Wednesday's comics

Showing posts with label Wednesday's comics. Show all posts. The posts are listed in chronological order. Click the post title to read more.

Thursday, 30 May 2013 in ,

Wednesday's Comics: 29th May 2013



Brian Wood's X-Men #1 is the standout of the week - though the Superman anthology is a close second.


ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #1 = ★★★★★
Two of my favourite creators, Chris Samnee and Jeff Lemire, give their takes on "classic" Superman. Samnee draws a version of the Man of Steel that would be at home in a Max Fleischer cartoon. As always, Samnee's art is always enhanced by a colourist like Matthew Wilson here who uses a palette that nods in the direction of the Silver Age. It's a piece with Samnee's work on Thor: The Mighty Avenger. Lemire's is the first time I've seen him draw a mainstream superhero. He draws on his strengths: childhood and dreams (it's almost another take on the opening scene from Essex County) and there's a lovely interplay between the water-colour style colouring of the children and the flatter "comic book" style of the fantasy sections. Lemire gets to draw a range of villains: Braniac, Bizarro, Luthor, General Zod and Mr Myxlplyx. They all have the early eighties designs that would have been read by a young Lemire. I'm most taken by his rendering of Superman himself sitting atop a farmhouse: he looks like a regular working-class man who wouldn't look out of place in a rural community.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #7 = ★★★★✩
Cap is still fighting his way through Zola's base in order to find his son, Ian. Meanwhile, Zola launches his invasion of Earth. The shock ending of the last issue, where Cap apparently murdered a defenceless Jet Black while she was showering - turns out to have been nothing more than a knockout. This cover should have been held over for the next issue as it largely spoils this issue's closing scene.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #4 = ★★★★✩
Just as I was about to give up on this, it gets really good - almost like an "old"-52 DC team comic. Catwoman is the centre of what happens here and something pretty startling happens to her (though, no doubt, it'll turn out not to be as dramatic as it seems). There's more Martian Manhunter origin as a second feature.



NEW AVENGERS #6 = ★★★★✩
If they hadn't already stepped over the line, then the Illuminati do now by destroying another universe that's crashing into theirs. I'm liking this much more than what's happening over in the main Avengers title. It's one of those stories where there can't possibly be a happy ending. It's turning into very nasty survival story.



X-MEN #1 = ★★★★★
Brian Wood and Olivier Coipel ace this. Beautiful art and fast-paced plotting. There's a fantastic dramatic sequence on a train. This certainly wasn't the gimmick I was expecting it to be.






SCORING
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.

Saturday, 11 May 2013 in , ,

Wednesday's Comics: 8th May 2013


AVENGERS #11 = ★✩✩✩✩
Ughh. I'm not sure what Hickman was trying with this issue but it's a mess. Various Avengers - but notably none of the big guns - go undercover on A.I.M. Island. The narrative is told in flashback, non-chronologically and from different viewpoints. Humour is turned up... but frankly falls flat. It's rare for me completely dislike a comic but I can't find hardly anything I like in this issue. What happened to the big, cosmic story? Awful.


BATMAN #20 = ★★★★★
I absolutely loved this! I've read lots of comments online about how Synder can't tell shorter stories - in 18 issues he's really only managed to tell two. This two-part Clayface story is great: Clayface collects the genetic imprints of all those around him - even to the point where he discovers that Bruce is Batman. It's a New52 Clayface who makes it clear he's more than just a pile of yuck: "I ain't your daddy's clayface!" There are some fantastic moments: the prototype Batman Beyond/Batman of the Future suit and the way that Damian's death is mourned. Plus I think this is Capullo's best art. In all, a very satisfying issue.

CONSTANTINE #3 = ★★★✩✩
Still searching for occult artefacts, Constantine arrives in London. Various characters - including the City of London itself - try to kill him. There's a mix of dark magic and some moments of humour. London itself looks like it exists in a 1990s Japanese cartoon with cute video game cars. Constantine on the cover looks like a youthful screaming Rod Stewart.



JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #3 = ★★★✩✩
I have one massive gripe with this comic: the portrayal of Green Arrow as a wannabe hero who is desperate to join a team. I'm not sure why Geoff Johns wants the character presented like this. In this issue, Catwoman goes "double agent" to infiltrate the villain's organisation. There's a neat scene where Martian Manhunter probes her mind and we get to see flashbacks of Selina's childhood and youth as well as Martian Manhunter's life on Mars. The implication is - to paraphrase this month's Clayface - "this ain't your daddy's Martian Manhunter": there's something definitely off about him. I'm on the fence about whether I'm going to read JLA longer-term. Trinity War crossover is about to happen and I'll keep on until then. Really, there's not enough to distinguish this title in terms of characters I'm interested in or a strong narrative (it needs one or the other). David Finch's pencils are great, though.

THE PRIVATE EYE #2 = ★★★★★ 
In an off-beat, post-internet future where most people wear masks to protect privacy and the role of the Fourth Estate press is to act as a form of police force, the fall out from the murder of his client crashes down on the illegal private eye, Patrick Immelman. It's classic noir tropes transferred to a bright (almost luridly so) future. Marcos Martin's energetic Moebius-like art suits this weird future world. Must also mention Munsta Vincente's stunning bold colouring. Vaughan introduces more characters into the narrative and we're left on another great cliff-hanging moment. Great great great comic.

THE ROCKETEER: HOLLYWOOD HORROR #4 = ★★★★✩
Cliff Secord goes up against the Hollywood con-man, Otto Rune using Peevy's substitute jet pack while Betty's being sacrificed to a mechanical monster called Sh'ozzoth. I admit that I was skeptical about J Bone's art - but I can see the appeal: it captures a tremendous sense of fun. Couple of great moments: finding out that the narrator is Groucho Marx and Cliff meeting Doc Savage. 

THOR: GOD OF THUNDER #8 = ★★★★★
Now this is what I think is a fantastic issue of a fantastic story-arc. Young Thor attempts to destroy the God Bomb while middle-aged and OAP Thor sail to Gorr, the God Butcher's planet. Esad Ribac's artwork is stunning (though I have to praise Ive Svorcina's beautiful colouring). Best Thor artist since Simonson? 

UNCANNY AVENGERS #8 = ★★★★✩
In contrast with Avengers, this is a cosmic title with an epic plot. This group of Avengers get split up by the Apocalypse Twins who manipulate events. Daniel Acuna takes over art and it's masterly - well suited to such a powerful story. Although it's possible to follow what's happening, having read Remender's run on Uncanny X-force definitely helps in understanding the back story. For me, this is the best of the various Avengers titles.


SCORING
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.








Saturday, 27 April 2013 in , ,

Wednesday's Comics: 24th April 2013




AVENGERS #10 = ★★★★★
The Avengers are called by the Canadians to find out what happened to Omega Flight inside one of the biosphere's created from an attack from Ex Nihilo. Hickman is definitely adding the weird factor to this title - and what happens to Omega Flight (and to the Avengers, really) is more than odd. Undoubtedly, this whole storyline - which includes a great deal of New Universe elements - is building to something mythic. There's a very "modern" feel to the title. It's Mike Deodato's first Avengers issue as artist and he does a pretty good job.

BATMAN, INCORPORATED #10 = ★★★★✩
Loved it! Effectively a bridge to another showdown with Talia, issue 10 has Batman preparing the moves for his endgame. The chess metaphor is heavy here as the knight prepares to take the queen. Structurally, it's like a fast-paced tv show with an ensemble of characters rushing about to create an impression of pace and tension. There's a freaky sequence about half-way in where (the new) Knight and Ranger go to the aid of a captured Jason Todd and end up fighting a beauty pageant of skull-headed women. Jason Todd warns that he's worked out what's happening...but the scene cuts before the reveal. My money is on the Lazurus Pit resurrection of Damian who will then take down his mother, Talia. There's a whole lot of apocalyptic stuff that Morrison needs to resolve, though. I'm glad I stayed with Batman Inc as I was close to dropping it about 5 issues ago.

