February 28th, 2007 Reviews
Wolverine #51
I get it! Wolverine has his memories back, yet he still can't always remember what his memories mean! The dead horse has been flogged more than sufficiently! If you are tired of that same old story, then this issue won't do much for you. Plus, this was an issue with little to no advancement of the story. Wolverine's visions continue, Sabretooth and Wolverine throw down some more, the Blackbird crashes (with both Wolvie, and Sabretooth inside), and of course, Storm shows up. One beef I have here is that Loeb can't help but bring in some guest stars. It seems like in every story he does, he can't help but pack the scene with other characters than those that need to be part of the story. He did this very well in Hush, but this story doesn't call for a sprawling cast. All that is necessary is Wolverine and Creed.....that's it. I know Loeb has the ability to tell a good story with those two guys, but he gave into the urge to let his inner fanboy shine through. I am not nearly as annoyed with his use of captions like some people though. I have always seen Logan as the kind of guy who might actually possess the machismo to have an inner monologue laced with clichés and such.
The one saving grace of this issue is the art. Simone Bianchi once again dazzles with his splash pages, and everything else for that matter. Some panels did seem a bit muddy, but I can deal with that when the other 95% of the book is as visually arresting as any other book on the market. The first issue of this arc was awesome. This issue fizzled with the exception of the art. Hopefully things pick up next issue, because one bad issue is forgivable, but two bad issues? Not so much.
Grade: 6/10
Review by Christopher Hoerdemann
Batman Confidential #3
Solid…..not jaw dropping. That's my feeling here. It was better than the last issue, but it still wasn't spectacular. Andy Diggle does his best to try and make Batman's skills with technology astound us, and even though it was slightly amusing, I've seen it done before. The coolest part of this issue is the fact that Diggle is really utilizing the time period of this story. This is in the very early parts of Batman's career, specifically around the Batman: Year One time period. Merkel, a policeman who shows up both in Year One, and in the Dark Knight Returns is in this issue, and Gordon shows up too. We even get a Batman/Gordon encounter, which I always find interesting. Plus, we find out where Batman got his bat-plane.
Whilce Portacio's art is hit and miss for me. There were some really well done parts of this issue with Bruce in costume (with some exceptions when it comes to how he draws Batman's mask). There were also some very "1990's" art in here as well, and it is really distracting. Overall, his art works in some parts, but distracts in other. I laughed out loud at the cover to this issue because of Batman's expression. Is he yelling at an approaching 747?
This was a pretty solid Batman story, and the fact that Diggle is really using the "Year One" asset is pretty exciting. It's not a necessary pick up for Batman fans, but it is a pretty good read.
Grade: 7/10
Review by Christopher Hoerdemann
52 #43
SOBEK! The furry (actually, more like scalely), speaking reptile character who befriends Osiris (yes, it is as bizarre as it sounds) strikes back! Up to this point, I was unsure of why the character existed at all, but now that he chowed down on Osiris at the end of this issue, I'm glad he was included. Before Osiris was chomped on, lots of other stuff happened as well. To begin the issue, Osiris, ashamed of his actions (he killed a man......gruesomely in week 34), heads to the rock of eternity so that the Marvel Family would take away his powers. Before anything of that nature can happen, Black Adam and Isis jump in, and a scuffle ensues. However, just like in every episode of Full House, the characters kiss and makeup. Osiris decides to head back to help the people of Kahndaq along with Black Adam and Isis. In the far reaches of the galaxy, Animal Man is being experimented on by the aliens who picked him up a couple weeks ago. The aliens decide that he is of no use, and drop him off in the middle of space. Well, that was going to be a problem, up until the point where animal Man absorbs the powers of the sun eaters. So it looks like his story is set to continue, and he isn't heading towards his demise like it seemed a couple weeks back. Lady Styx also gets a new lease on life, going all "Alien" on a pregnant woman of an alien race as well. The end of the issue comprises Osiris, still wanting to get rid of his powers (he told Black Adam and Isis what they wanted to hear), seeking Sobek's guidance. Sobek tells him that all he has to do is speak Black Adam's name, and his powers will be gone. So Osiris does just that. Then Sobek proves that you should never trust a talking reptile........ever.
Dan Jurgens provides the art this issue. I always liked his style. It has a more classic, and regal look to it, and I think with this issue it all fit since a lot of the characters are classic and regal (Captain Marvel, Black Adam, etc.). I hope he has some more work on this series, because his art is a real nice change from some of the other art for this series.
So, it looks like the Black Marvel Family's story is heating up. With the quality of this story, I am really looking forward to World War III because it is supposed to be very Black Marvel centric. After last weeks stellar issue, this issue does a really good job of not being a let down.
Grade: 8.5/10
Review by Christopher Hoerdemann
Black Panther #25
I know what I expected with this issue: a mega brawl between Storm and Clone Thor. There was a skirmish........A FLIPPIN’ TINY SKIRMISH! I know covers are misleading sometimes, and this cover really wasn’t (they did fight a little), but I was hoping for a serious smack down like the cover inferred. The fact that I did not get that kind of hampered my reading experience, but there was still some interesting stuff happening in this issue. Storm has a sit down with Reed Richards, and we get to see the final battle of Civil War from a slightly different angle. I’ve heard people complain that Reginald Hudlin’s writing is dreadful, but I can’t figure out why. This was a solid enough story, and the dialogue was pretty good. I even chuckled at the Sue Storm/Storm exchange where they were talking about Hercules putting a beat down on the Clone Thor.
To my surprise, the art in this issue was really good. I wasn’t expecting art like this to be in a Black Panther book, seeing as the Panther is more of a high c-list, or maybe low b-list character. However, Marcus To does great work here. While I’m discussing art, it would be a bad idea to not mention Michael Turner’s awesome cover as well.
Other than the fact that I was misled into believing there was going to be a big fight in this issue, there were some enjoyable, and quality pieces of storytelling here. I probably won’t be picking up anymore Black Panther because, to be honest, I’m not that psyched about the character, but this was still an enjoyable read.
Grade: 8/10
Review by Christopher Hoerdemann
Iron Man #15
The answer to the question of, “how will Civil War change the Marvel Universe,” is simply answered after this issue. Things are very different. At the end of Civil War, Tony Stark has been named as the new director of SHIELD. I wasn’t sure how things were going to go when it came to his own book, but I was pleasantly surprised. It looks like Iron Man’s solo book will deal specifically with Tony’s day to day job as the director of SHIELD. That means that in Mighty Avengers, Tony will have the chance to do his super hero thing, so the character will still be well rounded. This issue goes over all the changes that Tony has made to SHIELD. These revelations come in the form of Dum Dum Doogan lodging a complaint over Tony’s new policies. Everything that is mentioned here flows well, and makes sense. There isn’t really anything that seems out of character, so the people who were unhappy with Tony’s actions in Civil War won’t have anything to complain about here.
The whole reason I picked up this issue was because of Adi Granov’s awesome cover. I really think that his covers alone can sell a book. He’s in the same class as JG Jones, Adam Hughes, and Michael Turner when it comes to cover work. Roberto De La Torre does a really good job with the art chores here. He reminds me of a mix of Alex Maleev, and a little bit of Phil Jiminez.
Civil War is actually bringing change to the Marvel Universe, and ground zero for that change is Iron Man’s monthly title. Iron Man is sitting at the head chair of the Marvel Universe now, and I for one am really happy that this character has a monthly title that people will be excited to pick up.
Grade: 9/10
Review by Christopher Hoerdemann |
