The Incredible Hercules #141 — Writers: Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente; Art: Rodney Buchemi; (Agents of Atlas story/7 pgs.): Writer: Jeff Parker; Art: Gabriel Hardman
This ends the multi-part, multi-guest-star “Assault on New Olympus” storyline, and shakes up the status quo (or should that be “Cho”?) considerably (although, when a major player is “killed,” and the body is “vaporized,” the creators aren’t exactly bending over backwards to make you think it’s permanent). As always, Pak and Van Lente have proven adept at moving their large number of pieces around, and keeping the pot boiling; readers who like following these all-the-bells-and-whistles mainstream superhero tales could do worse than their knowledgeable, competent example here.
Astounding Wolfman #21 — Writer: Robert Kirkman; Art: Jason Howard
Invincible #70 — Writer: Robert Kirkman; Pencils: Ryan Ottley; Inks: Cliff Rathburn
Two by Kirkman: Wolfman begins a five-part story that will end the comics’ run, while Invincible (which, as Kirkman points out in the book, has reached an impressive number of issues), completes the Sequids sequence and gears up for another big Viltrumite beatdown thingie; it looks like it’ll run forever. Kirkman, like Pak and Van Lente, is very good at using standard comic tropes with an enthusiasm that helps to conceal their age; there isn’t much at the center of his work (only in Walking Dead do you get the feeling that he really, really cares about his characters), but his skillful manipulation and attractive, open style mines the best work from his artists, leads to fun, sprawling letters pages, and keeps readers coming back for more.
Uncle Scrooge #388 — Writers: “Staff Di If”; Art: Francesc Bargad Studio
Continuing to reprint the better European stories with the character (at least, I assume that’s what “Staff Di If” and “Francesc Bargad Studio” mean — geez, Boom! Studios, it wouldn’t kill you to add a paragraph or two of editorial explanation). Scrooge bets another multi-billionaire that he can travel around the world (with Donald, but not the nephews) for less than $80, and hijinx ensue. It isn’t horrible, but to readers spoiled by Barks and Rosa (not to mention Van Horn or the Blocks) it’s pretty average stuff, and it isn’t helped by the way they just slap a “To be continued” tag at the bottom when they run out of pages. Clever, well-drawn international-monetary version of an old gag for the “B” version cover, though.
Doomwar #1 (of 6) — Writer: Jonathan Mayberry; Pencils: Scot Eaton; Inks: Andy Lanning and Robert Campanella
Just what the title implies: Doom, in this issue against the Black Panther, Storm and Wakanda, with the X-Men hanging around too, and presumably the rest of the Marvel Universe to follow in the other five issues. The story might be solid enough, but the visuals drag it down: Eaton looks like he rushed it (and having to draw more than a dozen main characters couldn’t have helped), while the coloring is a disaster, rendering the not-that-great-anyway art murky and almost impossible to follow. Even the cover, by the normally-dependable Romita Jr., is a mess: jangled bodies, Doom masks, impossible to figure out and offering no incentive for the casual reader to buy this book. When this is selling under 10,000 copies by the final issue, they’ll have no one to blame but themselves….
Punisher #14 — Writer: Rick Remender; Art: Tony Moore and Dan Brereton
Worth noting because the middle 14 pages are an origin of the current monster-hunting bad guy, drawn by Dan Brereton, and it’s nice to see his painted, colorful horror style (complete with huge Japanese beasts) again; if you’ve been a fan of Nocturnals, Giantkiller, or his other work over the last few decades, you’ll want to check out this book. The Frankencastle thing continues to be weirdly readable (because both Remender and Moore are having such obvious fun with it), although it’s got to be a danger sign when you spend half of every letters page defending your book’s direction.
Devil #1 (of 4) — Writer/Artists: Torajiro Kishi and Madhouse Studios
A Dark Horse manga adaptation involving a vampiric virus (the vamp connection being, one presumes, why it was selected as a possible hit for American audiences) that turn its victim into “devils,” with superpowers and a lust for blood and desctruction. Lots of PG-13-rated guns, sex and violence, as you might expect, with debates about the civil rights of the devils (since they’re innocent victims, although there’s no cure for their condition) versus the need to just blow those bloodsuckers away. Pretty standard, B-movie anime stuff, with a cynical, bleak tone; it knows how to keep the reader turning the pages, but not much more than that.
Phil Mateer
