Hey Simmo, welcome back! Where you been?
Working. Working, working, working, working.
Fallen behind in your comics reading then?
Yes. But I have managed to keep up with a few books that everyone has already read…here’s my opinions anyway!
X-Men #207: Oh man. This crossover was really good. Why did it have to end like this? I’m not saying that Messiah Complex is the disappointment a lot of Marvel’s other events have been, because the story as a whole has been fine. But there are a couple of elements missing in the last chapter. X-Factor are notable absentees, their relevance to the crossover questionable. The New X-Men have been clearing up loose ends in plot from their own series, and, like Madrox’s team, not entirely integral to the arc. I can live with these though…there’s a certain amount of re-setting about to occur. Bachalo’s art really lets this book down too, much of it confusing and muddy. It took me a couple of re-reads to work out that Bishop is pretty heavily maimed. Still, I can deal with Bachalo’s preference of Style over story-telling too. Where this falls down for me is that the new mutant child is no longer even in the present, ready to save mutant kind. She’s taken to the future with Cable, and the X-Men still face the same problem of mutant extinction they did when the crossover started. Basically, a Maguffin has made the crossover an extended chase sequence, with a final status quo not unlike the opening. Does anyone else really believe that the X-Men are breaking up? Not me, at least. So, while it’s all been a fun ride, I wish there had been a more definitive ending and a bit more psychological development to get there.
The other stuff:
Amazing Spider-Man #548. So, why does this work better without MJ? I’m not sure. And the ending of the first part of Brand New Day lets us pass some judgement on the "let’s not call it a" Relaunch. Look, it’s not a bad Spidey story. Mr Negative has a lot of potential as a new Spidey villain. McNiven’s art is pretty. And I don’t dislike it. But it’s not the Gee Whiz Spider-Man book we were promised. Good, but not great.
Young Avengers Presents #1. The Patriot issue. Ed Brubaker strikes again! Another home run! The Young Avengers have certainly been struggling for momentum latley, with series creator Allen Heinberg basically out of the picture. So Marvel are filling the void with a series of focussed one-shots, and the first one is a treat. The bright clear art by Paco Medina is a massive help, but Brubaker gives Patriot both a chance to shine and some terrific character moments as he meets up with the Winter Soldier, looking for guidance on his role in the MU. A great start to the new series, and I’ll be picking up the inevitable hardcover to go with my other YA books.
Astonishing X-Men #24. Big meh. This has gone on way too long. It’s good, but too infrequent. All I’ll say is, I don’t believe the last word on the page above.
Hopefully by next week I’ll be back on track, looking at some of the more minor books Marvel’s shipping. Thanks for reading!
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