Category Marvel

Mar 18 2013

Fantastic Four 5

fantastic four 5

Today, Mikyzptlk and Jack are discussing Fantastic Four 5, originally released March 13th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: Ah families, they come is all shapes and sizes, but they all have one thing in common. At the end of the day, they’ll always have your back. The Fantastic Four have always been Marvel’s First Family. Series writer, Matt Fraction, makes sure to keep that in mind as we go into issue 5. But how exactly does a family of space faring superheroes interact with one another and work out their problems? As it turns out, the same way that everyone else does.

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Mar 15 2013

Age of Ultron 2

age of ultron 2

Today, Ethan and Drew are discussing Age of Ultron 2, originally released March 13th, 2013. This issue is part of the Age of Ultron crossover event. Click here for complete AU coverage.

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Ethan: In recent years, after the financial markets fell screaming into their perennial nosedive, the city of Detroit hasn’t done so well. Workers who had spent their lives with a company were laid off, branches were closed, businesses died, buildings were abandoned. Over time, the violence of the changes and departures faded as the temperatures, wind, and microorganisms went to work. Materials that we associate with longevity — brick, stone, even plastics — took on a distinctly alien appearance of decay. The effect even got a name — “ruin porn” — and photographers from across the country flocked to capture the scenes. Reading through the second issue of Age of Ultron evokes the same mix of wonder and horror, albeit the decay is in much fresher stage, and the characters are fictional. Bryan Hitch continues to deliver impressive vistas of metropolis in its death throes, and writer Brian Michael Bendis fills these images with sparks of life as the heroes try to find their place in the new world.

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Mar 14 2013

Age of Ultron 5 PREVIEW

age of ultron preview

Age of Ultron 5 comes out on April 10th, 2013 and is written by Brian Michael Bendis with Art by Bryan Hitch. Click here for our complete Age of Ultron coverage.

If you’ve ever found yourself asking “hey, what’s the emergency broadcast system going to look like during the robot apocalypse?” THEN LOOK NO FURTHER. It does look like we’re going to get more bits and pieces of how the world came to be this way. I won’t lie, it might be a little bit disconcerting that the Avengers et. al still appear to be holed up in the helicarrier in issue 5. But hey, the cover promises Wolverine’s claws! I bet he ends up calling someone ‘bub’ too!

Preview a couple pages after the jump. Continue reading →

Mar 13 2013

A + X 5

Alternating Currents: A + X 5, Michael and Drew

Today, Michael and Drew are discussing A + X 5, originally released March 6th, 2013.

Michael: Superhero comics tend to take themselves very seriously. They have to. Crime, justice, the duality of man — these are big themes that require sober moments. This might have something to do with the marketability and general popularity of dark graphic novels that differ starkly from older stories that have some ingrained silliness. These short team-ups are a perfect palate cleanser — especially since as of late, I’ve been reading comics that bite off more than they can chew, philosophically. A+X #5 gives us an unabashedly ridiculous story followed by an ostensibly serious story packed with lame jokes. While I enjoyed the first attempt with Iron Fist + Droop, the second with Loki + Mr. Sinister missed the enjoyability boat on both the comedic and dramatic front.

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Mar 13 2013

The Superior Spider-Man 5

superior spider-man 5

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Superior Spider-Man 5, originally released March 6th, 2013.

Shelby: For a super-villain, murder is often the most efficient way to do business. Unless you need hostages or information, civilians are at best in your way, and at worst witnesses to your nefarious deeds. Also, there’s no more efficient way to be feared and considered dangerous than by ganking a few innocent bystanders. It’s why so many heroes have pretty strict “no kill” rules; not only does it make the hero the diametric opposite of the villain, there are also times when not killing is the harder choice. Doing the hard thing (like saving the life of a cold-blooded murderer) because it’s the right thing is a core tenet of hero-ness. When faced with a choice between what’s right and what’s efficient, I think we all know which option Otto will choose.  Continue reading →

Mar 12 2013

All-New X-Men 8

all new x-men 8

Today, Ethan and Shelby are discussing All-New X-Men 8, originally released March 6th, 2013.

