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! Apologies for the delay on this edition. The website was wiped from all existence in some cosmic. Kind of like that one crossover. “Flashpoint.” This week, we tackle “Age of Apocalypse”, “Star-Lord & Kitty Pryde” and more whilst giving up our own thoughts! 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
Thors #3
Written by Jason Aaron
Illustrated by Chris Sprouse
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
“Thors” is the best “True Detective” season I’ve ever seen. Jason Aaron and Chris Sprouse continue to channel the best kind of noir-soaked detective stories and this issue is no exception as Thorlief interrogates Loki. It’s all very Dark Knight this issue as most of it takes places in the interrogation room and that brings a lot of tension and inter-character conflict to Aaron’s dialogue. This is backed up by Sprouse as he never lets the dialogue overload the art. In comics where the story focuses on dialogue, it can be easy for the art to be overlooked, but that isn’t the case here. Sprouse brings a lot of focus to the faces of Thorlief and Loki to convey a swell of emotions in each panel.
I don’t want to say too much on this one as it continues a swerve near the end of the issue that will likely completely change the landscape of the story going forward in the style of the best kind of crime stories. Aaron and Sprouse have created a book that takes what could have been a very silly idea and turned it into a great crime drama.
Final Verdict: 7.2 – I cannot wait to see where this goes from here.
House of M #2
Written by Dennis Hopeless and Cullen Bunn
Illustrated by Marco Failla
Reviewed by Jess Camacho
“House of M” #2 wastes no time getting into things. Misty Knight, Hawkeye, Black Cat and Death Locket (terrible name) have moved forward on taking out Magneto and his family. Meanwhile, Scarlet Witch is dealing with two very troublesome kids and Quicksilver continues to build his alliance with Namor. It’s overall, not nearly as flat feeling as the first issue thanks to how much happens. Bunn and Hopeless are moving along very quickly and while it makes for a great action packed issue, it does hurt the character development a little bit. There’s not a lot that differentiates Misty Knight from Black Cat personality wise but Polaris does again get to shine. There’s a lot happening with this story and it feels self aware that this event is running out of time.
Failla’s art has the same problems that existed in the first issue. The character faces are inconsistent throughout and at times the characters look extremely similar. What Failla does great, once again, is the action. He creates these huge, extremely dynamic fight scenes and it’s in these moments that the book feels like a superhero series. Matt Wilson’s colors are vivid and it adds this much brighter feeling to the book compared to some of the other “Secret Wars” tie-ins.
Final Verdict: 6.9 – A little bit better than the first issue but there’s just so much happening that I’m concerned it won’t pan out well.
Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies #4
Written by James Robinson
Illustrated by Steve Pugh
Reviewed by James Johnston
Real talk: I would read an entire novel that was just 1876 Hank Pym. Dude has no idea what he’s saying. Here’s an actual line from the comic, after the good guys took over Ultron’s army who were staring at the explosion they made.
“’… ’n’ Ultron? Ultron’s army on the other hand… oh they was bedazzled for more ‘n’ a lick. ‘n’ Ultron hisself? Nuh-uh. No better than a clockwork man.”
Continued belowI don’t know what that means, but if Jason Aaron ever gets tired of writing “Southern Bastards” I want James Robinson to take over.
“Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies” had surprisingly more depth than its premise made it out to be. Focusing on the robotic protectors of a sanctuary out in the Deadlands actually made the story rather emotional and (dare I say) human. Plus, Steve Pugh’s gruesome army of Ultron/Zombie mash-ups is the kind of nightmare threat that comics were made for.
That’s not to say this book isn’t without its clichés. EVERY character goes up to their wife/girlfriend to give a tragic farewell speech (although one of those sacrifices ends up being handled extremely well.) Also, Pym suddenly remembering the clockwork Ultron (my favorite Burgess novel) feels too-little too-late. If Ultron Zombies are busting down your door, you can’t stop put everything on hold to bring up the one idea you forgot to put in this comic.
Final Verdict: 7.1 – Despite some flaws, “Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies” ended up being a very strong series that milked its potential for everything it had. Now just make sure Michael Douglas plays 1872 Pym in the Ant-Man sequel.
Hail Hydra #2
Written by Rick Remender
Illustrated by Roland Boschi
Reviewed by Jess Camacho
“Hail Hydra” exists within “Secret Wars” and I’m not exactly how it makes sense. It’s a confusing read because somehow Nomad escaped whatever Doom and Strange did and now is unsure of how he ended up in this Zola controlled New York City. “Hail Hydra” #2 finds Nomad getting his ass kicked by his counterpart and he ends up in the underground with what looks like experimented on Avengers. I didn’t read the “Captain America” series that Remender was writing before “Secret Wars” and that has added an extra layer of confusion for me. I’m sure I’m not the first to say this but it still applies in this issue. “Hail Hydra” #2 plays out like a horror story and it’s so uncomfortable in so many wrong ways. Given what Hydra represents (Nazis), watching victims of experiments get even more abuse is really tough to get through. Boschi’s art is gory and very well suited for this kind of story but it doesn’t really take away from how uncomfortable reading this is.
Final Verdict: 2.0 – Avoid…unless you were invested in what was happening in “Captain America” before “Secret Wars”.
Star-Lord and Kitty Pryde #3
Written by Sam Humphries
Illustrated by Alti Firmansyah
Reviewed by James Johnston
I want to make one thing clear: I would support a comic book where Drax is a goofy club owner with a pompadour with all of my money. That character needs to skyrocket so hard that Batista has to grow hair for Guardians of the Galaxy 2.
