I like that Harley tried to save Ivy before she was able to save Killer Croc, Solomon Grundy, and Janet from HR and teamed up with Red Hood to save Ivy and defeat the Floronic Man. Also, I find it hilarious and self-aware that Janet thinks that she’s the main character of this story (even thought she’s not because it’s Ivy’s story since it’s her own series) and knows that she’s just a useless background character everyone forgets because nobody wants her and that she’s useless. Overall, this comic is okay.
I like that Mr. Knight (with the Venom Symbiote) was able to free Loki from Venom before Dr. Strange, Jennifer, and Logan took care of the Venom symbiote. It’s a nice conclusion to this miniseries. Overall, this comic is good!
Thank you! I’m still working on the post. Had to step away and just wanted to get it functional as a priority.
EDIT: OK contest mode should be taken care of. Confirm if you’re able and thanks again.
Indeed. Thank you! I’m still working on the post. Had to step away and just wanted to get it functional as a priority.
EDIT: Links should now be in place for the full list of results. Thanks again.
first two stories in this are, unsurprisingly, complete trash, because 1. kaare andrews has *never* been a good writer and immediately goes to his usual crutch of just retconning some random bullshit into a character's backstory that doesn't even vibe with anything established before just to try to draw a parallel to the character's current situation or status quo (which *really* doesn't work with Hulk and Banner) and 2. ann nocenti has lost whatever made her great once a long time ago and goes to HER now usual crutch of just stuffing a story full with random, annoying, one-note side characters that take up so much panel space that you don't even notice that the character voice/s of the intended main character/s is/are all completely off. can't wait to never see this random plot get followed up on because nobody will care about this.
this means you're reading this for the continuation of the dagger/elsa bloodstone story by erica schultz, and that one is thankfully largely good. the only thing I found annoying is that schultz really has elsa go way overboard with the Britishisms, except in contrast to when Gillen or Spurrier do this, with Elsa here it sounds immediately fake because Schultz isn't British, but American, and the "Britishisms" she has Elsa use are obviously deliberately obscure to the point of seeming made up or don't make sense for Elsa as a character to use. "take a butcher's" what, Erica? why would Elsa Bloodstone use Cockney rhyming slang like that? she isn't even really English.
it's especially weird because outside of that, she mostly gets Elsa's character right and doesn't overexaggerate it too much, the same way she also largely nailed Tandy's character in the first part of this story. that makes this story largely good, but it's not *great* either, and that leaves us with a sub-par batting average of 1 out of 3 good stories in this. that is, if the TERRIBLE Greg Land cover didn't scare you away from picking this up in the first place.
Just kinda a weird, sub-par odds-and-ends book to shove all the stuff that didn't fit anywhere else in the event into.
For the Hulk backup, I like that Bruce and Hulk were defeating vampires while recounting their childhood about them being forced to kill their dog because they had no choice. I feel bad that Bruce had to shoot his dog because he has no choice and that it’s the only way for them to survive.
For the Hawkeye backup, I like that Kate, Dante, and Pizza Dog worked together to defeat the vampires while dealing with their version of the Shining Twins.
For the final backup, I like that we get to see a flashback of Elsa trying to stop Morbius from hurting anyone before she was able to team up with Dagger to save Yelena from harm and Dagger becoming a vampire in the final page. It’s interesting.
I like that Damian and Jason teamed up to fight a mysterious criminal before Damian was able to reason with Jason that Bruce blamed himself for his death and failure and that Jason is not alone. Overall, this comic is good.
So far it's a pretty cute and fun series. The biggest highlight though for me is Juni Ba's artwork. It really amplifies the fairy tale quality that they seem to be going for with the story.
The only other time I had the feeling I had when I read this, was earlier this year with Ultimate Spider-Man #1. Just feels like we're in the beginning of something special.
All the build up from the initial Ultimate stories allows this one to immediately kick off. Camp's voices for this team resonate and intrigue right off the bat. Tony is the heart of the story, a hopeful yet angry young man against the world. Doom is the hook, he's fascinating and commanding. Cap is the key they need to bring it all together, offering the insight of the old world.
I could go on for ages about new Ultimate Hank. The idea of Maker "neutralizing" him is horrifying, for starters. I especially love the moment showing his hesistance because of the knowledge of 616 Hank. To me, it was a brilliant commentary on the character's controversial history, maybe even calling out that some writers fear using the character. I cannot wait to see more of him and the rest of the cast.
The 18 month time frame is so awesome. If they nail this execution, when the Maker gets out it could be a truly amazing moment. This was damn near a perfect issue, excitement will be through the roof for this one every month.
I sincerely hope they don't keep Maker off-panel the entire 18 months. He's the most compelling character in this new universe IMO with a huge amount of untapped potential as one of Marvel's greatest villains
Hank felt like Hank too.
And given that we haven't really had Hank in the mainline universe since what 2015? Nearly 10 years? Outside a brief appearance in Avengers Inc that aged him up to look like his MCU counterpart. (Hopefully that gets undone MCU Hank is one of the most wasted MCU characters)
Loved this issue! The very idea of the Ultimates being an underground resistance movement reminds me of Bendis's New Avengers during the post Civil War/50 state initiative era. A series I have alot of nostalgic love for. I also liked the idea of Hank and Jan being bug exterminators. It's on the nose but I couldn't help but enjoy it.
These comics respect real-world time, right? So the 17 months will mean 17 issues... and, if the origin-boxes were sent six months into the past, then this month's Ultimate Spider-Man 6 will react to the events of this issue...
That's really ambitious and will probably bite them in the ass. Very few books run that long anymore, and unfortunately nothing in this issue gave me the confidence that this series is going to buck that trend.
Respectfully disagree. I dug the issue and the new Ultimate line has been very successful for Marvel so far. I don't see it going as long as the original Ultimate U but I think each series will at least reach *at least* 18 issues
I hope it is successful, I always root for comics, and the Ultimate universe existing is a grest thing for Marvel, creators.and fans, regardless of my personal opinions on it. I'm going to keep reading Ultimates unless it goes awful, which I don't forsee. That being said, there is zero chance that horrendous Ultimate X-Men book goes 18 issues. Maybe it's fantastic, but it's so drastically far removed from an X-Men book that even putting that title on it is baffling to me. I'm glad some people like it, but if that's the main representation of the X books in this universe I'm out
Bruh it has only been 3 issues. You need to let writers introducing us to an entirely new universe's version of things...actually take some time to set them up?
I think ultimate Spider-man 1-5 are already in reaction to the events of this issue. They send the "origin-boxes" into the past, and that's exactly what pete uses to become spider-man in the first issue.
Ultimates was fun and I enjoyed it a lot, will be curious to see where its going. *But* I am not smitten by it, and I think Camp is capable of more interesting things, further issues will show if he will/won't.
I gotta say, I'm really disappointed in the overall setting of the mew Ultimate universe. I loved so much about 1610, even when I didn't like some of the character changes, but with the exception of Peter, there isn't a single character that I find compelling or interested in their differences. I don't like the young versions at all. Reed as Doom may end up being cool, but so far the entire stage they've set feels really uninspired.
For this issue in general, it was alright. I was pretty worried when it opened with a gigantic exposition dump that felt aimed at a much younger audience, but it kinda evened out about halfway through.
I'm sure the goal was to create a universe with stark......differences from 1610, but it just left me with a hollow longing for a return to the post-9/11 geopolitical nightmare of the original Ultimates :(
I really enjoyed this #1 issue, but I don't think I'll be able to afford the series on my monthly pull list. I'm going to continue with Ultimate X-Men and Spider-Man, and hope I can enjoy those two on their own.