Ethan: ­Time-travel narratives always have the potential to bring up questions of self and identity. Though he wrote in less sci-fi context, Famous Dead White Guy David Hume talked about self not in terms of one, coherent, persistent soul but as a collision of different, constantly changing ideas and perceptions, like a train barreling forward with an ever changing set of passengers. While I may feel like I’m one, same person from one day to the next, I’m occasionally startled when my brain abruptly serves up a memory from the past. I remember the experience, the decisions, the stimuli as if it was me, but the choices and statements made by that past person often seem alien. That person was, in many real ways, NOT the me I am now. Reading All-New X-Men 8, I was happy to see that writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist David Marquez took some time to play around with these ideas.

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Mar 7 2013

Age of Ultron 1

age of ultron 1AU

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Age of Ultron 1, originally released March 6th, 2013. This issue is part of the Age of Ultron crossover event. Click here for complete AU coverage.

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Patrick: Y’all remember Battlestar Galactica? Until the show’s premise became too complicated to be expressed in a few simple sentence fragments, each episode would begin with the following titles projected across the screen:

The Cylons were created by man. They evolved. They rebelled. There are many copies. And they have a plan.

It’s exactly enough information to tease the world of the series. Yeah, there’s a lot more to it than that — this description makes no mention of the last scraps of humanity drifting through space in outdated battleships, or God or gods or Starbuck or Frak. It doesn’t have to: the purity of the threat represented by Cylons is so elemental and to render the rest beautiful, beautiful set-dressing to this central conflict. Battlestar would go on to tell a hundred compelling stories based of that clean slug-line, replete with rich themes and psychologically complex characters. Brian Michael Bendis’ Age of Ultron looks like it will have a great deal in common with BSG, the first such indication is a straightforward and agonizingly clean premise: “Hank Pym of the Avengers created an artificial intelligence known as Ultron. It hates humanity… and it has returned.” Game on.

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Mar 6 2013

Fantastic Four 5AU PREVIEW

age of ultron preview

Fantastic Four 5AU comes out on March 27th, 2013 and is written by Matt Fraction with art by Andre Aruajo. Click here for our complete Age of Ultron coverage.

Okay, I get it: there’s no escaping the R’Age of Ultron. Turns out that even being lost in space and time isn’t enough to hide the Richards family. It looks like maybe they have to abandon the kids in the middle of the night to return to Earth — only it looks like they’re way too late to save New York. If only they had access to some kind of time machine…

Preview a couple pages after the jump. Continue reading →

Mar 6 2013

Superior Spider-Man 6AU PREVIEW

age of ultron preview

Superior Spider-Man 6AU comes out on March 27th, 2013 and is written by Christos Gage with art by Dexter Soy. Click here for our complete Age of Ultron coverage.

So, Ultron’s basically a big piece of technology, right? Well, you know who’s Amazing at technology? Peter Parker. What’s that? He’s not available? Well, we’ll just have to get Otto Octavius then. Don’t worry, I hear he’s good too – Superior, even. Contrary to what whiny web-heads would have you believe, this preview suggests that he might just have the goods to defeat Marvel’s newest biggest threat.

Preview a couple pages after the jump.

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Mar 5 2013

Age of Ultron 3 PREVIEW

age of ultron preview

Age of Ultron 3 comes out on March 27th, 2013 and is written by Brian Michael Bendis with Art by Bryan Hitch. Click here for our complete Age of Ultron coverage.

It looks like Ultron will be setting his sights on Chicago in issue 3. Most of our editorial staff has lived / currently live in Chicago, so we can’t wait to see the Loop savaged by a malicious robot. The champions of Chicago? It looks like Red Hulk, Black Panther and Task Master give it the ol’ college try. This preview seems content to prove the adage: Red Hulk SMASH! Hope you like robot spines!

Preview a couple pages after the jump. Continue reading →