Welcome back to the MC2, Multiversity’s panel of noted Marvel experts. The three of us (MC3 sounded weird) are covering Marvel’s straight up CALVACADE of “Secret Wars” tie-ins! This week, we tackle “E Is For Extinction”, “Planet Hulk”, and more whilst giving up our own thoughts on the event as a whole! Feel free to join in the conversation in the comments and let us know what you think about Marvel’s latest crossover. Spoilers below!
Micro-Reviews
E Is For Extinction #1
Written by Chris Burnham
Illustrated by Ramon Villalobos
Reviewed by James Johnston
Nostalgia’s not a word one would use to describe Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly’s early 2000’s deconstruction of the X-Men. “New X-Men” tore down the ideas of what being mutant meant and redefined the team for the next decade and a half. But, as always, time moved on and “New X-Men” became just another by-gone run whose consequences distantly echo throughout the current X-Men’s state of affairs. When most modern comics strive for nostalgia, they usually aim for runs or genres that are often revisited which lessens their own impact. “E Is For Extinction” did what a good nostalgia story should: revisit the original material while expanding upon it in exciting “OH, IF ONLY!” ways.
Burnham (a long-time collaborator with Grant Morrison “Batman Incorporated” and “Nameless” imbues “E Is For Extinction” witht eh raw in-your-face edginess that made the original series so defiant in its initial run. And Ramon Villalobos has an aesthetic similar to Frank Quitely’s own style that makes the book seem like a direct continuation of “New X-Men”. But at no point in the book do the creators seem content to rest on their predecessor’s laurel.s They go hard, with bold and new ideas that pay homage to the classic series while offering one hell of a What If? scenario.
After Professor X offs himself to stop Cassandra Nova, Magneto (then Xorn and no one can tell me otherwise) transforms his class of students into the new X-Men. While Quentin Quire (oh you have ben missed), Beak, and Angel fight off U-Men, the old (uh, classic) X-Men comprised of Wolverine, Cyclops, and Emma Frost try to stop Magneto. Like I said earlier, the premise also goes to expand upon ideas and themes from “New X-Men”. In that series, mutants were becoming the style and here we see parents trying to have their embryos genetically modified into mutants. There’s even a shoutout to an unused storyline where Xavier’s Academy would have accepted a non-mutant music prodigy.
Also worth nothing: Ramon Villalobos is not afraid to get out there. Not only does this comic have the only example of flying sperm I can think of, but Villalobos can balance his more outlandish content with some intimate action. You don’t really buy Wolverine as a “Don’t Care About Nuffin'” badass until he actually cuts off his own finger to piss off a guy in a bar. Ouch.
Final Verdict: 8.8 – “E Is For Extinction” #1 is for “New X-Men” fans through and through. I’m curious to see the reaction from those who never read its inspiration series (hint: you should) but I would argue it holds up as an incredibly solid comic book without prior experience. That said, much of “E Is For Extinction’s” charm does stem from “New X-Men” homages.
Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies #1
Written by James Robinson
Illustrated by Steve Pugh
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
When this series was announced, I remember rolling my eyes. “Oh, sure,” I thought, “let’s throw one of the most mediocre events in the last fifteen years in a blender with a series that started off as a fun and new idea, but slowly fell apart like the shambling corpse it was.” I was initially pretty skeptical. Then I saw that the series was being created by James Robinson and Steve Pugh and I thought you know, maybe this won’t be so bad. However, I think I should have stuck with my first instinct.
This is another one of those “Secret War” tie-in first issues that feels messy and unfocused. We’re first introduced to a version of Tigra as she faces off against the zombie hoard of vaguely familiar b-list villains and things seem to be going pretty okay. Steve Pugh’s art excels as the heavily inked panels emphasise the dark shadows of the forest and brings a very drab and eerie atmosphere to the scene. The only point of worry came from the third person narration Robinson employed. It felt too impersonal and like it wasn’t connecting with Tigra as much as it should.
Continued belowThat then just didn’t matter as the Ultrons showed up, we get a splash page over the only actual page of zombies and Ultrons fighting and then cut to a history lesson on the domain of Perfection. Robinson and Pugh briefly recap the changes in the timeline that caused the takeover of Ultrons, revealing that maybe there’s something of a bias in the story here. Pugh’s art continues to shine here as we get a couple of splash pages of Earth’s heroes fighting off a hoard of Ultrons that actually feel exciting. Then the Hank Pym of “1872” shows up and the real story begins as he wanders around the desert for a couple of pages before all of a sudden the Avengers of 1972 show up for a final page reveal that just falls flat.