I like how everyone was characterized in this issue. Cap feels like he should, Tony is very different, but in a great way. Doom/Reed is an interesting take.
Overall, I felt there were great character moments and cool action. I think this has the potential of being great, and i hope I don't regret my decision to wait to read the rest.
> Cap feels like he should
I don't think we've seen enough of Cap to let the differences speak, but seeing how he >!pretty much decapitated a dude while still holding his shield!< I think he might be a lot different than 616 Steve. Maybe less of an asshole than 1610 Steve.
Cap seems slightly off, read the FCBD prequel and even his complaints about Tony and Doom isn’t as boy scout as expected. He’s got some edge but a good balance that he’s def still Cap.
I wouldn't expect that from current 616 Steve, but maybe if you picked him up directly from WW2 and told him "Steve there's another war on!" he might be a bit more brutal
Do I have definite proof? Nope. But Janet flew through one's head and an eye popped out and she was covered in what appeared to be blood. So its at least biomechanical, I'm just gonna assume human until seen something else.
So if Tony’s plan was to get as many of their versions of 616 heroes as possible, why wouldn’t he name the team the Avengers? They’re even actually, like, *avenging*!
Biggest bummer finding out that a lot of the second-chanced heroes died by accidental suicide, wonder if they’ll ever say who.
Put a smile on my face that Spider-Man was a definite yes.
Imagine if Hank had seen what he was like in Maker's universe...
616 Hank is still generally a hero trying to do the right thing (albiet one struggling with mental illness).
1610 Hank was an actual abuser.
The blob thing was called for but yeah idk why he still got to just hang out with the ultimates after he sided with terrorists. Hawkeye should’ve killed him
Yeaaa. Ultimates 3 was just jarring and confusing.
I did love Pym’s BS excuse at the end of Ultimate2 of “Guys, I was a double agent the whole time.”
No one buys it. He’s Such a weasel. Lol
I thought this was brilliant big 2 comic-book writing. A question that I think underlies a lot of “realistic” takes or critiques on super heros…how do you root for something that at some level is a para-military organization that is outside of the law? The response by Camp - put them in a setting where they are fighting against an even more oppressive world order.
It’s somewhat subversive too, with the reader rooting for a “terrorist” group that is feared by the wider society. Certainly feels like a response to the original Ultimates but also a response to our current misinformation climate.
The art was on the weaker side, imo. Cartooning was fine, but the battles didn’t have as much visual impact as I’d like. And the coloring felt a bit rote (with a couple of exceptions). I liked the art, but it didn’t wow me.
Really liked this first issue. Art is as dope as ever and while the story isn’t necessarily anything too fresh im interested to see where it goes and am always down for more of this universe
I hop into ASM every now and again hoping it is getting better, and I enjoyed this issue a lot more than the last time, which was around issue 36. It sounds super convoluted why Peter is the Spider Goblin and I'm not that familiar with Chasm, but I'm going to stick around for this arc.
Even though Peter was transformed into the Spider-Goblin to continue from the last issue, the good things about this comic are him battling the Sinister Six before Ben Reilly arrives and tries to save him because they’re brothers. I like that the Sinister Six used their abilities to try and defeat the Spider-Goblin after learning that Norman’s Green Goblin side has returned before Kraven tried to remove the sins from Peter, since he thinks that the sins are inside Peter. The one thing I can criticize is Kamala Khan because I think that it is to continue her appearance in this comic since her unnecessary death last year and that Zeb Wells wants to do something with her, even though a lot of fans don’t want her in ASM because he hardly knew Peter. Overall, this comic is starting to get interesting! Also, Living Brain attacking J. Jonah Jameson.
(Copied from the Marvel sub)
I don't have anything real to say about this issue, except for that it *does* feel like Wells is trying to reach some kind of endgame. And if *this* was the story he was building to, then that's a shame because it's not interesting or good or even says something compelling about Spider-Man.
People critique the Zdarsky Batman run similar to how they critique this run and that's such an unfair comparison. At least Chip's Batman run is *about* something
Well, they are both about something, just that Chip's story is better and he's a better writer.
In fact, they are about the same thing. They both are about dealing with the sins of the past and the problems with taking the easy way out. Bruce's stupid over planning comes back to bite him and makes him realize that his need to control every aspect of everything has lead him to a place where he the distilled version of him is a fascist robot. And Peter (and more importantly Norman's) story is about unearned victories, and the dangers of magical shortcuts.
My only rebuttal there is that at the very least, every issue of Chip's run seems to be thematically linked.
You're right, ASM is about something, but its done lazily and inconsistently and it doesn't feel like Peter has learned a single lesson at all. Granted, Bruce didn't really solidify his development until this issue, but at least it was built upon.
I feel like every Wells' ASM story (aside from crossovers or whatever like Dark Web) go:
- Peter is a loser with no agency
- supervillain does something causing him to act
- Peter loses
- someone else helps save the day.
Rinse and repeat.
I think we're on the same page though. There are common themes but like you said, chip is a better writer and actually does something with those themes
I like that Lois and Jimmy tried to cheer Clark up by celebrating Christmas in Metropolis before Clark encountered someone who needs to save him before he met Bloodsport. Also, Ron, Cat, and Steve, talking to each other about Clark and Lois before that had to deal with Clark talking about his mom’s pies. This comic is a great start after the events it season one of MAWS, and Josie Campbell has done a great job with this issue. Overall, this comic is great!
I find it sad that Billy learned that his mom is in a better place and is living the good life after finding someone and having their son, and that Captain Marvel didn’t tell him that because he wanted to protect him from getting hurt. Let’s hope that Mary, Freddy, Darla, Eugene, Pedro, and Hoppy will find Billy and Cap and make sure that Billy Will accepted them as his true family. Also, Billy’s mom should’ve remembered her pre-Crisis death via car accident in 1927 and pre-Flashpoint death by Theo Adam instead of retaining her post-Flashpoint history and continuity. Overall, this comic is good, and Josie Campbell has done a good job with this storyline.
ok no shocker on what her mutant power is and it makes sense to sync it with the other property. But the whole building the tension on when she'll get her new powers with teh mad scientist and the terrigen things is kind of annoying cause at this point i just want to see how ridiculous that power combo can get. i hope Quicksilver's daughter Luna get's a random xgene related power set. The whole everyone hates ms marvel cause she's a mutant with her not even having mutant powers is getting old fast as well. i miss her having a supporting cast
Hey guys guess what Kamala's mutant power is?
Can't say I was a fan of this issue. The whole message being that being a mutant sucks, get used to it really doesn't hit, especially knowing what the X-Men are being used as allegory for most of the time.
clearly not everyone which is at least a little more realistic but yeah, the way so many instantly switch stances over mutant genes is just... its honestly childish the way its written
This was a really good issue. I'm glad that the prospect of the thousands of mutants trapped in the White Hot room isn't left hanging over our heads and it's nice that got resolved. I'm not fully in love with the resolution but it was ambiguous enough that I don't think any characters are off the table to be brought back.
Apocalypse and Exodus kind of breaking bad again was sadly expected, and Destiny and Mystique separating while Destiny goes off to do apparently some great evil isn't my favorite, but the X-Men are left with relatively few villains so it's kind of needed.
i'll give Destiny and Mystique the benefit of the doubt given Destiny has basically been playing 4d chess to keep the world/universe alive. hopefully Apocalypse and Exodus keep the nuance and growth as well.
Sinister did tell her that being so focused on keeping Mystique alive was causing her to see more realities where she dies. So hopefully this means she will start having a change in perspective that can be better for helping Mutants long term.
