Comic Book Reviews for 11/7/12

This week marks the debut of two of Marvel's biggest relaunches: Iron Man and Deadpool. One delivers the goods and one, well, isn't as successful. This week also marks the conclusion of the beloved Avengers Academy and the continuation of the epic Uncanny X-Force story arc, Final Execution.

At DC, the penultimate chapter of Vertigo's Sweet Tooth breaks hearts while new Green Lantern Simon Baz continues to impress and the epic Rotworld storyline continues throughout Animal Man and Swamp Thing.

Finally, Valiant Comics debuts its latest resounding success in Shadowman. Yes, that character from the N64 game.

DC COMICS

Action Comics #14

Written by Grant Morrison | Art by Rags Morales

"Each issue of Grant Morrison’s run on Action Comics has been a hit or miss for me, so I’m glad to report that this issue hits. Hard. Superman answers a distress call from an international terraforming team on Mars -- complete with scientists, a soldier, and a family with a child -- and must combat a threat out of his league. By playing to the character’s strength not only as someone who can physically endure more than an ordinary person, but as someone who can inspire people to be as super as he can be, Morrison delivers his purest Superman story yet." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.0

Animal Man #14

Written by Jeff Lemire | Art by Steve Pugh & Timothy Green II

"Stories like Marvel Zombies and Blackest Night sold so well because us fans just can’t get enough of watching zombified versions of comic book characters get hacked to pieces. If that’s your sort of thing then Rotworld’s apocalyptic landscape of a world all but succumbed to the Rot eagerly awaits your $2.99. Hawk and Dove, Deathstroke, Grifter -- they’re all here and more disgusting than ever. The best part? The story supporting all this gore totally rocks." -Joshua

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Final Score:

8.7

Before Watchmen: Moloch #1

Written by J. Michael Straczynski | Art by Eduardo Risso

"In hindsight, a Before Watchmen mini-series devoted to Moloch the Mystic seems like a logical choice. Alan Moore never devoted more attention than necessary to the retired supervillain in his story. But while the potential is there for J. Michael Straczynski to weave a compelling yarn as he explores Moloch's formative years, the newest addition to the Before Watchmen crop never feels like anything more than filler." -Jesse

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Final Score:

5.8

Detective Comics #14

Written by John Layman | Art by Jason Fabok & Andy Clarke

"Detective Comics fills a niche right now as a Batman book that allows itself to be more free and more fun than the others. The tone of the series under new writer John Layman is not unlike Batman: The Animated Series, with its copious assortment of iconic Bat villains and a tone that isn't too dark or too comedic. It isn't ambitious or ground-breaking, but it achieves what it sets out to accomplish." -Jesse

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Final Score:

7.5

Dial H #6

Written by China Mieville | Art by David Lapham

"Having just completed his first arc on Dial H, China Mieville offers readers a bit of a breather with issue #6. This standalone story strikes a distinctly more humorous tone than those before it, despite the fact that both Nelson and Roxie are dealing with the aftermath of a big battle and two major deaths. The concept is simple enough. While Nelson is forced to wait out his transformation into the racially insensitive Chief Mighty Arrow, Roxie shows off her Refusenik Diary -- a scrapbook highlighting all the bizarre and extremely un-PC transformations her dial has granted her over the years. We don't actually see Doctor Cloaca or the Golliwog in the flesh, but as with so many of Mieville's wacky creations, the name is usually enough to get the point across." -Jesse

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Final Score:

9.2

Earth 2 #6

Written by James Robinson | Art by Nicola Scott

"The New 52 sure has done a number on the Golden Age superheroes. I have enjoyed bits of Earth 2 since its launch, but it has done little to truly reinvigorate these characters. And no, messing around with their costumes, origins, and sexuality does not count. Being the first generation of heroes who ushered in the heroes of today made characters like Alan Scott and Jay Garrick a special, integral part of the old DCU. In the New 52, they have zero bearing on the other 51 titles, leaving the success of their book to the quality of its storytelling, which has been okay at best." -Joshua

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Final Score:

6.3

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Book 1

Adapted by Denise Mina | Art by Andrea Mutti and Leonardo Manco

"Denise Mina (Hellblazer, A Sickness in the Family) is right at home here, diving head first into the Swedish crime series without any reservations of losing the reader along the way. There are names tossed our way fast and furious with jarring scene transitions every few pages, but if you’re willing to go along for the ride and put the pieces together yourself, then Dragon Tattoo Book 1 is actually a pretty rewarding experience. The onslaught of information and names is enough to make your head spin, particularly when artists Leonardo Manco and Andrea Mutti don’t do much to differentiate the characters in physical appearance. However, Mina does a great job of letting the reader slowly construct the pieces of the book’s many mysteries alongside protagonists Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander." -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