BEFORE WATCHMEN: COMEDIAN #6 = ★★★✩✩
I thought Before Watchmen had finished and I'd filed away all the issues into a longbox - only to find there's one more issue left. Back from Vietnam after massacring a village, Eddie Blake returns to America and is informed of the impending assassination of Bobby Kennedy. Meanwhile Bobby confronts Eddie and explains he is going to reveal the truth about the Comedian's activities in Vietnam. This mini-series has been fine in terms of giving back story to the Comedian - but it's not extended the character in any way. I'd also argue that the Comedian's appearance in the Ozymandias title was much more engaging - particularly seeing how he discovered the island and gets murdered that leads to the original Watchmen narrative, J.G, Jones does a good job rendering the story in a style similar to the original Dave Gibbons art. I particularly like the way the monochrome pages are used to depict the assassination scene.

FF #6 = ★★★★✩
Always enjoyable. Highlights this issue: the cutaway map of the Baxter Building,  D.O.O.M.H.E.R.B.I.E.S., The Yancy Street Gang donning Ben Grimm masks and wrecking Darla's performance, Tong deciding he's a girl, the Negative Zone, the Inhumans... and... and... It's a fabulously enjoyable comic that really doesn't take itself seriously and looks pop art-wonderful. 


GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #2 = ★★★✩✩
 "Blam! Murdered you!" It's an Avengers movie-type fight in London between the Guardians and the Badoon (reptilian aliens). McNiven and Pichelli's pencilling is great but the story itself is pretty basic: we get a flashback to a meeting between the leaders of different alien races about the menace of humanity. The rest of the issue is pretty much one long fight.


JUPITER'S LEGACY #1 = ★★★★✩

Frank Quitely. That's really all you need to know about Jupiter's Legacy. Oh, and of course, Mark Millar. Think of this as a less epic, less-iconic hero-filled Kingdom Come or The Authority and you'll begin to get the idea of what the first issue of Jupiter's Legacy is about. Before settling in modern day America, the comic starts in the twenties with a group of friends who travel to a hidden, mysterious island and - apparently - acquire super powers. By 2013 they've grown old and have children and this issue flits between the elderly superheroes and their bored celebrity offspring. There's a great fight sequence - but most of the issue consists of characters standing around talking: the youths about themselves and the parents about politics. The tone is pretty sombre and Millar clearly wants to situate this narrative as a polemic about power: why is the world so screwed up when there are people who could do something about it. Quitely draws so stylishly: it's a real treat when he produces new material.

JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #19 = ★★★★✩
This is exactly what I want from JLD: action, creepiness, weird magic plus appearances from heroes from other parts of the DCU. It's fast-paced, too. As a jumping on point it's perfect for new readers. It reminded me of a mix between a silver age comic and something like Shadowpact before the New 52. After a dull story arc, this is set to revive my interest in the title. The art is great. My only gripe is that I dislike how it's panelled: the lightning-electricity that's used looks too much like the pages have been composed on a computer. Highly recommended.

NEW AVENGERS #5 = ★★★★★
The Illuminati (New Avengers, I suppose) are still stuck with the puzzle about how to save the 616 Earth from incursions from other universes. The only option they seem to have is to destroy other worlds. This issue has the captive world-jumper, Black Swan, explain her origin and give more back-story about the incursions. I like how the Black Panther is presented here: all stealth and threatening. It's a great title.


THE FLASH #19 = ★★★✩✩
Barry Allen loses the speed force (something to do with the Dial-H-for-Hero device) and uses Rogues' weapons to defeat a breakout of criminals from jail. I have to say I much prefer Takara's art to Manapul's: the closing pages revealing the new Reverse Flash by Manapul look clunky and primitive compared with Takara's sharper artwork (it also might be something to do with the colouring: I liked the lighter tone of the Takara pages).

UNCANNY AVENGERS #7 = ★★★★✩
I've read Remender's run on Uncanny X-Force so I've got a bit of an understanding about what's going on here. It all gets Celestial and Evolutionary (with capital letters) while back on Earth it's close-up relationships between UA team members. It's very Retro (again with a capital) Avengers - very much like the late 70s or early 80s and has really big things happening that must affect the larger Marvel Universe.

UNCANNY X-MEN #5 = ★★★★★
Fraser Iriving's artwork is stunning. This issue deals with Illyana's problems in controlling her demonic powers and her visit to Limbo to fight with the Dreaded Dormammu. The pages where Irving draws the Darkchilde are fabulous.