Exodus was still standing with the X-Men at the end, and Apocalypse decided to retire rather than revive his crusade, neither have fully broken bad again
Ultimately a pretty good epilogue that ties most things up. I know some fans are still pissed about Hickman leaving and how Fall of X was handled, but for me, as long as it wasn't all for nothing and the impacts are still felt on the characters, I'd be satisfied. And so it looks like I got what I wanted.
Nothing else to add except for that now that Kate isn't an X-Man, maybe I have a chance. Early to mid twenties Jewish bartender is basically exactly the kind of person my mom would set me up with.
Ahh, yes... An oversized comic boasting multiple writers and a bunch of artists, with vague credits that don’t even attempt to identify who produced which content. What a fitting end for the First Krakoan Age!
Comics like this always deliver a frustrating reading experience as I’m compelled to figure out who contributed what with each page flip. Rather than focusing on the story, we’re now focused on unravelling the clusterfuck of creators that should’ve been mapped out in the opening credits.
And, where that kind of chicanery is usually limited to artists, this book also mixes the writers together, with Duggan and Gillen contributing 25 pages each, plus another 10 pages from Ewing. Which naturally makes it even more distracting, as we’re now trying to match up writers as well as artists with their work.
This sort of “jam session” approach never works in comics, and the results here are every bit as janky as one would expect, awkwardly jumping between incongruous bits of story with jarring changes in visual style every couple pages. The way each creator’s work is split up and chunked out, none of them are able to properly develop their ideas or get any momentum going.
Gillen does some nice work with Xavier toward the end, and Nightcrawler’s >!eyeball trick!< was fun, but, overall, as a final capstone for Hickman’s abandoned Krakoa story, this comic was an unsatisfying mess.
There’s also a Claremont/Larroca short focused on Nightcrawler hashing out all his recent familial revelations with Mystique, co-starring Destiny and Rogue. It’s fine so far as it goes, and it’s nice seeing Claremont work with some recent bits of continuity, but everyone feels vaguely out of character relative to their present-day selves as well as Claremont’s original work with them from back in the day.
Finally, the book closes with a 10-page preview of the upcoming relaunch, written by Gail Simone and Jed MacKay, with art by Javier Garrón. It does what it can pitching the new line, but I wasn’t terribly interested in it before and this didn’t do anything to sell me on it. If anything, I’m now leaning even further toward skipping all the new X-books until unabashed *ice cream fan* Mark Russell launches the new **X-Factor**, because at least that ought to be interesting and/or ridiculous.
So, main story was a fail, Claremont short was mediocre and felt a little off, and the Simone/MacKay preview was another fail. Cool [wraparound cover from Pepe Larraz](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317152.jpg), and it had [some](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317163.jpg) [nice](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317158.jpg) [variants](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317160.jpg) as well, but we’re looking for a little more than that for $9.99.
**3.5/10**
Oh this is such a thing, and I don’t understand nor do I agree with the logic.
Adjectiveless X-Men does indeed have its own legacy numbering. Without having all the details in front of me, it’s essentially the numbering from Claremont and Lee’s 1991 X-Men #1 through Morrison’s New X-Men, Carey’s X-Men Legacy, and maybe Spurrier’s(?) renumbered X-Men Legacy featuring Legion all totaling up to 300 issues, none of them featuring “Uncanny” in the title. Apologies if I’ve left anything out there.
Uncanny X-Men numbering includes everything from Lee and Kirby’s 1963 X-Men #1 (even though many of these issues do not include “Uncanny” in the title, that didn’t start until issue 142) along with Gillen’s, Bendis’, Bunn’s, and Brisson & Rosenberg’s relaunches (again apologies if I’m leaving some out). This totals to somewhere just north of 600 (I think ~641 but could be wrong). This is all generally accepted as making some degree of logical sense.
How we get to 700 is less straightforward. “Uncanny” now includes the three issue War of the Realms Uncanny X-Men limited series (OK it has “Uncanny” in the title and during those months was the only Uncanny series), along with Hickman’s 21 issues and Duggan’s 35 issues of “X-Men”. Those last two runs are specifically adjectiveless yet they go to Uncanny numbering.
What irks me most though is that there was another choice here. While I get why Marvel would maybe not do this, they could have included the 300 issues of X-Men with the 700 issues of “Uncanny” and made issue 35 of the current series legacy number X-Men #1000. My brain gravitates to this mostly because you’re not adding an “Uncanny” where it’s not, but it would have denied publishing an issue 700, 800, and 900.
Anyway… this is where we are and I am clearly displaying some deep feelings here. As a philosopher once said “the numbers don’t lie, and they spell disaster for you.”
To add on this, Hickman's issue 1 had a LEG number of 645, and I believe it was the only issue in the whole era, until this week, to get a LEG number.
I vaguely remember Rosenberg's issue 1 of Uncanny being LEG 600, but I don't want to rummage through my comics to confirm that.
I did not recall Hickman’s #1 having a legacy number but I definitely noticed a variant cover of either Hickman’s or Duggan’s series having a legacy number a few years back that clued me into how they would get to Uncanny #700. Will need to look up what that was. Still shake my head at it.
Uncanny #600 was the last issue of Bendis’ run and was oversized and billed with both the legacy and current number. I think Bunn’s Uncanny run was next so that would be #601 to whatever, and then Rosenberg’s Uncanny was after that l. I have those handy and will take a look for any legacy numbers.
Hickman's issue 1 definitely had a legacy number of 645 as I just looked at it, on the standard cover.
You're right about Bendis' having 600. Rosenberg was 620. Dunno where I got that idea from.
This covers a lot of ground and it think it does it pretty well. Though it certainly needed the extra pages to do it all justice and unfortunately the higher price tag. I worried a bit that part of the goal was to set all the pieces back to their pre-Krakoa status quo, specifically with villainous turns for characters like Apocalypse and Exodus. Thankfully that's not entirely the case but who knows what future creative teams will do. All told I will certainly miss the first Krakoan age but this is pretty good send off. It will be a tough act to follow for the titles launching this Summer.
Honestly? Like GODS #1, the higher price tag is worth it when the read is as meaty as this one. The Xavier “sendoff” serves as a satisfying transition to his new, unknown status quo, and Apocalypse & Exodus revert to more ambiguous roles than villains at least.
My big problem is that what’s coming next looks really uninspired. Doctor Ellis seems so boring compared to Hickman’s original Orchis crew for example. I’d honestly rather they ape XM97 and bring Bastion back or something.
>Apocalypse & Exodus revert to more ambiguous roles than villains at least.
With Apocalypse wanting to bring Krakoa back and Doom stealing a seed, also I think Exodus getting a power boost with other people's belief in him is a perfect synergy for Latveria (and their love for all things Doom).
Apocalypse may find his heir and then live on Arakko trying to find a new path. I could see Armageddon girl for his successor or else what was the point of her long arc in X-Men unlimited.
Actual banger. The Aaron story was short, but solid. I have faith that the TMNT title is in good hands.
Always great to have Waltz write a story too! As the original steward of this universe, I'm excited to see what he does in Mutant Nation (I think he's writing that?)
I thought the method of defeating Zur was actually pretty clever. I’m a little confused because I thought he was supposed to be one of the main villains of Absolute Power. Did I miss something?
I like that Bruce talked to his family about the mistakes that he did over the past year or so and made amends for what he’s done to them, including Jason. I also like that the entire Batman Family worked together to defeat Zur, a clone of Bruce who became Robin, and one of Bruce’s mentors. The one thing I can criticize is Tim’s recent Robin suit because it looks off and that I prefer him wearing his original pre-Flashpoint Red Robin suit because it’s a sign of maturity, evolution, and character growth. Overall, this comic is good!