This is less of a versus comic and more of a history lesson that segues into the journey of the one man obsessed with robots in every universe into the heart of robot city. The writing feels disjointed as we get an initial protagonist fakeout, an unnecessarily long history lesson on one side of the conflict and then the real protagonist shows up to not do much of anything. Thankfully Steve Pugh’s art is engaging and enjoyable throughout, but unless the writing vastly improves over the rest of this series, the art might not be worth picking it up alone.
Final Verdict: 4.6
Korvac Saga #1
Written by Dan Abnett
Illustrated by Otto Schmidt
Reviewed by James Johnston
I get that a lot of these titles are meant to tie the comics into some earlier series with a base audience that feels some nostalgia for it. Look at my review above for “E Is For Extinction”. I went wild for that. “Korvac Saga”, however, is a little more confusing. I can’t really imagine who would want to see the original Guardians of the Galaxy as cops in a town owned by MAYOR MICHAEL KORVAC but I never read the original storyline. I thought Korvac was some interdimensional villain but maybe he was always just a small time mayor.
Anywho, “Korvac Saga” focuses on the original Guardians (Vance Astro, Fondu, etc.) investigating an infection that turns their town’s citizens into murderous monsters whilst Michael Korvac tries to make it through a state dinner with the visiting Baron Wonder Man. Not only is “Secret Wars” reminding me of Game of Thrones but I’m getting a Veep vibe as well. Doom loves his HBOGO account.
Beyond that, “Korvac Saga” suffers from the too-much-to-cover too-little-time that a lot of these tie-ins face. Like, I can’t care about Michael Korvac’s political dinner when I just saw Hyperion fucking murder a dude for his kingdom last week. Everyone in Battleworld has to be Khal Drogo or Selena Meyer. There’s not enough room for both. And while the infection affecting the kingdom is given some interesting potential causes, it just feels like an excuse for soemthing to go wrong in the city. I want to say the infection, a madness really, has something to do with characters realizing what Battleworld really is, but even then it has to do more with people exploding into monsters.
That said, I wouldn’t mind watching Otto Schmidt’s exploding monsters for a couple pages. While there’s a lack of political suspense, Schmidt finds himself in the action, particularly the brutal takedown of Abomination in the first few pages. You want to make Yondu and his whistle arrow look like a credible threat on page? Take a look at this comic.
Final Verdict: 6.3 – My biggest problem with “Korvac Saga” is that I can’t tell what it wants to be. Are we digging into the “Korvac Saga” of old or doing our own thing? Are we tracking down SPACE MADNESS or are we protecting the kingdom from the underhanded Wonder Man? The dots will likely be connected in later issues but this first issue does little to motivate you to draw the lines.
Planet Hulk #2
Written by Sam Humphries
Illustrated by Marc Laming
Continued below
Reviewed by Jess Camacho
“Planet Hulk” #1 was one of my favorite debuts of the “Secret Wars” tie-ins. It’s an entire issue of Captain America and Devil Dinosaur fighting things. “Planet Hulk” #2 is more or less the same thing but there is a little bit more of a story built in to this.
Captain America and Devil Dinosaur wake up in the Greenland but joined by their savior and reluctant partner Doc Green. Doc Green and Steve Rogers get into it right away because Doc is torturing a dying animal for gross reasons disguised as “science”. Much of this issue ends up being a long conversation between the two characters about what comes next. The conversation is broken up by an extended flashback to Steve and Bucky’s early days.
If you haven’t been a fan of the recent Doc Green version of The Hulk then you’ll find yourself hating this even more. Doc Green is actually a fairly good opposite to the idealistic Steve Rogers but Humphries does not hold back on making this character a complete jerk. He’s extremely unlikable but not everything he says is completely wrong. This makes him a good guide through this world. The problem is that this story is slow moving. Two issues in and Steve really hasn’t any closer to finding Bucky and with most of this issue being exposition, it doesn’t really click as much as the first one did. Bucky and Steve’s relationship is once again hinted at being something more than friends and I’m still really on board with that idea. The later part of this issue comes off like a classic adventure comic and ends up being a lot of fun but that’s really thanks to Laming’s art.
