the end, it's a movie best left on the video store shelf (or the Netflix storeroom, if that's how you roll) to drift further into obscurity. That said, I don't think I'll ever get "Go The Distance" outta my head.