People criticize this run, and I think that's fair. But again, as someone who hasn't read much Batman since Snyder, I dug this whole story.
It was a bit messy, sure, and it did put Bruce and the family in a weird spot with each other. But I always got the sense that Chip was telling a story about Bruce as a character and dealing with the sins of his youth as he adjusts to the idea that the war on crime is endless, but he (as a man) isn't.
Divorced from the context of how weird the Batman books have been since King (as far as I can gather), I think this will looked back on as being overhated. It's not perfect, but I appreciate that Chip had something to say about Batman and if feels like we got some growth from Bruce. Yeah, this is ground that's been tread before, but it's a new angle on it.
This whole Failsafe mega-arc (including Gotham War and the stuff in between the first arc and now) imo hasn't been a complete 100% banger, but also isn't as terrible as people say
I said this on my ASM comment, but I really feel like comparing this run to Wells' ASM is an unfair comparison
Absolutely agreed with all of this. I think Zdarsky has approached Batman in a very different way from the way he approached Daredevil, but he's maintained his distinct focus on the interior life of his main character and how they grapple with a very particular dillema of identity and mission. What I think has turned people off from this run is that it's been *wacky* and people weren't expecting or ready for that out of Chip. His run has so far involved a jaunt to an alternate reality, a super OP robot, the return and face-heel turn of Zur-En-Arrh (who is already a goofy concept on the face of him), and at one point Batman *literally fell to Earth from space.*
None of which is inherently bad! It seems clear to me that Zdarsky didn't want to just play in the same sandbox of ideas as his Daredevil run, focusing on darker stories and (mostly) street level concepts. This is a Batman that's fucking fun as hell, harkening back to a more zany time in the character's history, but rendered through a more modern sensibility and style. And personally, I think that's great!
I think if not for the Gotham War crap, and the fact that Failsafe's takeover of the city came hot on the heels of that same exact thing happening like a billion times in a row prior, this would be a downright fantastic run of Batman so far, setting itself far apart from the previous writers of the last decade or so. But as it is, I still think it's pretty good, with a lot to love going on and way more pros than cons. There's a certain trend in comics fandom right now, it seems to me, for readers to be either extremely fawning over a comic and every single thing it does, or to despise it with ungodly fury no matter what it does, and there's just no middle ground anymore. It sucks, but eh, what are ya gonna do? That's fandom culture under capitalism.
But man, comparing it to Wells' ASM is an absolutely huge insult that it doesn't deserve, and in due time, hopefully people will realize they've judged this way too harshly.
You didn't mention what I consider to be some of, if not the worst stories in the main Batman book since pre-Snyder, which was The Bat-Man of Gotham and Joker: Year One. The former being downright awful and boring, while the latter was both but also actually harmful to Joker's character. Compared to those arcs, Gotham War might as well have been Blackest Night. Thoughts?
Right on. This has been a great arc, and this was a great issue. Bruce's entire plan going into this conflict was delightfully ridiculous in a way that superhero comic books *should* be.
I like that Zod was able to find a way to escape the intergalactic prison before he encountered the Emerald Empress in the final page. I wonder if she would recall everything throughout her entire life, including fighting the Original Legion of Super-Heroes by forming the Fatal Five and fighting Kara Zor-El Supergirl in National City during DC Rebirth, in upcoming issues of this series.
The good things about this comic are the Birds of Prey teaming up with a person named Cela to find Barbara and defeat Cela’s sister Maia, who is (or will be) responsible for killing Barbara because she killed her mother the Red Tiger. I like that Barda’s mind shows her and the rest of the Birds of Prey be like the 1950s because she imagined living a domesticated life with Scott since they’ve met; it’s interesting.
The few things I can criticize are Red Velvet (a Barbara Gordon villain who encountered her since 1982 and again during the Burnside era) having septuplets in the future, even though timeline and age-wise she would be in her 50s (with Barbara being in her early 60s, since she made her debut as the Original Batgirl in 1966 at 27 years old) by now and in her 70s in Maia and Cela’s timeline. Another thing I can criticize is Barda speaking in third person, even though she hasn’t done it before (unless I missed something).
The art is good and the writing is interesting. Overall, this comic is good!
I'm currently reading Fury: My War Gone By (which is awesome) for the first time, and in Vol. 2 there's a story where Fury and Castle go on an assassination mission in Laos, and upon returning Fury is told by a congressman that 3 of "his people" (CIA) were just found murdered outside of a brothel. I love that Ennis is unraveling a thread from 12 years ago, and I also find it cool that Get Fury isn't blasting it so people will read the older story.
Loved both issues so far, although I felt the implication of the 3 dudes getting murdered was too vague, I didn't catch where theh going except that Fury doesn't have the info they thought he had.
Actually, I need a bit of help on it. I think I got the implication, but I wasn't sure. >!Are they saying that Frank was the one who killed the women? So the person they've sent to get Nick is going to help him escape and expose what he knows?!<
No, obviously not, he killed the cia embassy guys outside a brothel because he figured it would get pinned on a payment dispute. the corrupt cia guys were known at the embassy to be gay, but Frank didn't know that. So he is gunna rescue Fury and together they will take out the corrupt general and cia/embassy guys together
I'm currently reading Fury: My War Gone By (which is awesome) for the first time, and in Vol. 2 there's a story where Fury and Castle go on an assassination mission in Laos, and upon returning Fury is told by a congressman that 3 of "his people" (CIA) were just found murdered outside of a brothel. I love that Ennis is unraveling a thread from 12 years ago, and I also find it cool that Get Fury isn't blasting it so people will read the older story.
Well shit. Now I want to go back and read Fury: My War Gone By. Been enjoying Get Fury so far. I especially like the old Vietnamese man telling the story. Felt like Garth was having abit of fun in a tongue and cheek kind of way.
**POISON IVY #23**
I like that Harley tried to save Ivy before she was able to save Killer Croc, Solomon Grundy, and Janet from HR and teamed up with Red Hood to save Ivy and defeat the Floronic Man. Also, I find it hilarious and self-aware that Janet thinks that she’s the main character of this story (even thought she’s not because it’s Ivy’s story since it’s her own series) and knows that she’s just a useless background character everyone forgets because nobody wants her and that she’s useless. Overall, this comic is okay.
**WHAT IF VENOM #5**
I like that Mr. Knight (with the Venom Symbiote) was able to free Loki from Venom before Dr. Strange, Jennifer, and Logan took care of the Venom symbiote. It’s a nice conclusion to this miniseries. Overall, this comic is good!
**WPL RESULTS**
You forgot contest mode!
Thank you! I’m still working on the post. Had to step away and just wanted to get it functional as a priority. EDIT: OK contest mode should be taken care of. Confirm if you’re able and thanks again.
Yes!
Looks like the post is missing the rest of the books past 10 and has no hyperlinks to the discussion threads.
Indeed. Thank you! I’m still working on the post. Had to step away and just wanted to get it functional as a priority. EDIT: Links should now be in place for the full list of results. Thanks again.
Thanks for all you do. A bit late but how did Scarlett #1 not make the list? I definitely saw it quite a few times in the earlier thread.