So yeah, “Star-Lord and Kitty Pryde” #3 ended on a high note, with an adorable set of characters and hijinx that felt pretty different from what other Battleworld tie-ins have been doing. Plus, it even got into why there are multiple versions of why everyone has at least seven versions of themselves running around Battleworld. I mean, they didn’t explain WHY that was happening but at least someone acknowledged it. I felt like I was going mad.
Alti Firmansyah’s art really kept the momentum of this comic going, by enriching every character with an almost Tex Avery level of energy. It’s rare to read a comic with such vibrant characters and I think Firmansyah is a huge factor in this book’s success. As much as I like Sam Humphries, his depiction of Kitty and Quill is just missing something. Star-Lord here is kind of another dopey action movie guy and Kitty is the overqualified badass into him for some reason. So, yeah, Humphries basically wrote Quill as the perfect Chris Pratt.
Final Verdict: As fun as this comic was, I’m still waiting to see Peter Quill and Kitty Pryde get some much needed focus in their post-“Secret Wars” roles. That said, this was still a pretty fun tie-in and Tex Avery Batista is my current Best Character of 2015.
Continued below
Spider-Island #3
Written by Christos Gage
Illustrated by Paco Diaz
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
While “Spider-Island” could have definitely been an interesting idea, this is one of the most filler-ass filler issues I’ve ever read. The only thing this issue preoccupies itself with is the consequences of last issue’s big cliffhanger (that, shocker, Peter Parker is still alive because of course he is) while setting up for the upcoming final issues. It’s the most third issue I’ve read, focused on keeping the momentum of the story flowing instead of offering any interesting content in and of itself. There’s really not much else to say. It’s like trying to review the bridge of a song; it’s only real purpose is to link two more interesting things together.
Meanwhile, the Spider-Girl backups continue to move forward at a glacial pace to the point where I don’t even really know why they’re in the book in the first place.
Final Verdict: 4.5 – Eventually, this will just be the boring middle section of a trade paperback, but for now it’sa really boring issue.
Age of Apocalypse #3
Written by Fabian Nicieza
Illustrated by Gerardo Sandoval
Reviewed by Jess Camacho
All my good will towards “Age of Apocalypse” has kind of faded. “Age of Apocalypse” #3 featured more of the same talking, angst ridden mutants going on about how sad they are and how miserable they are. The only part of this issue that does anything to truly move the story along in a meaningful way is the last page but it comes a little too late. “Age of Apocalypse” is a tough read because it’s really on the boring side of things and given how lukewarm I’ve felt about this whole event, that’s saying a lot. Sandoval’s art has been fun in the sense that it’s trying to be an homage to 90’s comics but this issue is extremely heavy on the inks and at times, characters in action look too blurry.
Final Verdict: 4.0 – Some of the Magneto scenes are really cool but the story hasn’t turned into something worth reading.
Squadron Sinister #3
Written by Marc Guggenheim
Illustrated by Carlos Pacheco
Reviewed by James Johnston
And the award for most improved “Secret Wars” comic goes to “Squadron Sinister!” Congratulations! Your award is a couple paragraphs from some geek.
“Squadron Sinister” #3 indulges the series’s Game of Thrones influence by exploring the political game of cat-and-mouse being played between Power Princess and Nighthawk, all while Hyperion continues to punch first and think later. Everyone’s political maneuvering also leads into an inevitable fight with an army of Starbrands which is the type of stakes that cloak-and-dagger stories need sometimes. I just need to feel that everyone’s actions have consequences outside of Hyperion’s feelings.
That conflict also leaves plenty of space for Pachecho to deliver some gritty and impactful violence. The Squadron Sinister are meant to feel like a more violent version of the Justice League, right? It makes sense for their fights to be more brutal than your typical superhero fare.
Final Verdict: 6.7 – “Squadron Sinister” picks up on the book’s potential by focusing on the political infighting and its consequences.
Future Imperfect #5
Written by Peter David
Illustrated by Greg Land
Reviewed by Alice W. Castle
Well, then.
When “Future Imperfect” began, I remember assuming I wasn’t going to be too into it. For one, I knew nothing about the original Future Imperfect storyline save for seeing an action figure of The Maestro once and for another, I really wasn’t interested in another comic illustrated by Greg Land. Now that it’s finished, though, I have to say I enjoyed my time with the series. It’s a tragic story of power and is a different kind of Hulk story than we usually get. Instead of a Bruce Banner who continually runs from the power he has, viewing it as a curse, we get a Banner who has embraced that power to the point where it will eventually be his undoing.
Continued belowThat kind of poignancy is what Peter David is great at and this final issue really showcases that he’s still able to craft stories with depth of emotion. While the side characters that David introduced are pretty much pushed the sideline in favour of a final showdown between The Maestro and Doom, that showdown really gives us a look into the twisted mind of the Maestro. The artwork by Greg Land lends itself well to a very Kirby-esque showdown of cosmic proportions that feels as epic as it was billed to be. While his faces continue to be weird contortions of unreadable emotions, he’s able to build huge, epic fights and that’s exactly what this issue called for.
In the end, “Future Imperfect” surprised me a lot in the best ways possible.
Final Verdict: 7.0 – While it’s not quite the best we’ve seen, it’s definitely not one to skip out on as there’s still a lot here to enjoy.
Final Thoughts:
Alice: This week was kind of ‘eh’ for me. As things are slowly beginning to wrap up, the last of the freshness of this event has evaporated completely and I feel like I’m just watching the clock tick down at the end of a long day. A lot of the enthusiasm I have for even the books I love reading has dried up as I know already that most of them aren’t going to continue on in October.
Gee, it’s almost like knowing the ends of stories months in advance ruins the excitement, hu
James: I’m going to use my time in London to find out if the British actually think Americans talk like 1872 Pym.
Jess: Vince was right. Remember us before we were sucked into “Secret Wars”.
