8/27/08 Reviews

X-Force #6
When the newest volume of X-Force hit stands, it was riding high on the "Messiah Complex" wave. Cyclops had put together his ultimate killing team to take out the Purifiers once and for all.

Since then however, X-Force has been trying to find its stride over the last six months and with the conclusion of the appropriately titled first arc, "Angels & Demons," we finally see Logan and his team become the best at what they do ... kick ass.

Everything writer Craig Kyle and artist Christopher Yost were trying to achieve comes to fruition.

Kyle's writing takes a much different turn as it is told as a briefing from Wolverine to Cyclops after the mission. This new method of storytelling allows for a more fluid, more story-driven issue.

What makes this issue so much stronger then the five previous is the story and the art work together to deliver the most depth and emotion.

There are three standout scenes in this issue.

1) Rahne Sinclair (Wolfsbane) turns to her purifier father after he says, "Ye are Satan's daughter, not mine and it is time ye return to him." She sees in a haze the severed wings of Angel behind him. Suddenly, she reverts back to her objective to "kill the angel," only this time it happens to be someone we want to die. This works so well because the art explains Rahne's abrupt change as she see the wings of angel line perfectly with Reverend Craig.

2) The next scene is the first of two which involve Angel. Angel is crouched atop a seeming mountain of carnage; his arm bracing the weight of all the deaths he now has on his conscience. In this scene the opposite approach is what makes it work, the words make it so much more powerful, as a surviving Purifier says "The angel of death is coming for us." It's another one of those angelic scenes that you either love or don't really care for. It just so happens I'm a sucker for that type of imagery which leads to the last scene.

3) For those who've read this issue it seems pretty obvious that the last great scene is the full page art of Angel passed out atop his mountain of death, with a single beam of light cast upon his newly formed feathered wings; making him look more angelic than ever.

Even with all these things that work so well, there is still one big problem with this first arc.

WHO THE HELL IS MAGUS!!

For many of us first timers, we have no idea who or what Magus is. Hopefully Kyle will go on to explain it for all the noobs like myself.

This issue puts a nice spin onto the next arcs as the final panel shows Cyclops asking Wolverine who they are going after next as a screen showing the various X-enemies is cast over them. I look forward to seeing what Kyle and Yost have in store next.

4/5 stars

Kick-Ass #4
"Kick-Ass" has been my favorite book to read since it hit the stands all those months ago. I let Mark Millar have the book out late because the story is so good and juicy. However, my feelings towards it has changed with the release of the series fourth issue.

Every issue seems to follow a set pattern: "Kick-Ass" goes and gets his ass kicked, refuses to ever don the scuba suit thing he wears again, but he can't quit the adrenaline that he gets whenever he "fights crime."

Last issue left me salivating as to who this little girl was and how the hell she could weild a blade like that. This issue was supposed to explain her story and they were going to ... well ... kick ass together.


What we got was her running away after the carnage and Dave trying to figure out who she and the dude with the chainsaw are. Not very interesting.

This issue did have the blood, guts and gore we all have come to expect from "Kick-Ass," but it can't be the only thing that drives the story forward.

When compared to other books that saturate the shelves, Kick-Ass is still fresh and exciting, but when compared to itself this issue is not very strong. I'm willing to give Millar a few more issues to get something new going, but issue four is by far my least favorite.

3/5 stars

Ultimate Spiderman #125

Brian Michael Bendis's reign over Ultimate Spiderman has been very strong throughout its 125 issue run, hitting some sour patches every now and then. In his newest arc, Bendis brings Eddie Brock and his symbiotic partner, Venom back. However, the symbiote has other plans as it rejoins with its original host ... Peter Parker.

There isn't much to say on this one since Bendis and Immonen are almost always consistent in their presentation of Spiderman in their series. I like how Bendis brings Trask back after nearly 100 issues from when the original venom arc occurred. It will definately be interesting to see where it goes from here.

4/5 stars

Wolverine #68
From Kick-Ass to Wolverine, Mark Millar has his hands in everything, making him almost comparable to Bendis. Millar's run on Wolverine is fresh and interesting as we watch a passive Wolverine travel across the country in his arc "Old Man Logan."

Part 3 has Wolverine and his blind buddy, Hawkeye, on a search and rescue mission to save Hawkeye's daughter from the imprisonment of the new Kingpin.

This issue was more of the same as it shows Wolverine still being a big sissy ever since he vowed to never pop his claws after the heroes fell to the villains fifty years ago. Hawkeye is still a hippy with an attitude looking to get Wolvie out of his shell again.

Without spoiling too much, the issue ends with Wolverine being forced into saving Hawkeye. No, he doesn't go "snikt" yet but it's building and when it does happen it going to be epic and awesome.

Millar has a knack for writing over-the-top characters except this is more under-the-top (if that's a word) as we wait for Logan to get so pissed that he rages and kills everything in sight.

Steve McNiven is perfect as far as art is concerned. His style matches Millars completely. (I'm thinking of the panel where Hawkeye kicks down the door and stabs a nameless henchman in the face through the door ... awesome.) The two were meant to work together.

I can't wait for the next installment.

4.5/5 stars

Ghost Rider Annual #2
Ghost Rider is hopefully at long last going to become a mainstream character after a pretty awful run by the previous writer. Now with Jason Aaron at the helm, ole Flamehead seems to be getting a resurgence as ads for the upcoming storyline are in every Marvel comic.

I've always been a fan of storylines which involve mythology of heaven and hell, angels and demons. So, naturally I became involved with Ghost Rider. The fire and brimstone themes never get old for me as the first Ghost Rider, Danny Ketch, comes back into the fold, working for none other than Johnny Blaze's arch-enemy (at the moment) Zadkiel. This however, has absolutely nothing to do with the Ghost Rider Annual #2 "A Town called Mercy."

"A Town Called Mercy" follows Ghost Rider as he stops by a town called ... you guessed it ... Mercy, where numerous murders have occurred. The story is actually very interesting in that the creature has been killing all these people in order to get them into heaven. All the victims have been suicidal but don't end their lives as it will ensure their arrival into Hell. So, this creature calls to these people so that he may murder them and allow them into heaven.

The creature explains that he was once a Seraph, "An angel shepard of the ninth choir" until he was cast out when he objected to suicide being considered a sin. Why deprive people who have endured the horrors of life, paradise in heaven. Makes sense to me.

This issue was truly an unexpected pleasure. Having never heard of writer Simon Spurrier or artist Mark A. Robinson, I was pleasantly surprised by their work, especially the art. Robinson uses bright colors and illustrates heavenly and hellish images with fluidity. I also like how he showed the bubbling fire of Ghost Rider as it tried to show through Johnny's right eye. Very Cool.

I look forward to seeing what else each of these when comes up in future projects.

Can I just point out the obvious question? Why ... oh why ... is there an annual #2? It's called annual because it comes out annually. They should've just labeled a one shot like everyone else and that would've been a lot better. I've never heard of such a thing but what do I know.

4.5/5 stars