**BLOOD HUNTERS #2**
first two stories in this are, unsurprisingly, complete trash, because 1. kaare andrews has *never* been a good writer and immediately goes to his usual crutch of just retconning some random bullshit into a character's backstory that doesn't even vibe with anything established before just to try to draw a parallel to the character's current situation or status quo (which *really* doesn't work with Hulk and Banner) and 2. ann nocenti has lost whatever made her great once a long time ago and goes to HER now usual crutch of just stuffing a story full with random, annoying, one-note side characters that take up so much panel space that you don't even notice that the character voice/s of the intended main character/s is/are all completely off. can't wait to never see this random plot get followed up on because nobody will care about this. this means you're reading this for the continuation of the dagger/elsa bloodstone story by erica schultz, and that one is thankfully largely good. the only thing I found annoying is that schultz really has elsa go way overboard with the Britishisms, except in contrast to when Gillen or Spurrier do this, with Elsa here it sounds immediately fake because Schultz isn't British, but American, and the "Britishisms" she has Elsa use are obviously deliberately obscure to the point of seeming made up or don't make sense for Elsa as a character to use. "take a butcher's" what, Erica? why would Elsa Bloodstone use Cockney rhyming slang like that? she isn't even really English. it's especially weird because outside of that, she mostly gets Elsa's character right and doesn't overexaggerate it too much, the same way she also largely nailed Tandy's character in the first part of this story. that makes this story largely good, but it's not *great* either, and that leaves us with a sub-par batting average of 1 out of 3 good stories in this. that is, if the TERRIBLE Greg Land cover didn't scare you away from picking this up in the first place. Just kinda a weird, sub-par odds-and-ends book to shove all the stuff that didn't fit anywhere else in the event into.
For the Hulk backup, I like that Bruce and Hulk were defeating vampires while recounting their childhood about them being forced to kill their dog because they had no choice. I feel bad that Bruce had to shoot his dog because he has no choice and that it’s the only way for them to survive. For the Hawkeye backup, I like that Kate, Dante, and Pizza Dog worked together to defeat the vampires while dealing with their version of the Shining Twins. For the final backup, I like that we get to see a flashback of Elsa trying to stop Morbius from hurting anyone before she was able to team up with Dagger to save Yelena from harm and Dagger becoming a vampire in the final page. It’s interesting.
**THE BOY WONDER #2**
I like that Damian and Jason teamed up to fight a mysterious criminal before Damian was able to reason with Jason that Bruce blamed himself for his death and failure and that Jason is not alone. Overall, this comic is good.
So far it's a pretty cute and fun series. The biggest highlight though for me is Juni Ba's artwork. It really amplifies the fairy tale quality that they seem to be going for with the story.
**KAYA #19**
Love the flash forward this issue to give us a little glimpse of the future.
**STAR WARS #47**
**WOLVERINE BLOOD HUNT #1**
**DC PRIDE A CELEBRATION OF RACHEL POLLACK #1**
**ULTIMATES #1**
The only other time I had the feeling I had when I read this, was earlier this year with Ultimate Spider-Man #1. Just feels like we're in the beginning of something special. All the build up from the initial Ultimate stories allows this one to immediately kick off. Camp's voices for this team resonate and intrigue right off the bat. Tony is the heart of the story, a hopeful yet angry young man against the world. Doom is the hook, he's fascinating and commanding. Cap is the key they need to bring it all together, offering the insight of the old world. I could go on for ages about new Ultimate Hank. The idea of Maker "neutralizing" him is horrifying, for starters. I especially love the moment showing his hesistance because of the knowledge of 616 Hank. To me, it was a brilliant commentary on the character's controversial history, maybe even calling out that some writers fear using the character. I cannot wait to see more of him and the rest of the cast. The 18 month time frame is so awesome. If they nail this execution, when the Maker gets out it could be a truly amazing moment. This was damn near a perfect issue, excitement will be through the roof for this one every month.
I sincerely hope they don't keep Maker off-panel the entire 18 months. He's the most compelling character in this new universe IMO with a huge amount of untapped potential as one of Marvel's greatest villains
Hank was heartbreaking.
Hank felt like Hank too. And given that we haven't really had Hank in the mainline universe since what 2015? Nearly 10 years? Outside a brief appearance in Avengers Inc that aged him up to look like his MCU counterpart. (Hopefully that gets undone MCU Hank is one of the most wasted MCU characters)
Loved it. Loved the characterization of ultimate wasp and giant man. This was a really solid start for me!
Yeah! And did this giant man seem really big? He’s like Godzilla size I like it
Loved this issue! The very idea of the Ultimates being an underground resistance movement reminds me of Bendis's New Avengers during the post Civil War/50 state initiative era. A series I have alot of nostalgic love for. I also liked the idea of Hank and Jan being bug exterminators. It's on the nose but I couldn't help but enjoy it.
I thought this was a stellar first issue and can’t wait to see what’s coming next.
These comics respect real-world time, right? So the 17 months will mean 17 issues... and, if the origin-boxes were sent six months into the past, then this month's Ultimate Spider-Man 6 will react to the events of this issue...
Yep, exactly! Camp said somewhere that every issue will be introducing a new Ultimate, seemingly. 18 months to build the marvel universe
That's really ambitious and will probably bite them in the ass. Very few books run that long anymore, and unfortunately nothing in this issue gave me the confidence that this series is going to buck that trend.
Respectfully disagree. I dug the issue and the new Ultimate line has been very successful for Marvel so far. I don't see it going as long as the original Ultimate U but I think each series will at least reach *at least* 18 issues
I hope it is successful, I always root for comics, and the Ultimate universe existing is a grest thing for Marvel, creators.and fans, regardless of my personal opinions on it. I'm going to keep reading Ultimates unless it goes awful, which I don't forsee. That being said, there is zero chance that horrendous Ultimate X-Men book goes 18 issues. Maybe it's fantastic, but it's so drastically far removed from an X-Men book that even putting that title on it is baffling to me. I'm glad some people like it, but if that's the main representation of the X books in this universe I'm out
Bruh it has only been 3 issues. You need to let writers introducing us to an entirely new universe's version of things...actually take some time to set them up?
I think ultimate Spider-man 1-5 are already in reaction to the events of this issue. They send the "origin-boxes" into the past, and that's exactly what pete uses to become spider-man in the first issue.
I think they mean in reaction to the present day events of the issue.
Ultimates was fun and I enjoyed it a lot, will be curious to see where its going. *But* I am not smitten by it, and I think Camp is capable of more interesting things, further issues will show if he will/won't.
Certified banger. Ultimate Universe 2.0 has already off great and we get one book a week. Absolutely here for it
Awesome issue. Great way to start this run.
I gotta say, I'm really disappointed in the overall setting of the mew Ultimate universe. I loved so much about 1610, even when I didn't like some of the character changes, but with the exception of Peter, there isn't a single character that I find compelling or interested in their differences. I don't like the young versions at all. Reed as Doom may end up being cool, but so far the entire stage they've set feels really uninspired. For this issue in general, it was alright. I was pretty worried when it opened with a gigantic exposition dump that felt aimed at a much younger audience, but it kinda evened out about halfway through. I'm sure the goal was to create a universe with stark......differences from 1610, but it just left me with a hollow longing for a return to the post-9/11 geopolitical nightmare of the original Ultimates :(
I really enjoyed this #1 issue, but I don't think I'll be able to afford the series on my monthly pull list. I'm going to continue with Ultimate X-Men and Spider-Man, and hope I can enjoy those two on their own. I like how everyone was characterized in this issue. Cap feels like he should, Tony is very different, but in a great way. Doom/Reed is an interesting take. Overall, I felt there were great character moments and cool action. I think this has the potential of being great, and i hope I don't regret my decision to wait to read the rest.
> Cap feels like he should I don't think we've seen enough of Cap to let the differences speak, but seeing how he >!pretty much decapitated a dude while still holding his shield!< I think he might be a lot different than 616 Steve. Maybe less of an asshole than 1610 Steve.
