Review / Pre-view - Marvel at the Amazing Comic Book Report by Stu! 3/6/17

Stu Somers
March 07, 2017
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Welcome to my weekly comic book oriented article here for Flipside Gaming. Today, we are reviewing the previous week’s best Marvel books and previewing the coming week’s books that are the most intriguing in descending order. So, without any further delay, here we go! Excelsior!

 

Reviews:

 

America #1

 

This issue was one of the better first issues I have read in a while. Between the artwork being spot on and the issue reading like a non-traditional superhero book, I think that most readers will really enjoy this. We get to witness this character start college while exploring here background with the Ultimates while dealing with her girlfriend and the added humor to the book really makes the read quite enjoyable. I am going to add this book to my regular rotation of reads and I think I am going to be looking forward to reading this book every month going forward.

 

Avengers #5

 

Kang War has felt like an event book without every declaring itself as such, but I think when it comes to dealing with Kang that this is where we were going to end up. This was the best issue of it so far because for once Kang has his world and ways turned against him and that is something he ever expected to face. The artwork was pretty good and the physical comedy was on full display and there was never a doubt if the artist could handle such a trippy ride through time.

 

Clone Conspiracy Omega #1

 

I am going to have to say that this was the best part of Clone Conspiracy. It showed how much of a mess that Peter has gotten himself into and it is the quintessential showing of how bad the “Parker Luck” really is at times. Everyone is hurting and the exploration of Rhino’s pain was quite effective and made you feel very sympathetic towards the character. We did not see a full face turn for him like I thought we would, but with both Rhino and Spider-man vowing to keep tabs on each other on their healing, I think there is more to come for the Rhino.

 

Monsters Unleashed #4

 

I think the best way to think of the Monsters Unleashed event is to compare it to the summer blockbusters movies. Do you want mindless action and not very much plot? Than this is the series for you. Watching Sam Wilson and Spider-Man team up with Fin Fang Foom and Groom makes for some pretty nice eye candy, but the story is really stereotypical of those blockbuster movies. There is just no real connection to any of the human characters like Kid Kaiju and his parents. At least the artwork has been pretty nice and the dialogue between superheroes has been funny, but the story itself is just a resounding “meh.”

 

Deadpool #28

 

As entertaining and humorous Deadpool is, this issue actually made me a bit sad. One of Shiklah’s demons is lost in a New York subway station and all of a sudden - the gun-wielding citizens open fire on the monster who was only looking for a way home. As funny as seeing the old lady with a gun, it was kind of sad the monster as gunned down for no reason. This makes Shiklah’s declaration that NYC is hers a bit more sympathetic and I am almost rooting for her to win. Wade’s attempt to recruit all of his “friends” to his side was amusing and I think we are going to see quite a team-up eventually, but for the first part of this arc I can see Deadpool being on his own against his wife.

 

Previews:

All-New Wolverine #18

  

I think that Enemy of the State II has been a bit under the radar when it comes to big story arcs to start the New Year. It has been overshadowed by Monsters Unleashed and Clone Conspiracy but it has definitely had its moments. With the movie Logan coming out this past weekend and the new status quo being set up with Laura taking over as Wolverine, I could see this series having a huge impact in the coming months so I would not want to miss out on the conclusion to the first big arc for the new Wolverine.

 

Captain America: Steve Rogers #13

 

Things are starting to come to a head for Steve Rogers and Secret Empire setup. We get to revisit World War 2 and see how Captain America fought on behalf of the Allies while still working for Hydra. I think we are going to see a lot of classic imagery and have it be slightly altered to fit the new Captain America and that should pay off in some pretty sweet story telling.

 

IvX #6

 

Everything finally comes to a head in the conclusion to Inhumans Vs X-men. X-men have seemingly dominated this event but I think the Inhumans have some tricks up their sleeves to close the gap between the more seasoned X-men. That being said, the events at the end of issue 5 with the younger generation not agreeing with how the older guard is handle this conflict could be a very interesting turning point for both franchises going forward. The fact that both have upcoming TV shows makes me believe that we are not going to see either fade into the background.

 

Kingpin #2:

 

The first issue was a very pleasant surprise in that it made you believe that the Kingpin is really trying to over a new leaf. Now, whether that is going to happen or not is totally up in the air. I actually want to see them go through with the character change for a while because it is a space that has not been explored. The fact that he has recently showed up in Spider-Man to let Peter know the whereabouts of Norman Osborne make me believe that we will get to see that play for awhile.

 

Man-Thing #1

  

I don’t think I would be necessarily excited for this issue if it wasn’t for the fact that R.L. Stine of Goosebumps fame writing for it. Thankfully, Marvel has let Man-Thing be able to speak in this reboot of the character so we can see Stine really give Man-Thing a chance to shine. I really recommend brushing up on the background of Man-Thing so that you can jump into this series already knowing the highlights and can sit a back and enjoy the ride.

 

 

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to stop in any Flipside Gaming in East Greenbush to pick up or reserve your copies of these titles today!
 -Stu Somers
Stu is a former M:TG Pro Tour competitor and avid comic book fan. He wants to know what you think about his article, so leave a comment below or hit him up on twitter @Ssomers55.

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