Author Archives: cormacmichael

Jan 31 2018

The Reader Knows Too Much in Action Comics 996

by Michael DeLaney 

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

Action Comics 996 has me thinking about our expectations and interactions with an individual comic book issue. As readers, we are operating in a dimension above the characters on the comic book page. We are omniscient in that we know what Lois and Superman are up to in their separate times and spaces. Unlike Superman, we know that Zod’s son lies in wait for our hero because of Dan Jurgens’s cover for the issue. Since Lor-Zod’s appearance is a foregone conclusion, does that “spoil” the story at all? Does it diminish the final page reveal? Continue reading →

Jan 29 2018

Villains Done In By Their Own Mistakes in Star Wars: Poe Dameron 23

by Michael DeLaney 

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

In the battle of good vs. evil, two things are usually true about the bad guys: they are stupid and they are crazy. In Star Wars: Poe Dameron 23, writer Charles Soule gives us some examples of both of these in the First Order agents Malarus and Terex.  Continue reading →

Jan 24 2018

Upping the Ante in All-New Wolverine 29

By Michael DeLaney

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

I think the best writers at DC or Marvel are those that incorporate the past — warts and all — while paving the way for the future. With secret origins, even secreter origins, clones, children and magical swords, Wolverine has a complicated and silly comic book history. Leave it to Tom Taylor to take on some of that silly and make it a strength. Continue reading →

Jan 22 2018

The Big Brother of Steel in Superman 39

By Michael DeLaney

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

With DC’s recent announcement that The Man of Steel will be regaining his red trunks, it looks like they’re embracing the the classic Superman of yore. Another example is Superman 39, which centers around Superman spending the day with young cancer patients. If that’s not golden age wholesome, then I don’t know what is. Continue reading →

Jan 19 2018

Doctor Strange 384: Discussion

by Michael DeLaney and Spencer Irwin

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

Michael: This is the second week in a row that I get to name-drop the Sentry! I think I may be in the minority when I say that I like the Sentry, the Dr. Jekyll Superman analogue with a Mr. Hyde counterpart called The Void. I don’t think that he should be headlining his own book, but I do like him as a co-star or part of an ensemble. Donny Cates makes excellent use out of the Sentry in Doctor Strange 384. Continue reading →

Jan 11 2018

Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps 36

by Michael DeLaney

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

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Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps 36 sees the conclusion of the “Twilight of the Guardians” storyline, as our favorite Earth Lanterns rescue Ganthet and pals from the Controllers. Unlike previous issues, Robert Venditti frames this issue from Ganthet’s perspective. In the face of his own death via Controller transformation, Ganthet laments on the very long life he’s lived. Most of all he laments on the fact that he has never been a father. Continue reading →

Jan 10 2018

Oliver Casts a Long Shadow in Green Arrow 36

by Michael DeLaney

This article will contain SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

No man is an island — even an archer who spent a decent amount of time in solitude on an actual island. I like to think of Green Arrow as this solo swashbuckling hero, but in the pages of Green Arrow he’s not that, amd maybe he never was. It’s difficult to separate Oliver Queen from the many lives he has affected. Continue reading →

Jan 8 2018

Bad Friends, Big Ants in Guardians of the Galaxy 150

by Michael DeLaney

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

And so the Guardians’ time as Nova Corpsmen seems to have come to an end as they finally root out the Raptor spies posing as Novas. Guardians of the Galaxy 150 wraps up the Nova arc while setting the stage for Infinity Countdown. Overall, it’s a little messy. I’ll say this for the issue though, it finally gives Ant-Man his due. Every now and then Ant-Man pulls out a show-stopping performance that makes you wonder “why doesn’t he do that ALL the time?!” Continue reading →

Jan 5 2018

Batman and The Signal 1: Discussion

by Michael DeLaney and Taylor Anderson 

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

Michael: “Do I fit in?” If you are a human being, then you have likely asked yourself this question at least once in your lifetime. We all want to be a part of something; to be a member of a group, team, or soul-costing cult. And if you’ve been reading Scott Snyder’s Batman run for the past few years, another question has been on your mind: “What the hell is the plan for Duke?” Batman and the Signal 1 finally begins to answer that. Continue reading →

Jan 3 2018

Time Travel Trouble in Action Comics 994

by Michael DeLaney

This article contains SPOILERS. If you haven’t read the issue yet, proceed at your own risk!

With Action Comics 993 I wondered: how many times has Superman traveled back in time to Krypton? Action Comics 994 has me wondering the follow-up questions: how many times has Superman had to watch his birth parents and their home die? Continue reading →