SCORING
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.


Wednesday, 24 April 2013 in , , ,

Wednesday's Comics: 17th April 2013


AGE OF ULTRON #6 = ★★★★✩

I have mixed feelings about AU. It's has the possibility of an epic story: the world assimilated by Ultron, all the heroes struggling to survive and their eventual demise, one by one. It's been referred to for enough years that you wouldn't have been foolish to think it would have been a huge crossover event involving all books. The possibility of a reboot. Instead, there's a mini-series where the pacing seems to be a little off. In issue 6 more happens and there's certainly a stunning scene between Hank Pym and Wolverine. Unfortunately, it's all turning into a time travel adventure and - when that's involved - it just means multiple timelines and everything being reset and repaired (although Flashpoint did quite the reverse).

BATWOMAN #19 = ★★✩✩✩

I'm finding it incredibly difficult to enjoy Batwoman these days without J H Williams' artwork (or, at the very least, layouts). Very little seems to happen. It all seems to be about the DEO, the state organisation that Kate Kane works for, wanting to discover the identity of Batman so they can take him down. It looks increasingly like I'm going to drop this title before too long.
CAPTAIN AMERICA #6 = ★★★★✩

This is simply crazy-man, Remender weirdness - and I love it. Cap fights for his adopted son, Ian, by launching a one-man attack on Zola's base in Dimension Z (or wherever this is). Romita does a great job - especially when Cap kills Zola's daughter (he's beyond losing his mind and has a version of Zola's head growing in his chest - or did before he ripped it out last issue). Who knows how this will all join up with the regular Marvel continuity.
DAREDEVIL #25 = ★★★★★

Stunning. Awesome. If you're not reading this comic - you should be. Daredevil goes up against an adversary that seems to have similar powers to himself. Just read it!
JUSTICE LEAGUE #19 = ★★★✩✩


Uh? Surely I've read this before? In fact, I swear I watched an animated movie version of this plot-line. The Bat Cave gets broken into and someone steals something that Batman has kept hidden in case members of the Justice League went rogue. The villain reveal at the end seems hyperbole. The back-up Shazam story by Johns and Frank is the real gem. It deserves its own title.

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #19 =

 Bit of a crisis for the Legion. Mon-El gets beaten up by a weird green lantern-type villain with a giant floating eye.

NOVA #3 = ★★★✩✩


My teenage son liked this a lot and thought that it was a good replacement for the cancelled Blue Beetle he was reading. Aside from Ed McGuinness' art - which I think suits this child-centred narrative - this is a pedestrian story. There's nothing awful about the title, just nothing you probably haven't read before.
THE SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #8 = ★★★✩✩


It might be how I'm feeling but this was the first Dan Slott Spider-man comic that I didn't totally enjoy. The reason why? At the end of the last issue everything was set up for a battle between The Avengers and Spidey. It could have been an epic, big-arsed fight but ended up being speedily resolved in just two pages by Cap hitting Spidey in the face with his shield. Talk about the opposite of decompressed! Doc Ock now realises that there's some residual of Peter's consciousness remaining and there's a great cliff-hanger. Ramos, as always, excels. (Probably, this is an excellent issue - I'm just sorry that the opening fight was so... lame!)

WONDER WOMAN #19 = ★★★✩✩

How much longer is this storyline go to go on for? Something else happen, please!


SCORING
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.

Thursday, 4 April 2013 in , ,

Thursday's Comics: 4th April 2013




All-new X-men 10 = ★★★✩✩

Bendis. Issue 10 of the old/new X-men is a typical Bendis comic. Yes, there's a couple of pages of action: a mutant bank job. Yes, there's multiple narratives that tie together. Yes, there's a great deal of standing around talking. And there's a lot of standing around talking. And a lot of word balloons. Stuart Immonen makes the issue look amazing, though.



The Hypernaturals 10 = ★★★★★

Thinkwell realises he's being manipulated by someone/thing that's re-written his memories. In this issue we get a good look at the Quantinuum AI mainframe and find out about Side Space and the possible existence of sentient life there. Every issue of The Hypernaturals has been excellent - and this is no exception. It's all gearing up to the conclusion (of the first arc: I'm hoping they'll be more Hypernaturals). What's so great about this title is the detail of the world-building Abnett and Lanning have gone into. Really is an enjoyable comic.



