Uncanny X-Men, X-Men
I'll start with the books that got me into reading comics in the first place. The X-Men titles have consistently been some of the most popular comics over the last 10+ years. Sometimes the stories are great and sometimes they're not so great. In recent years I've felt they've bordered more on the "not so great" as I haven't found the stories particularly compelling and some of the characters act in ways that don't seem to make particular sense. For the most part, I found that Grant Morrison was the best writer of the past five years, but as other readers on the Internet have pointed out, it seemed like Marvel tried so hard to "undo" everything that he had started immediately after he left. That was too bad, because I thought he did a great job of writing stories that were similar to older stories with a new twist. In that span a number of other writers have tried their hand at writing the X-books including Joe Casey, Chuck Austen, Peter Milligan and fan-favorite Chris Claremont. I thought that Casey's ideas were pretty good and offbeat but it seems the audience wasn't ready for them. Austen had no grip on how the characters should speak and would act (I particularly remember moments where She-Hulk slept with Juggernaut, her client, and where Iceman was acting like a jerk-off homophobe). Chris Claremont wasn't shy about how much he loved Rachel Summers and Psylocke, since they appeared in virtually every issue he wrote. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't too impressed by these characters. The House of M crossover that affected the Marvel U also affected these books indirectly, although it seems like no "important" people have lost their powers. Milligan was writing tongue-in-cheek, but it didn't take, and for the most part I felt his stuff didn't do anything.
That brings us to the current writers, Ed Brubaker (on Uncanny) and Mike Carey (on "adjectiveless"). Brubaker has assembled a varied cast, that includes Nightcrawler, Havok, Polaris, Warpath, and a de-powered Professor X as they pursue Vulcan, a new character from the Deadly Genesis mini-series. They are all headed into space and to confront the Shi'ar empire. This story, with art by Billy Tan, isn't too bad, but I just don't really care about the X-Men in space. It looks like this story will try to set up the X-Men / Shi'ar relationship now and I'm curious to see if Brubaker has any plans for once (and if) any of the X-Men return to Earth. Meanwhile, in the other X-Men title, illustrated by Chris Bachalao, a new group of super-powered beings come to challenge a random assortment of X-Men including Rogue, Cable, Iceman, Sabretooth and Mystique. While on the one hand I want to say, "haven't we done this before?" with "new groups" of super-powered beings that aren't mutants, the story doesn't bother me yet and Carey has provided good reasons for this particular cast to stay together. The art is inconsistent and hard to read sometimes which can hurt the story, but the eclectic style also sort of fits.
Overall, both books are on the right track, but they're not up to speed yet. Still, it's some of the best stuff in either title over the last five years.
Ultimate X-Men
I used to read nearly every title in Marvel's Ultimate line, but now that's been pared down to two. Ultimate X-Men has been quietly consistent in its quality, and it's almost never late, but I can't help but wonder about the choices to "re-do" normal Marvel U continuity with every story. Can't we have original adventures that don't re-introduce Ultimate counterparts to Marvel heroes and villains? That said, current writer Robert Kirkman has done a nice job with all the characters so far. This current storyline introducing Cable and Bishop may have some potential but I wish the book had an artist who drew more detail than Ben Oliver. In my opinion, aside from Ultimates, the rest of the Ultimate Universe is pretty crappy right now (they're crossing over with Squadron Supreme?) and I'm not too excited for Ultimate Wolverine by Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner, but this title has been steady. It hasn't improved a ton, but it hasn't gotten much worse either.
Astonishing X-Men
Joss Whedon's foray into the X-Men has been well received by fans, and for the most part, I'd agree. He has picked up on some of the threads from Grant Morrison, and the art by John Cassaday has been very nice looking (although I prefer his work on Planetary). The current story has suffered by its slow release schedule, but this group of Beast, Cyclops, Wolverine, Emma Frost and Kitty Pryde is my favorite of the X-books. I'm not sure how much longer Whedon is on this book, and I wonder what will happen with it next, but I hope it's something good.
Runaways
Moving from the book that Joss Whedon writes to the one that he will write, Runaways. Currently, it's written by Brian K Vaughan, one of my favorite writers in comics. Vaughan has been throwing twists and turns ever since Runaways started. The current volume, up to issue 22 hasn't been as surprising as the first, but it still has had its share of enjoyable moments. Vaughan seems to be building to a big conclusion for his run on the series he created that's due to end with issue 24. Joss Whedon will pick it up afterwards for 5-6 issues, and I expect it will be pretty darn good.
Ex-Machina
This is Brian K Vaughan's creation in the Wildstorm universe where a super-powered man, Mitchell Hundred, becomes the mayor of New York City. The book has a limited run (will end at about 50 issues) and is about halfway there at this point. In this fictional universe, super-heroes are non-existent. It is full of Vaughan's trademark twists and also sprinkles in some social commentary as well, often presenting both sides of an issue fairly well. It is illustrated by Tony Harris, and I would highly recommend it.