Green Lantern #14

Written by Geoff Johns | Art by Doug Mahnke

"I was amazed by the engrossing political thriller involving Baz and his family in Green Lantern #13, but with the Justice League showing up in this month’s issue the title steers back towards more standard superhero fare. But that’s not a bad thing. Geoff Johns often gets credit for being a writer that develops long form, character-based stories, yet the arrival of the League lets him show everyone that he’s also one of the funniest writers in the business. Just try and get past page seven without laughing your ring off." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.2

Stormwatch #14

Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Will Conrad & Cliff Richards

"The loose ties between Demon Knights and Stormwatch have grown much more apparent with this current arc as Etrigan the Demon has awoken and made Stormwatch the target of his wrath. I don't know if it speaks poorly of the series as a whole to say that Etrigan's characterization is currently my favorite element. Peter Milligan writes him as supremely arrogant but also somewhat justified in feeling bitter about being imprisoned for centuries and betrayed by his old team. The fact that Etrigan's tendency to rhyme is exploited for comedy and not overplayed is also a welcome change of pace." -Jesse

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Final Score:

6.2

Swamp Thing #14

Written by Scott Snyder | Art by Yanick Paquette

"There’s something about the Hero’s Journey that gets me going. I don’t know if it’s the repetition of the thousands of narratives that I’ve experienced or whether it’s programmed into my DNA somehow, but watching a hero put on his armor and head into adventure puts me in a good mood. In Swamp Thing #14, writer Scott Snyder expertly uses the Hero’s Journey model to push his main character out of his comfort zone and into danger in the name of love and the greater good. If you’re anything like me, you’ll finish this book craving more." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.0

Sweet Tooth #39

Written by Jeff Lemire | Art by Jeff Lemire

"If you’re looking for all the feels, they are in Sweet Tooth #39. The penultimate issue of the series and the conclusion of Wild Game, Jeff Lemire crafts a heartbreaking finale to Gus and Jepperd’s journey. I’ll avoid direct spoilers, but suffice it to say that this is the issue fans of the series have been simultaneously anticipating and fearing, and I can confirm that all of your fears/wishes come true." -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.6

Source : ign[dot]com

Deadpool: An Article About a Video Game

Deadpool breaks the fourth-wall like he breaks faces: violently and unapologetically. It’s the most striking aspect of the first game to star the Merc with a Mouth as its lead character. Until now he’s always appeared in supporting roles, gently mocking video game conventions. In Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, for instance, he could dismantle the health bar suspended above his head and use it as a weapon to beat his opponent with.

So far he’s only toyed with such tropes. But now, finally pushed front and centre stage, Deadpool is able to take on some of those trite conventions. His sardonic swagger is present right from the game’s amusing menu screen. Suddenly, Deadpool’s masked face appears alongside the standard options to start a new game or load an existing one. He’s really close, his distinctive eyes blinking, pressing against the screen. He moves back a few steps, and starts to tap the glass of your television set, before asking, “Hey, got any girls in there?”

He knows he's in a video game, and is acutely aware of the gender breakdown that his game will potentially attract. And that’s exactly how it’s being described – it’s Deadpool’s game. Even Sean Miller (the game’s actual director) presents it as Wade Wilson's own creation. Deadpool knows that you’re sat there with a controller in your hands.

All we’ve seen of the game so far has been to some footage in the Comic Con announcement trailer. Today at Gamescom I got to see an early demo of a level in the game. It was still very much a work in progress – some animations still needed fine tuning and the HUD wasn’t finalised – but it already looked good and surprisingly polished.

“

Deadpool knows that you’re sat there with a controller in your hands.

The mission set-up is quite generic, but you get the feeling that’s an intentional decision. The level's opening cutscene finds Deadpool in his unhygienic apartment, draped in an armchair, scratching his crotch with a gun. He’s accepted a mission to assassinate a corrupt media mogul, whose television channel produces such quality programming as “Jump the Shark”, in which ‘celebrities’ must literally jump over a tank of water containing a ravenous great white shark.

So far, so knowing, and this extends to the gameplay itself.

The mission starts with Deadpool in a sewer beneath mogul’s high-rise building. It’s a basically a tutorial level, presenting Deadpool with an irresistible opportunity to directly address you, the player. He tells you to press ‘A’ to jump. And when presented with the right combination of platforms, he wearily suggests the novel idea of ‘wall jumping’. He never shuts up. He’s a medically diagnosed psychotic, and has multiple voices rattling around his head. You hear them interacting constantly, vying for his attention. Miller describes it as having “the three stooges in your head”.

“

Players will be presented with the choice either to reattach severed limbs or wait for them to regrow.

As always, it’s hard to really know how good the combat is without going hands-on with the game. But it relies heavily on using the character’s trademark arsenal of swords and guns, as well as giving players the option to equip more irregular weapons like sledgehammers. From this demo it wasn't really clear how his superhuman abilities would come into play. Like Wolverine, Deadpool possesses an accelerated healing factor. It’s promised that in the final game Deadpool will slowly fall apart as he sustains damage, similar to the protagonist in Konami's Neverdead. Players will be presented with the choice either to reattach severed limbs or wait for them to regrow. You can imagine the former as a way to quickly restore health, though this wasn’t confirmed. His ability to teleport has yet to be mentioned, too.