Marc Laming’s art is really dynamic in a lot of ways. The jungle backgrounds are heavily detailed and the character designs are really well done. Laming really sells the battle worn look of Steve Rogers with the right amount of grizzle and scruff. His design of Devil Dinosaur is still the best thing happening because his size in proportion to everything else is spot on. Even Doc Green looks tiny compared to him and it makes him far more dangerous looking. Jordan Boyd’s colors are really strong. He uses a fair amount of more muted colors and doesn’t overwhelm you with a lush jungle. Usually this would bother me but it adds a certain old school vibe that works within this story.
“Planet Hulk” #2 has some moments near the end but it’s really a big talking issue where Steve Rogers tells Doc Green what he wants to do. There’s still a lot of potential for action packed heroics but this issue just falls a bit flat.
Final Verdict: 6.8 – Really strong art but the story lacks the development the first issue left you desiring.
Where Monsters Dwell #2
Written bY Garth Ennis
Illustrated by Russell Braun
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
The first issue of “Where Monsters Dwell” is one that I enjoyed. Garth Ennis and Russ Braun embraced the pulp aspects of the setting to create an engaging adventure that really picked up halfway through with the simply inclusion of dinosaurs to offset how gruff and outdated many of the characters’ views were. They are from the 1920s after all. However, the second issue takes its time to spend time with these characters and get to know them, quickly ensuring that they come off as insufferable.
A man’s man, gruff and surly and sure of himself in all situations, is faced with an equally capable woman and just doesn’t know how to handle it as he’s never met a woman who wasn’t posh and waifish and fainted at the first sign of action. Heard that one before? Sure you have, you’ve seen the Indiana Jones films. However, the problem with “Where Monsters Dwell” is that Garth Ennis goes out of his way to establish that Karl Kaufman is a jerk, a chauvinist and an all around misogynist and that just makes him inherently unlikeable to me. Seeing him run, humiliated, from a dinosaur is not funny to me because I was disappointed when I turned the next page and found he had survived. That made this issue, one that focuses on his continually bickering with Clemmie, one that just wasn’t as fun as the first.
Continued belowThe writing may err on the side of making me dislike the characters, but thankfully Russ Braun is still around to exhilarate and thrill. Braun’s pulpy, action-packed and inkwashed style is still the perfect fit for this book. While the payoff for the last issue’s stinger is over in only a couple of pages, the set piece in the middle of this issue featuring a fight between two giant sea creatures was incredibly staged and worthy of a SyFy movie in the best way possible. The only downside to the art is the last two pages which features a clan of Amazon-like women clad in incredibly skimpy fur bikinis that made me want to exclaim “I didn’t know Frank Cho drew this book!”
“Where Monsters Dwell” is a book about characters from the 1920s and comes with all the trappings of casual intolerance that that time period suggest. Now, I’m sure that’s going to appeal to a section of comics readers today, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth. The technical artistry on the page is exciting and well put together and a book about a surly fighter pilot and a kickass (implied) lesbian fighting dinosaurs is something I should love, but not when the dialogue drips sexism.
Final Verdict: 5.3 – I desperately wanted to like this issue, but the dialogue kept holding me back from really getting into it.
Infinity Gauntlet #2
Written by Dustin Weaver & Gerry Duggan
Illustrated by Dustin Weaver
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
I have to admit something: this book is one of the few books that I have fallen in love with as part of “Secret Wars”. Dustin Weaver and Gerry Duggan tell the story here of a family trapped in the destroyed wasteland of Manhattan only to be united with the mother of the family, who is part of the Nova Corps. If that wasn’t already interesting enough, the whole family (including the dog) then become Novas in order to fight off the ever present insect swarm. Meanwhile, Thanos is being his usual Thanos-y self and lusting over the Infinity Stones (because fuck you, the MCU is making money) like a fifteen year old in the 80s lusted over Playboy.
What really makes “The Infinity Gauntlet” #2 special is Dustin Weaver’s artwork. His art has a style all to its own that blends a sense of exaggeration in expression and scale from anime while keeping it grounded with a certain level of realism thanks to the detail put into the environment and the character designs. Even with the family goes full on Super Sentai, there’s a level of realism to the design that brings real peril to them all as they are swarmed with insects they can barely hold off.
This grounding of the rather out there concepts of the book also comes from the writing. Weaver worked with Gerry Duggan on the story for this series and Duggan is credited with scripting the issue. His writing focuses on bringing forth the dysfunction of the family through the tensions created by the environment. The father is initially rather guarded and tense as the mother returns after a long absence and we see them briefly argue over how best to protect their daughters in an environment such as this one. It’s this emotional conflict that gives depth to the characters and makes sure the heart of the series isn’t buried under just how Kamen Rider the whole affair is.