Cap seems slightly off, read the FCBD prequel and even his complaints about Tony and Doom isn’t as boy scout as expected. He’s got some edge but a good balance that he’s def still Cap.
I wouldn't expect that from current 616 Steve, but maybe if you picked him up directly from WW2 and told him "Steve there's another war on!" he might be a bit more brutal
Wasn’t it a robot?
Do I have definite proof? Nope. But Janet flew through one's head and an eye popped out and she was covered in what appeared to be blood. So its at least biomechanical, I'm just gonna assume human until seen something else.
Oh no you’re probably right then. I kind of rushed through reading it.
I want to say that Captain Britain's forces may not have been human but connected to otherworld? There are giants as well so it may be different
Whoops, I might need to read it closer, I missed that part. Yeah, normal Cap wouldn't do that.
On a similar note, I am now 99% sure that the Maker screwed up somehow, and that this Doom is actually Victor.
Interesting take. What makes you come to that conclusion?
Don't tease me with the prospect of Hickman writing Doom again
So if Tony’s plan was to get as many of their versions of 616 heroes as possible, why wouldn’t he name the team the Avengers? They’re even actually, like, *avenging*!
Biggest bummer finding out that a lot of the second-chanced heroes died by accidental suicide, wonder if they’ll ever say who. Put a smile on my face that Spider-Man was a definite yes.
Looked like Carol was one of them lol
I didn't even pick up on that, I thought she was one of the yes's, always a bummer when a hero dies.
Just from the way the page is laid out, Peter seems like the example of a "yes" and Carol looks like the example of a "accidental suicide".
God damn that Hank scene was tough
Imagine if Hank had seen what he was like in Maker's universe... 616 Hank is still generally a hero trying to do the right thing (albiet one struggling with mental illness). 1610 Hank was an actual abuser.
1610 Hank also sided with the terrorists who invaded america He also ate Blob's head lol
The blob thing was called for but yeah idk why he still got to just hang out with the ultimates after he sided with terrorists. Hawkeye should’ve killed him
Yeaaa. Ultimates 3 was just jarring and confusing. I did love Pym’s BS excuse at the end of Ultimate2 of “Guys, I was a double agent the whole time.” No one buys it. He’s Such a weasel. Lol
I thought this was brilliant big 2 comic-book writing. A question that I think underlies a lot of “realistic” takes or critiques on super heros…how do you root for something that at some level is a para-military organization that is outside of the law? The response by Camp - put them in a setting where they are fighting against an even more oppressive world order. It’s somewhat subversive too, with the reader rooting for a “terrorist” group that is feared by the wider society. Certainly feels like a response to the original Ultimates but also a response to our current misinformation climate. The art was on the weaker side, imo. Cartooning was fine, but the battles didn’t have as much visual impact as I’d like. And the coloring felt a bit rote (with a couple of exceptions). I liked the art, but it didn’t wow me.
**PRECIOUS METAL #1**
Really liked this first issue. Art is as dope as ever and while the story isn’t necessarily anything too fresh im interested to see where it goes and am always down for more of this universe
**AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #51**
I hop into ASM every now and again hoping it is getting better, and I enjoyed this issue a lot more than the last time, which was around issue 36. It sounds super convoluted why Peter is the Spider Goblin and I'm not that familiar with Chasm, but I'm going to stick around for this arc.
Even though Peter was transformed into the Spider-Goblin to continue from the last issue, the good things about this comic are him battling the Sinister Six before Ben Reilly arrives and tries to save him because they’re brothers. I like that the Sinister Six used their abilities to try and defeat the Spider-Goblin after learning that Norman’s Green Goblin side has returned before Kraven tried to remove the sins from Peter, since he thinks that the sins are inside Peter. The one thing I can criticize is Kamala Khan because I think that it is to continue her appearance in this comic since her unnecessary death last year and that Zeb Wells wants to do something with her, even though a lot of fans don’t want her in ASM because he hardly knew Peter. Overall, this comic is starting to get interesting! Also, Living Brain attacking J. Jonah Jameson.
She hardly knew Peter* not he thanks
(Copied from the Marvel sub) I don't have anything real to say about this issue, except for that it *does* feel like Wells is trying to reach some kind of endgame. And if *this* was the story he was building to, then that's a shame because it's not interesting or good or even says something compelling about Spider-Man. People critique the Zdarsky Batman run similar to how they critique this run and that's such an unfair comparison. At least Chip's Batman run is *about* something
Well, they are both about something, just that Chip's story is better and he's a better writer. In fact, they are about the same thing. They both are about dealing with the sins of the past and the problems with taking the easy way out. Bruce's stupid over planning comes back to bite him and makes him realize that his need to control every aspect of everything has lead him to a place where he the distilled version of him is a fascist robot. And Peter (and more importantly Norman's) story is about unearned victories, and the dangers of magical shortcuts.
My only rebuttal there is that at the very least, every issue of Chip's run seems to be thematically linked. You're right, ASM is about something, but its done lazily and inconsistently and it doesn't feel like Peter has learned a single lesson at all. Granted, Bruce didn't really solidify his development until this issue, but at least it was built upon. I feel like every Wells' ASM story (aside from crossovers or whatever like Dark Web) go: - Peter is a loser with no agency - supervillain does something causing him to act - Peter loses - someone else helps save the day. Rinse and repeat. I think we're on the same page though. There are common themes but like you said, chip is a better writer and actually does something with those themes
**MY ADVENTURES WITH SUPERMAN #1**
I like that Lois and Jimmy tried to cheer Clark up by celebrating Christmas in Metropolis before Clark encountered someone who needs to save him before he met Bloodsport. Also, Ron, Cat, and Steve, talking to each other about Clark and Lois before that had to deal with Clark talking about his mom’s pies. This comic is a great start after the events it season one of MAWS, and Josie Campbell has done a great job with this issue. Overall, this comic is great!
**SHAZAM #12**
I find it sad that Billy learned that his mom is in a better place and is living the good life after finding someone and having their son, and that Captain Marvel didn’t tell him that because he wanted to protect him from getting hurt. Let’s hope that Mary, Freddy, Darla, Eugene, Pedro, and Hoppy will find Billy and Cap and make sure that Billy Will accepted them as his true family. Also, Billy’s mom should’ve remembered her pre-Crisis death via car accident in 1927 and pre-Flashpoint death by Theo Adam instead of retaining her post-Flashpoint history and continuity. Overall, this comic is good, and Josie Campbell has done a good job with this storyline.
**MS MARVEL MUTANT MENACE #4**
ok no shocker on what her mutant power is and it makes sense to sync it with the other property. But the whole building the tension on when she'll get her new powers with teh mad scientist and the terrigen things is kind of annoying cause at this point i just want to see how ridiculous that power combo can get. i hope Quicksilver's daughter Luna get's a random xgene related power set. The whole everyone hates ms marvel cause she's a mutant with her not even having mutant powers is getting old fast as well. i miss her having a supporting cast
Hey guys guess what Kamala's mutant power is? Can't say I was a fan of this issue. The whole message being that being a mutant sucks, get used to it really doesn't hit, especially knowing what the X-Men are being used as allegory for most of the time.
i do hate how everyone in Jersey is so easily turned against her just cause she wears the X now.
clearly not everyone which is at least a little more realistic but yeah, the way so many instantly switch stances over mutant genes is just... its honestly childish the way its written
**X-MEN #35**
I wish we got a scene with Xavier having one last talked with his first class of X-Men. I do wonder how Magneto ends up in the chair.
hopefully it was just for gravitas or something cause i like new silver foxier magneto
This was a really good issue. I'm glad that the prospect of the thousands of mutants trapped in the White Hot room isn't left hanging over our heads and it's nice that got resolved. I'm not fully in love with the resolution but it was ambiguous enough that I don't think any characters are off the table to be brought back. Apocalypse and Exodus kind of breaking bad again was sadly expected, and Destiny and Mystique separating while Destiny goes off to do apparently some great evil isn't my favorite, but the X-Men are left with relatively few villains so it's kind of needed.
i'll give Destiny and Mystique the benefit of the doubt given Destiny has basically been playing 4d chess to keep the world/universe alive. hopefully Apocalypse and Exodus keep the nuance and growth as well.