Age of Ultron 4 = ★★★★✩

Two Avengers are killed, the location of Ultron is revealed (sort of) and the heroes head for The Savage Land to carry out Nick Fury's end of the world plan. The narrative has picked up and stuff actually happens in this issue (though I'd love someone to do a sixties or seventies version of AU over one or two issues). Bryan Hitch's artwork is less consistent here: he does great cityscapes but in some panels the characters look a little rough. Now Bendis is mentioning the future I'm wondering if we're going to see some sort of Marvel Universe reboot).



 Action Comics 19 = ★★★✩✩

After the publicity DC's given to Andy Diggle's run on Action Comics (how embarrassing then for DC to have him walk out even before the first is published) it needed to be good... well, at least as good as Grant Morrison's. First thing: does Superman's costume now magically appear? He doesn't just wear it under his Clark Kent clothes? Second: what's infrasonic? Why does it hurt Superman so much? Third: if Lex Luthor's such a genius then why does he need a psychiatrist? The actual story - besides all the fighting with giant mechanical war machines - is pretty standard: Luthor infects Superman with some form of virus that begins to alter his DNA. Tony Daniel seems to like drawing (virtually) whole-page panels.



The Superior Spider-man 7 = ★★★★✩

Really good issue - AGAIN! Ock-Spidey goes up against Cardiac and Peter Parker manages to begin to communicate. Ramos is getting quite cartoony again with his artwork (take a look at how The Avengers are drawn at the end of the issue). Next issue looks like it's going to be pretty awesome: Spidey Vs. The Avengers.



Animal Man 19 = ★★★★✩

After the interminably Rotworld arc, this is a treat of an issue. The sequence where Buddy Baker goes back into the Red is excellent and the issue ends terrifically. I think Steve Pugh's artwork is absolutely great. His characters are drawn really well and convey a real sense of grief. I'm hoping Animal Man will carry on like this (though we need some traditional villains in there).



Green Lantern 19 = ★★★★✩

Another title that is qualitatively better than it's been for many issues is Green Lantern. While Hal is still about to kill himself so he can become a black lantern, the issue focuses on Sinestro and his relationship with his home world of Korugar. The First Lantern turns up to fight Sinestro and there's a world-shattering ending (literally). Hopefully the (next) final issue of John's run on GL will be as good.




Swamp Thing 19 = ★★★★★

Loved this. Now the Rotworld arc is over and there's a new creative team - Charles Soule and Kano - there's a chance for Swamp Thing to tell some great stories. This issue sees Alec Holland carrying out his role as avatar of the Green and beginning to realise his inhumanity. He heads to Metropolis and encounters The Scarecrow who hits Swamp Thing with one of his chemicals. Holland's fears - which are played out among the buildings of Metropolis - are not being able to control his powers and the Green going wild. It's the return of Swamp Thing to the DCU that I like the most - particularly when you see that Superman turns up at the end. Soule is someone I've not read before (he seems fairly new to comics) but I'm certainly looking forward to seeing where he takes this title. Kano is great - as always.


SCORING 
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.

Sunday, 31 March 2013 in , ,

Wednesday's Comics: 27th March 2013





East of West 1 = ★★★★✩

Not a fan of alternate future post-apocalyptic stories, this was hard work for me - but it turned out to be a pretty interesting start. Cowboys, science fiction tech, the four horseman of the apocalypse - it's a crash of ideas which, I'm sure, will be woven together into a pretty engaging longer-term narrative. I like the character designs of the two (presumably) demi-gods who accompany Abaddon (Death). There's a great bar fight sequence which is comically shown from the horrified face of the bartender. It's not as enthralling as Saga but I'll stay with this for a few issues to see how it goes.

Aquaman 18 = ★★★★✩

Arthur is hunting down Atlantean technology used by surface dwellers. Meanwhile a crazy-looking old guy, who refers to himself as the King of the Sea, does some ice damage and encounters Mera. Better than the recent JL crossover.