Probably the strongest aspect of the demo I saw was Deadpool’s extensive knowledge of popular culture and the game’s intertextual playfulness. He struts while humming Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal as he breaks into the building of his intended target. He quotes Star Trek (“Make it so number one”) and Star Wars (“I’ve got a bad feeling about this”) within seconds of each other. The best allusion, however, belonged to the menu screen. Select a new game, and you hear something very familiar slowly fade in – the distinctive percussion of the Terminator theme tune starts to thump, as Deadpool is lowered down, presumably into the game, and as he is about to disappear offscreen, he raises his arm and gives a thumbs up. It’s a touching and wry tribute to the noble T-800.

Given the game’s fondness for allusion, the decision to cast Nolan North makes perfect sense. Not only has he played the character before but his vocal ubiquity in video games – he’s the voice of Nathan Drake, Desmond in Assassin’s Creed, and so many others – fits perfectly with the game’s metafictional aspirations. The game looks like a lot of fun but ultimately the writing will have to be pitch-perfect to make Deadpool a success. If it strays too frequently, becoming more crass than clever, it could easily fall into the trap of becoming the kind of game it’s attempting to parody.

Daniel is IGN's UK Staff Writer. You can be part of the world's worst cult by following him on IGN and Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Fantastic Four: Road Trippin' Through Time

Continuing the downpour of new Marvel NOW! info (including our own scoop about the new Deadpool series), USA Today talked with writer Matt Fraction about taking over Marvel's first family, the Fantastic Four, and their counterparts the Future Foundation (FF). It seems Fraction is bringing his biggest ideas to the plate for these books as he's joined by Mark Bagley on Fantastic Four and Mike Allred on FF.

First, Fraction described Fantastic Four as a road trip through time and space, referencing an RV trip that a senator took with his wife and kids across the country when he left office."It was this intensive road-trip home-school experience. I don't really know any parent who wouldn't want to do that with the time and money available," Fraction told the paper. But how that pertains to Reed Richards and family in particular, he said, "If they're studying ancient Rome, then by God let's go have lunch with Caesar on the Ides of March. If they're looking at the Big Bang, they're going to watch it from the front row."

According to the article, the family trip will span about a year in their own timeline, but back on Earth only four minutes will have passed. And standing guard to make sure nothing outrageous happens within those four minutes is the new FF: She-Hulk (who currently appears in Fraction's Defenders, which has been revealed to be ending at issue #12), Ant-Man (Scott Lang), Medusa, and a new character named Miss Thing, who Fraction said is a "'Lohan-esque celebutante blonde' he's [Johnny Storm] with the night before he leaves and she's thrown into the middle of this situation. She’s the regular person, she’s the human, she’s the overwhelmed ‘Whaaa?’ of it all."

Of course, despite the good intentions of both teams, that four minute gap does far more damage than Reed anticipated, and three weeks after they return, an older, "half-insane" Johnny Storm stumbles into their lives through the very same time gateway. Presumably, madness will ensue.

The approach to these books certainly seems fresh in a way that only the writer of the equally mind-bending Casanova could do it, and assisted by the likes of Bagley and particularly Allred, this duo of books will surely be the ones to keep an eye on.

"My hope is that it will be quirky in the same way that the Fantastic Four were quirky when they first appeared in the early 60s. We know who they are, we know what they're about, but when they first showed up, it was like a bomb going off in comics," said editor Tom Brevoort. "These were remarkable characters who were doing unexpected things and had a real element of danger to it and excitement and unpredictability. The hope is we'll be able to tap into something akin to that."

"It's very easy to say, 'I want to stay true to what Stan and Jack did.' Well, what Stan and Jack did was invent the entirety of the Marvel Universe in 104 issues," added Fraction. "This is the place to be wildly inventive, and I would like to put as many things down on the page as humanly possible and offer up another dose next issue."

For more with Fraction, Bagley, Allred, and Brevoort, head on over to USA Today.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He's pretty sure the new FF might become his new favorite Marvel book.

Source : ign[dot]com

Marvel Teases New Deadpool Series

Any Deadpool fan knows that Wade Wilson is kind of a fan of Tex-Mex food, specifically chimichangas.Well, in their latest teaser -- following hints for new Iron Man, Thor, and Hulk creative teams -- Marvel Comics has unveiled that Deadpool will be getting a relaunch in November as part of Marvel NOW! Unless there's someone else you know that loves chimichangas this much:

Writer Daniel Way is just wrapping up his long stint with Deadpool, so Marvel NOW! seems like the perfect opportunity to do something new with the character. The names that appear on the teaser should be indicative of the direction as well -- it seems that comedians and occasional comic book scribes Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan will be scripting the series with who we assume is fan-favorite creator Tony Moore on art duties.

Chimichangas, anyone?

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He will love Star Wars until the end of his days.

Source : ign[dot]com