“The Infinite Gauntlet” is one of the more self-contained books we’ve covered as there are no real references to the world outside of the domain the series focuses on. As a result, I found myself caught up in the emotional conflict of the family because the story didn’t grind to a halt every time Doom was mentioned.
Final Verdict: 8.7 – This is the closest to essential reading any of these titles have come to.
M.O.D.O.K. Assassin #2
Written by Chris Yost
Illustrated by Amilcar Pinna
Reviewed by Jess Camacho
The first issue of this M.O.D.O.K. starring miniseries was not something I was initially into. I like comedic M.O.D.O.K. but it just kind of got grating after a while. When he’s the lead character, you’ve gotta tell a different joke or it’s going to get boring. That’s kind of what happens in this issue and that’s why it ends up being so disappointing.
Continued below
M.O.D.O.K. is on the scene when Angela (a member of the Thor Corps) gets hit and knocked out by someone still unknown to us. The entire issue is basically Angela trying to kill M.O.D.O.K. and him being flustered by how pretty she is. It’s played for laughs and I’m not really offended by situation but I am upset at how long it goes on. The characterization of Angela is overdone a little bit as she comes off a bit mindless but a series of events (again at the very end) allows her to behave more like the version we’ve seen in her solo series. It takes a long time to get to the point and that’s really what ends up being it’s downfall. M.O.D.O.K.’s voice is written perfectly fine but it’s again much more exaggerated than usual. In this case, it works but he needs something more to do.
Pinna’s art verges on cartoony and that’s completely fine. It’s very clean in that sense and full of a lot of varying emotions. M.O.D.O.K.’s facial expressions have a lot of range. His lovelorn face is pretty much perfect and also fairly funny. Angela’s fighting style is very good because if you’re going to go with a super aggressive Angela, might as well do it right. Pinna does it right. Rachelle Rosenberg’s colors are like candy. Everything is really light and fluffy with lots of bright purples making up the backgrounds in the M.O.D.O.K. and Angela fight. Angela’s glowing eyes look like actual light and the fight scenes have nice shadowing effect so it looks like actual movement.
“M.O.D.O.K. Assassin” could be really, really funny but it just fails on the same joke that’s only funny for a little while before it gets a little weird. The art is strong enough and adds extra comedic effect that keeps this from being a total disaster.
Final Verdict: 6.5 – “M.O.D.O.K. Assassin” #2 doesn’t give us much and it’s a shame. There’s a built up world with interesting characters pushing again M.O.D.O.K. and we’ve gotten almost nothing from them.
Final Thoughts
Jess: This week left me feeling very meh. I will admit that I didn’t read a couple of things but that was due to lack of interest. I just didn’t care about whatever “Korvac Saga” is and I honestly couldn’t care less about “Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies”. Series I liked, such as “Planet Hulk” didn’t really deliver with their second issue. “E Is For Extinction” is the new hotness though. That is the kind of X-Men series I could get behind. “Infinity Gauntlet” does deliver again and I’m kind of shocked by how much I’m enjoying this series.
Alice: This week was another pretty quiet week, but there wasn’t much that jumped out at me. “The Infinite Gauntlet” and “E Is For Extinction” were both a ton of fun to read with a amazing art, but kept thinking to myself “I wish these weren’t tied to “Secret Wars” so I could keep reading them forever”. I’d definitely recommend those two books as highlights of this endeavour so far, but the rest of this week was pretty meh. Nothing was all that bad as even “MODOK Assassin” was more tolerable this time around, but the rest never really grabbed me or gave me anything I felt really excited about.
Hopefully things will pick up a little next week? Oh god, I’m going to dread saying that, aren’t I?
James: Yeah, I’m not sure how necessary these number of tie-ins are for “Secret Wars” in general? Marvel’s mining that nostalgia vein all the time and I feel like really excellent series like “E Is For Extinction” could have stuck around without being tied into God Doom’s Battleworld. Like, it would be much more impressive of “Secret Wars” to have a few really strong tie-ins than to have a couple diamonds in a haystack. While I’m appreciative of all the books we’re receiving, and the talent that doesn’t usually work on Marvel stuff creating them, I’m not sure my head and wallet can say the same.
But yeah, “Infinity Gauntlet” and “E Is For Extinction”. Holy wow.