Batman Inc 9 = ★★★★✩

The fall-out from Damian's death is better handled here than the other bat books. We get to see what happened directly after the killing and how the family respond. I liked this issue a lot - much more, in fact, than I have at any point in the run. That Batman and his Inc are now illegal and have to go underground is a much-needed move. The pacing of this issue was perfect and I had more of a sense of Bruce's agony here than in the regular Batman title.


FF 5 = ★★★★✩

This is so odd that I love it. The minute the Allreds are off - it'll lose its charm. Essentially, this is a weird soap opera. There's some continuity stuff going on from the Hickman run on FF - but it really doesn't matter.

Guardians of the Galaxy 1 = ★★★★✩

It does the job of a first issue pretty well. The problem is set up (Earth's made a target), the characters are identified ("it's the most dangerous tree in the universe") and there's a lot of action. Undoubtedly this is pitched at the audience for the GotG movie next year when this'll be in trade. Incorporating Iron Man in the team is a clever move: it grounds the team with a known superhero (and I wonder if Robert Downey Jr will be in the film, too). McNiven does fine work as artist - even though I think the costumes stink.


The Superior Spider-man 6AU = ★★★✩✩

At first I disliked this tie-in with Age of Ultron. Not written by Dan Slott, the voice of "Superior" Peter Parker was off - it wasn't the Ock that is Spider-man in the regular title. By the end, once I'd ignored the voice, I did warm to the story. Spidey, Tony Stark and Quicksilver plan to use Negative Zone tech to defeat Ultron. Instead, Ock-Peter decides to try controlling Ultron with his own technology and fails. The one opportunity they had is lost and Ock-Peter realises the value of the Avengers as a team. It's not a necessary read for AU and is really more-of-the-same in terms of Ock-Peter developing insight and respect about Peter Parker.

Young Avengers 3 = ★★★★✩


I didn't read issue 2 so I'm a little lost precisely about what's going on. McKelvie  and Norton are the attractions here. Like FF, it's a teen soap with superheroes that ends in a nightclub.



Age of Ultron 3 = ★★★✩✩

This is already dragging. We're already a third of the way through and nothing much has really happened. I'm becoming aware of panel after panel of characters just standing around talking to each other - a criticism that's often leveled at Bendis. The reveal at the end is decent enough and Bryan Hitch's art is great. It does seem like a "What If?"-type comic: the characters look very different than they do in other titles and the plot appears completely out of sync with the rest of the Marvel Universe. It has to pick up the pace or I'll be dropping after the next issue. I actually wonder if this is written for a popcorn-chomping mass (movie-) Avengers audience who will look as the great visuals, see versions of the movie characters and not be fussed about things like a decent narrative.

Flash 18 = ★★★✩✩

The Manapaul-esque artwork and storyline continues (the artist is Marcio Takara who does a fine job). Flash attempts to help out the Trickster, who he thinks is being framed. A couple of characters who were sucked into the speed force now have powers similar to Barry Allen's. I'm not sure what the purpose of giving Trickster a mechanical arm. Dislike having to pick up Dial H for Hero to read the next part of the story.


Justice League Dark 18 = ★★✩✩✩

Thank goodness that this arc is over. JLD isn't dark at all. It did start out with a lot of promise - but my good will for this title has almost run out. It reminds me of Demon Knights: both are potentially great off-beat team books but seem bland in comparison with books like Uncanny Avengers from Marvel. Swamp Thing in next issue. If it's no better then I'm going to drop it.

Uncanny Avengers 5 = ★★★★★


Thought this was great. It reminded me of a 80s Avengers issue: mysterious opening, classic villains, team meeting, public showoff of new members, battle. Plus it has that quirky Remender oddness that worked so well in the X-Force run. Coipel on art is a perfect stand-in for Cassaday. Remender seems to be able to present character moments within a pretty dramatic narrative. Unlike AU, there's  a brisk pace - almost too brisk.


SCORING 
✩✩✩✩✩ = Awful.
★✩✩✩✩ = Poor.
★★✩✩✩ = Average.
★★★✩✩ = Good.
★★★★✩ = Very good.
★★★★★ = Excellent.