Y The Last Man
The book that started Brian K Vaughan's success is a Vertigo title called Y: The Last Man. I've been reading this story in trade paperback form and the most recent volume (#8) just came out. If you're not reading, the premise is, that all the males on earth have died except one man and his pet monkey. Before I picked this up I had expected it to be a fanboy fantasy, but instead it's been more of a sci-fi thriller and full of twists and interesting ideas. One of the best stories out there, and I believe it's being made into a movie.
Captain America, Daredevil
I'll take these books together because they are both written by Ed Brubaker and both characters I never really was a big fan of.
Before reading this current volume of Captain America, the only other time I had read this title was when Mark Waid was writing it. I really enjoyed the blend of action and espionage at the time. Ed Brubaker is doing an even better job, mixing together a spy story with Captain America action. He has also blended together the Civil War crossover quite well.
I started reading Daredevil when the Marvel Knights imprint began with Kevin Smith and Joe Quesada. While Brian Michael Bendis did an excellent job with making Daredevil's identity public and turning his life upside-down, he never really finished off his story, and towards the end was telling the story in non-linear fashion, which I found a bit confusing. Ed Brubaker has brought this back to a gritty crime story and so far has had his share of surprises. It's very good, perhaps the best Daredevil yet.
The best compliment I can pay these titles is that every month I consider books I might stop buying, and when I get to Captain America and Daredevil, while I don't have as much invested with the characters, the stories are just too compelling.
Civil War
The big event in the Marvel Universe has had Iron Man and Captain America at each other's throats over whether or not super-powered humans should be registered with the government. Delays in the artwork have had fans upset as well. So far, I don't mind the story that's being told here, although I have not picked up any of the crossover titles. It seems like there are some holes in the core series (most of which I have filled by reading articles on the Internet). While I find the artwork great, it seems to me that some of the characters are acting funny (especially Reed Richards and Spider-Man). I also still can't sympathize with the pro-registration side. I've always liked Mark Millar's writing but this title seems a little silly. I will admit, it's a ton better than the last major Marvel event, House of M.
Ultimates 2
The other book that Mark Millar writes. When is the last issue coming out? I don't expect to buy volume 3 or 4 which will be written by Jeph Loeb. The art by Bryan Hitch is beautiful and when it all ends, this will be a classic tale. But it still hasn't come out. I also was wondering where the "evil Thor" that was in issue 10 went. I think he was involved in invading Washington DC but by issue 12 wasn't around at all.
52
The major event in DC Comics has been the weekly comic, 52. Word has it that this series has been so successful that DC and Marvel both plan on launching other weekly titles. It is nice to have a weekly titles, although it's expensive. But the story keeps moving each week which is nice. Some of the stories are more interesting than others, but for the most part, I'm enjoying the ride. It's been treading water a little lately, but I expect for the second half it will pay-off. The book is written by a team of Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka, Grant Morrison and Mark Waid. The voice seems very consistent, and it's pretty hard to pick out who wrote what. I will reserve my final verdict when this book is completed.
DC's All-Star line
There are two titles that make up DC's All-Star line, All-Star Superman and All-Star Batman. All-Star Superman is written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quietly. It's a fun book when it comes out, but it's been plagued by delays. Each issue has a self-contained story that is also part of a larger story. All-Star Batman is also delayed, and written by Frank Miller, illustrated by Jim Lee. Lately Jim Lee mentioned that he is responsible for the delays. How bad are the delays? Here's the schedule for the first four issues - September '05, November '05, December '05 and March '06. That's right, one issue in 2006.
DC has to be somewhat upset about how this line has launched. Since September '05, the two titles have shipped a total of 9 issues. This was supposed to be a sort of answer to the Ultimate line - top name creators with continuity-free stories. The titles still sell well, but many fans have noted their distaste for the weird characterization of Batman by Miller. If Batman's only going to be $3 / year, I'll probably keep buying.
Planetary
Speaking of books that come out once per year, Planetary by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday has had 9 issues published since 2004. But each issue is great, and I'm never disappointed. In my opinion, it's completely worth the wait, although I don't always remember the story each time. I think this will wrap up soon (issue 27 might be the finale?) and will probably read very nicely in a trade paperback format.
Wildcats, Authority
Recently it was thought that the Wildstorm super hero line could be re-launched with big name creators. So with one of my favorite writers, Grant Morrison, paired with one of my favorite artists, Jim Lee, how could Wildcats miss? The first issue, which came out in October, actually wasn't too shabby, but the next issue isn't due until at least March '07! Not the best way to launch a line (see All-Star Batman). Meanwhile, Authority, also written by Morrison and illustrated by Gene Ha, started out with an issue that didn't even feature the title characters. This doesn't seem like the way to launch a new line. Still, I like Morrison enough to just wait and see what happens here.