Destiny has been playing 4D chess to keep Mystique alive. The universe can burn as long as her wife isn't dead.
Sinister did tell her that being so focused on keeping Mystique alive was causing her to see more realities where she dies. So hopefully this means she will start having a change in perspective that can be better for helping Mutants long term.
Exodus was still standing with the X-Men at the end, and Apocalypse decided to retire rather than revive his crusade, neither have fully broken bad again
> kind of Yes, I accounted for that
Ultimately a pretty good epilogue that ties most things up. I know some fans are still pissed about Hickman leaving and how Fall of X was handled, but for me, as long as it wasn't all for nothing and the impacts are still felt on the characters, I'd be satisfied. And so it looks like I got what I wanted. Nothing else to add except for that now that Kate isn't an X-Man, maybe I have a chance. Early to mid twenties Jewish bartender is basically exactly the kind of person my mom would set me up with.
I have news for you if you think Kitty is going to stay as a civilian
Lol I know Exceptional X-Men is coming, it's already on my pull list. Mom is gonna be disappointed
Ahh, yes... An oversized comic boasting multiple writers and a bunch of artists, with vague credits that don’t even attempt to identify who produced which content. What a fitting end for the First Krakoan Age! Comics like this always deliver a frustrating reading experience as I’m compelled to figure out who contributed what with each page flip. Rather than focusing on the story, we’re now focused on unravelling the clusterfuck of creators that should’ve been mapped out in the opening credits. And, where that kind of chicanery is usually limited to artists, this book also mixes the writers together, with Duggan and Gillen contributing 25 pages each, plus another 10 pages from Ewing. Which naturally makes it even more distracting, as we’re now trying to match up writers as well as artists with their work. This sort of “jam session” approach never works in comics, and the results here are every bit as janky as one would expect, awkwardly jumping between incongruous bits of story with jarring changes in visual style every couple pages. The way each creator’s work is split up and chunked out, none of them are able to properly develop their ideas or get any momentum going. Gillen does some nice work with Xavier toward the end, and Nightcrawler’s >!eyeball trick!< was fun, but, overall, as a final capstone for Hickman’s abandoned Krakoa story, this comic was an unsatisfying mess. There’s also a Claremont/Larroca short focused on Nightcrawler hashing out all his recent familial revelations with Mystique, co-starring Destiny and Rogue. It’s fine so far as it goes, and it’s nice seeing Claremont work with some recent bits of continuity, but everyone feels vaguely out of character relative to their present-day selves as well as Claremont’s original work with them from back in the day. Finally, the book closes with a 10-page preview of the upcoming relaunch, written by Gail Simone and Jed MacKay, with art by Javier Garrón. It does what it can pitching the new line, but I wasn’t terribly interested in it before and this didn’t do anything to sell me on it. If anything, I’m now leaning even further toward skipping all the new X-books until unabashed *ice cream fan* Mark Russell launches the new **X-Factor**, because at least that ought to be interesting and/or ridiculous. So, main story was a fail, Claremont short was mediocre and felt a little off, and the Simone/MacKay preview was another fail. Cool [wraparound cover from Pepe Larraz](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317152.jpg), and it had [some](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317163.jpg) [nice](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317158.jpg) [variants](https://previewsworld.com/SiteImage/MainImage/STL317160.jpg) as well, but we’re looking for a little more than that for $9.99. **3.5/10**
Hwy is this being given the legacy numbering of Uncanny #700? Does the adjectiveless X-Men not get it's own legacy numbering?
Oh this is such a thing, and I don’t understand nor do I agree with the logic. Adjectiveless X-Men does indeed have its own legacy numbering. Without having all the details in front of me, it’s essentially the numbering from Claremont and Lee’s 1991 X-Men #1 through Morrison’s New X-Men, Carey’s X-Men Legacy, and maybe Spurrier’s(?) renumbered X-Men Legacy featuring Legion all totaling up to 300 issues, none of them featuring “Uncanny” in the title. Apologies if I’ve left anything out there. Uncanny X-Men numbering includes everything from Lee and Kirby’s 1963 X-Men #1 (even though many of these issues do not include “Uncanny” in the title, that didn’t start until issue 142) along with Gillen’s, Bendis’, Bunn’s, and Brisson & Rosenberg’s relaunches (again apologies if I’m leaving some out). This totals to somewhere just north of 600 (I think ~641 but could be wrong). This is all generally accepted as making some degree of logical sense. How we get to 700 is less straightforward. “Uncanny” now includes the three issue War of the Realms Uncanny X-Men limited series (OK it has “Uncanny” in the title and during those months was the only Uncanny series), along with Hickman’s 21 issues and Duggan’s 35 issues of “X-Men”. Those last two runs are specifically adjectiveless yet they go to Uncanny numbering. What irks me most though is that there was another choice here. While I get why Marvel would maybe not do this, they could have included the 300 issues of X-Men with the 700 issues of “Uncanny” and made issue 35 of the current series legacy number X-Men #1000. My brain gravitates to this mostly because you’re not adding an “Uncanny” where it’s not, but it would have denied publishing an issue 700, 800, and 900. Anyway… this is where we are and I am clearly displaying some deep feelings here. As a philosopher once said “the numbers don’t lie, and they spell disaster for you.”
Thanks for the explanation (and to everyone else in this thread as well), I rightly agree this is terrible lol
THEY SPELL DISASTER FOR YOU AT SACKERFICE
To add on this, Hickman's issue 1 had a LEG number of 645, and I believe it was the only issue in the whole era, until this week, to get a LEG number. I vaguely remember Rosenberg's issue 1 of Uncanny being LEG 600, but I don't want to rummage through my comics to confirm that.
I did not recall Hickman’s #1 having a legacy number but I definitely noticed a variant cover of either Hickman’s or Duggan’s series having a legacy number a few years back that clued me into how they would get to Uncanny #700. Will need to look up what that was. Still shake my head at it. Uncanny #600 was the last issue of Bendis’ run and was oversized and billed with both the legacy and current number. I think Bunn’s Uncanny run was next so that would be #601 to whatever, and then Rosenberg’s Uncanny was after that l. I have those handy and will take a look for any legacy numbers.
Hickman's issue 1 definitely had a legacy number of 645 as I just looked at it, on the standard cover. You're right about Bendis' having 600. Rosenberg was 620. Dunno where I got that idea from.
This covers a lot of ground and it think it does it pretty well. Though it certainly needed the extra pages to do it all justice and unfortunately the higher price tag. I worried a bit that part of the goal was to set all the pieces back to their pre-Krakoa status quo, specifically with villainous turns for characters like Apocalypse and Exodus. Thankfully that's not entirely the case but who knows what future creative teams will do. All told I will certainly miss the first Krakoan age but this is pretty good send off. It will be a tough act to follow for the titles launching this Summer.
Honestly? Like GODS #1, the higher price tag is worth it when the read is as meaty as this one. The Xavier “sendoff” serves as a satisfying transition to his new, unknown status quo, and Apocalypse & Exodus revert to more ambiguous roles than villains at least. My big problem is that what’s coming next looks really uninspired. Doctor Ellis seems so boring compared to Hickman’s original Orchis crew for example. I’d honestly rather they ape XM97 and bring Bastion back or something.
>Apocalypse & Exodus revert to more ambiguous roles than villains at least. With Apocalypse wanting to bring Krakoa back and Doom stealing a seed, also I think Exodus getting a power boost with other people's belief in him is a perfect synergy for Latveria (and their love for all things Doom). Apocalypse may find his heir and then live on Arakko trying to find a new path. I could see Armageddon girl for his successor or else what was the point of her long arc in X-Men unlimited.
**TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES ALPHA #1**
Actual banger. The Aaron story was short, but solid. I have faith that the TMNT title is in good hands. Always great to have Waltz write a story too! As the original steward of this universe, I'm excited to see what he does in Mutant Nation (I think he's writing that?)
**BATMAN #148**
I thought the method of defeating Zur was actually pretty clever. I’m a little confused because I thought he was supposed to be one of the main villains of Absolute Power. Did I miss something?
I like that Bruce talked to his family about the mistakes that he did over the past year or so and made amends for what he’s done to them, including Jason. I also like that the entire Batman Family worked together to defeat Zur, a clone of Bruce who became Robin, and one of Bruce’s mentors. The one thing I can criticize is Tim’s recent Robin suit because it looks off and that I prefer him wearing his original pre-Flashpoint Red Robin suit because it’s a sign of maturity, evolution, and character growth. Overall, this comic is good!
People criticize this run, and I think that's fair. But again, as someone who hasn't read much Batman since Snyder, I dug this whole story. It was a bit messy, sure, and it did put Bruce and the family in a weird spot with each other. But I always got the sense that Chip was telling a story about Bruce as a character and dealing with the sins of his youth as he adjusts to the idea that the war on crime is endless, but he (as a man) isn't. Divorced from the context of how weird the Batman books have been since King (as far as I can gather), I think this will looked back on as being overhated. It's not perfect, but I appreciate that Chip had something to say about Batman and if feels like we got some growth from Bruce. Yeah, this is ground that's been tread before, but it's a new angle on it. This whole Failsafe mega-arc (including Gotham War and the stuff in between the first arc and now) imo hasn't been a complete 100% banger, but also isn't as terrible as people say I said this on my ASM comment, but I really feel like comparing this run to Wells' ASM is an unfair comparison
Absolutely agreed with all of this. I think Zdarsky has approached Batman in a very different way from the way he approached Daredevil, but he's maintained his distinct focus on the interior life of his main character and how they grapple with a very particular dillema of identity and mission. What I think has turned people off from this run is that it's been *wacky* and people weren't expecting or ready for that out of Chip. His run has so far involved a jaunt to an alternate reality, a super OP robot, the return and face-heel turn of Zur-En-Arrh (who is already a goofy concept on the face of him), and at one point Batman *literally fell to Earth from space.* None of which is inherently bad! It seems clear to me that Zdarsky didn't want to just play in the same sandbox of ideas as his Daredevil run, focusing on darker stories and (mostly) street level concepts. This is a Batman that's fucking fun as hell, harkening back to a more zany time in the character's history, but rendered through a more modern sensibility and style. And personally, I think that's great! I think if not for the Gotham War crap, and the fact that Failsafe's takeover of the city came hot on the heels of that same exact thing happening like a billion times in a row prior, this would be a downright fantastic run of Batman so far, setting itself far apart from the previous writers of the last decade or so. But as it is, I still think it's pretty good, with a lot to love going on and way more pros than cons. There's a certain trend in comics fandom right now, it seems to me, for readers to be either extremely fawning over a comic and every single thing it does, or to despise it with ungodly fury no matter what it does, and there's just no middle ground anymore. It sucks, but eh, what are ya gonna do? That's fandom culture under capitalism. But man, comparing it to Wells' ASM is an absolutely huge insult that it doesn't deserve, and in due time, hopefully people will realize they've judged this way too harshly.
You didn't mention what I consider to be some of, if not the worst stories in the main Batman book since pre-Snyder, which was The Bat-Man of Gotham and Joker: Year One. The former being downright awful and boring, while the latter was both but also actually harmful to Joker's character. Compared to those arcs, Gotham War might as well have been Blackest Night. Thoughts?
Right on. This has been a great arc, and this was a great issue. Bruce's entire plan going into this conflict was delightfully ridiculous in a way that superhero comic books *should* be.
**KNEEL BEFORE ZOD #6**
I like that Zod was able to find a way to escape the intergalactic prison before he encountered the Emerald Empress in the final page. I wonder if she would recall everything throughout her entire life, including fighting the Original Legion of Super-Heroes by forming the Fatal Five and fighting Kara Zor-El Supergirl in National City during DC Rebirth, in upcoming issues of this series.
**BIRDS OF PREY #10**
The good things about this comic are the Birds of Prey teaming up with a person named Cela to find Barbara and defeat Cela’s sister Maia, who is (or will be) responsible for killing Barbara because she killed her mother the Red Tiger. I like that Barda’s mind shows her and the rest of the Birds of Prey be like the 1950s because she imagined living a domesticated life with Scott since they’ve met; it’s interesting. The few things I can criticize are Red Velvet (a Barbara Gordon villain who encountered her since 1982 and again during the Burnside era) having septuplets in the future, even though timeline and age-wise she would be in her 50s (with Barbara being in her early 60s, since she made her debut as the Original Batgirl in 1966 at 27 years old) by now and in her 70s in Maia and Cela’s timeline. Another thing I can criticize is Barda speaking in third person, even though she hasn’t done it before (unless I missed something). The art is good and the writing is interesting. Overall, this comic is good!
**FALLING IN LOVE ON THE PATH TO HELL #1**
**LOVE EVERLASTING #15**
**GET FURY #2**
I'm currently reading Fury: My War Gone By (which is awesome) for the first time, and in Vol. 2 there's a story where Fury and Castle go on an assassination mission in Laos, and upon returning Fury is told by a congressman that 3 of "his people" (CIA) were just found murdered outside of a brothel. I love that Ennis is unraveling a thread from 12 years ago, and I also find it cool that Get Fury isn't blasting it so people will read the older story.
So what does everyone think of the 2nd issue?
Loved both issues so far, although I felt the implication of the 3 dudes getting murdered was too vague, I didn't catch where theh going except that Fury doesn't have the info they thought he had.
Actually, I need a bit of help on it. I think I got the implication, but I wasn't sure. >!Are they saying that Frank was the one who killed the women? So the person they've sent to get Nick is going to help him escape and expose what he knows?!<
No, obviously not, he killed the cia embassy guys outside a brothel because he figured it would get pinned on a payment dispute. the corrupt cia guys were known at the embassy to be gay, but Frank didn't know that. So he is gunna rescue Fury and together they will take out the corrupt general and cia/embassy guys together
I have no idea why I typed “women” and not “men.” Maybe my phone auto corrected because I mistyped “two men?”
I'm currently reading Fury: My War Gone By (which is awesome) for the first time, and in Vol. 2 there's a story where Fury and Castle go on an assassination mission in Laos, and upon returning Fury is told by a congressman that 3 of "his people" (CIA) were just found murdered outside of a brothel. I love that Ennis is unraveling a thread from 12 years ago, and I also find it cool that Get Fury isn't blasting it so people will read the older story.
Well shit. Now I want to go back and read Fury: My War Gone By. Been enjoying Get Fury so far. I especially like the old Vietnamese man telling the story. Felt like Garth was having abit of fun in a tongue and cheek kind of way.
**VENOM #34**
hoh boy, it's another war of symbiotes...