Seven Soldiers
I just read the finale to the Grant Morrison mega-crossover. Anyone who says they know what this was about who is not named Grant Morrison is full of it. Some of the mini-series were pretty cool ideas but the conclusion didn't make much sense to me.
Batman, Detective Comics
Grant Morrison, who has written a number of books mentioned above, is also writing Batman. I've collected comics for a long time, and surprisingly I've never bought Batman or Superman books on a regular, monthly basis. Also, I'm surprised how many mainstream books Grant Morrison is writing these days (All-Star Superman, Batman, Authority, Wildcats, 52). Anyway, the first arc deals with a possible biologic "son" for Batman. For the most part, it seems to read like a pretty standard super-hero story, with a few occasional scenes that have the bizarre flair Grant Morrison is known for. It's not bad, but nothing special at this point.
Paul Dini has been writing standalone, one-month stories for Detective Comics. So far they've been nice, but they don't really seem to be building towards anything. Hopefully, they'll come together as something more cohesive soon.
Action Comics, Superman
A lot of big names have been writing Superman and Batman lately, but I don't feel like any of them have really used the "One Year Later" concept to really re-establish the characters. This title by Richard Donner, Geoff Johns and Adam Kubert may be the one to do it. Donner and Johns seem to be taking an approach to this title similar to the movies, which may upset continuity buffs a bit, but I think it will allow for some fresh ideas. Upcoming will be a 3D issue, which sounds intriguing. Already there have been some plot points that seem to be related to a few of the Superman movies.
Superman is by Kurt Busiek and Carlos Pacheco, a great creative team. While it's been beautifully illustrated, I don't quite know what to make of the story yet. It seems to be going towards an alternate future, which is somewhat interesting, but also feels very played-out.
Wonder Woman
I've picked up the first three issues of this series written by Allan Heinberg (Gray's Anatomy) and beautifully illustrated by Terry Dodson. The series comes out irregularly, which is sort of annoying, but has been pretty interesting so far. I've never really been a fan of Wonder Woman, but Heinberg's Young Avengers for Marvel got so much acclaim that I figured it was worth a try.
Justice League of America
Brad Meltzer has been writing the re-launch of Justice League of America. He has said that he was a big fan of the series when he was growing up, and so far it shows. Meltzer seems to be setting up a bunch of clues for a mystery, and I enjoyed his set-up in Identity Crisis. The best issue so far was Justice League #0, which showed Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman interacting in different points in time, past, present and future. The low point so far, three issues in and Wonder Woman, Batman and Superman are still sitting at table!
Wolverine, Wolverine: Origins
The flagship Wolverine title was just involved with the Civil War crossover, and it was written by Marc Guggenheim, who has done a bunch of television writing. The Civil War crossover wasn't bad. I liked how it integrated into the overall Civil War story, even though there were some elements that seemed absurd even for a Wolverine comic. Jeph Loeb and Simone Bianchi are coming on soon to deal with the relationship between Sabretooth and Wolverine. I find Jeph Loeb to be very hit-or-miss, with the hits being great and the misses being pretty average. Bianchi's art (above), however, is pretty darn good. Here's hoping they tell a nice story.
Wolverine: Origins is written by Daniel Way and illustrated by Steve Dillon. This book came out of the House of M, where Wolverine suddenly remembered everything about his past. I'm still not really enjoying this book. I can't exactly say what's missing but it just seems like there's a lot of characterization that's missing, particularly since Wolverine has been interacting with a lot of different super powered guest stars. I still wonder if Wolverine really needs to have two different titles, and sincerely wish that he were not a part of the Avengers.
The Future
I usually peruse the solicitations for future months, and I have to say that I'm not that impressed with the new offerings. While I'm enjoying 52, I don't anticipate picking up a weekly series from either DC or Marvel. These big events that are supposed to change everything are getting on my nerves a bit, especially in the case of Marvel, where I don't really like the characterization (see: House of M and Civil War). I think Marvel is pretty reliant on just about three writers - J. Michael Straczynski, Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Millar. While I've enjoyed stories by all three, I've been pretty turned off by Bendis and Straczynski lately. That's a personal taste of course, but it doesn't look like things will change at Marvel any time soon. As for DC, I'm enjoying their books quite a bit, but the One Year Later gimmick hasn't impacted the titles as much as I had expected. Maybe it will just take more time to figure out. Comics and my tastes tend to be cyclic anyways. Just a few years ago, I was pleased as punch with the things that were going on at Marvel and DC, but now I'm not enjoying them as much. Here's hoping the next upswing will be soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment