There’s a lot to cover on Wednesdays. We should know, as collectively, we read an insane amount of comics. Even with a large review staff, it’s hard to get to everything. With that in mind, we’re back with Wrapping Wednesday, where we look at some of the books we missed in what was another great week of comics.
Let’s get this party started.
Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha #1
Written by Benjamin Percy
Illustrated by Geoff Shaw
Colored by Rain Beredo
Lettered by Travis Lanham
Reviewed by Gregory Ellner
Wolverine and the various incarnations of the Ghost Rider have crossed paths, but despite their common tendency to deal brutality to villains, they are rarely deliberately seen teaming up. With the ‘Weapons of Vengeance’ mini crossover between Benjamin Percy’s runs on “Ghost Rider” and “Wolverine,” the two combine rather well, with Johnny Blaze working alongside Logan for a rather disturbing horror story. The villain Percy brings forth is more in line with the Ghost Rider’s mythos than the mutant ones, but he brings the two together for a rather effective introduction to their partnership, one that he has them admit is uncommon for the two agents of revenge and brutal warfare.
Geoff Shaw’s artwork is rough but tightly arranged, making the emotions rather plainly shown even outside of the horrifying visuals of gore. Wolverine’s anger is on clear display, as is the fear on Johnny Blaze’s face, or the relatively impassive “expression” of his skull head as the Rider. Meanwhile, the structure of the various panels is arranged for maximum terror, accentuating the already scary story told by Percy.
Rain Beredo is no stranger to horror, such as “Brimstone” at DC (itself a Ghost Rider pastiche), and it comes across rather well here. The deep shadows of the nighttime are portrayed with maximum impact, contrasting against the flames of hell or other demonic entities, and even the light of day feels like cold comfort under his hues and tones.
Final Verdict: 7.0 – A horror story starts with a bang for two brutal heroes.
Immortal X-Men #14
Written by Kieron Gillen
Illustrated by Lucas Werneck
Colored by David Curiel & Erick Arciniega
Lettered by VC’s Clayton Cowles
Reviewed by Alexander Manzo
“Immortal X-Men” is the first book post-Gala that not only revisits Charles Xavier’s forced move to push the mutants to their destruction via the gates but gets into the repercussions of what it’s done to his mindset and psyche. Kieron Gillen gives us a view of what life is like now for Charles as he realizes his calm mindset for decision-making is no longer an option. If he wants to protect the island of Krakoa from anyone who attempts to take it, he can no longer merely play defense and attack straight-forward. This grizzled Charles, despite getting messages from a surviving psychic, Emma Frost, won’t answer anyone as his isolation is the worst punishment. Now while Charles is at the bookend of the book, Sebastian Shaw’s demise is the meat of the issue. His significant absence from the gala wasn’t a big surprise, mainly when it’s revealed he essentially sold out Krakoa for what he believed was its finances when the word of Mother Righteous only applied to the island itself. From the reader’s perspective, it feels more like a good dose of karmic justice as the self-proclaimed successful businessman lost his deal due to the small fine print. Now he’s got to find a way to get past Charles’ psychic warfare to gain access to the island. Gillen also gives a glimpse of hope to the mutants supposedly killed as they wander a desert led by Exodus, trying to find a place to devise a proper plan.
The artwork by Lucas Werneck has crispy and straight linework that is key in this story because it keeps the reader grounded in reality, the reminder that Charles’ decision has happened. The most vital element of this story is the emotions that run through both Charles and Shaw. Shaw’s get-rich-quick thinking imploding in his face not only destroys the usual smugness he carries around but instead has to deal with the shock and fear of the true power Mother Righteous has. On the other hand, Charles uses guilt and pain to become an almost cold-blooded mercenary. After a couple of reads, it almost feels like he has the Frank Castle mindset, “I’ll kill to protect what is mine,” which is something he has rarely shown before. The colorists David Curiel and Erick Arciniega have to get some recognition as well; CharlesCharles’s replay of the gala events at the beginning is in this red and grey tint that highlights the destruction and death of his family. Then once the perspective shifts to Shaw, the bright everyday colors come into a business meeting to bring the reader back to current times.
Continued belowFinal Verdict: 8.8 – This is the issue to pick up post-Gala to give any fan of the X-book a deeper insight into the pain it has caused Charles and what will happen next.
The Madness #1
Written by J. Michael Straczynski
Illustrated by ACO, David Lorenzo
Colored by Marclo Maiolo
Lettered by Sal Ciprino
Reviewed by Quinn Tassin
“The Madness” #1 has an excellent premise: Sarah, a superpowered woman known as the Raven, who steals from the rich to get by, does one last job, robbing a middle eastern oligarch to set herself (and her family) up for life. The issue takes an intriguing but flawed pivot from there, shifting firmly into political thriller territory rather than focusing on Sarah. The oligarch demands that the United States kill The Raven and the President pays a superhero team to drop a bomb on her head (to avoid political fallout from using military force on American soil). There’s real tension in the buildup to the attack, with an undeniable sense of forward narrative momentum. Moreover, there’s a coldness to the process that’s necessary for the greater themes this series seems to be getting at. Sarah has to die and that’s just politics. The “Council of Justice” votes to go through with the attack because it’s just what you do when the President asks. We’re introduced to a person who wants to live her life and then we see greater powers treating her as collateral damage in maintaining foreign relations. But when one Council member drops the bomb, Sarah survives while her family dies.
When Sarah wakes up, some type of alter ego takes over her body and the next thing we know, she’s attacking a man while he leaves a bar demanding that he share everything he knows. It’s an interesting twist but it’s a bit hard to make heads or tails of. Sure, we know a revenge tour is coming. But “The Madness” #1 has a serious problem with pacing and focus. We spend the issue seeing the political machine at work and that’s very cool. At the same time, we don’t actually know Sarah all that well. It’s tough to fully appreciate the emotional fallout of this attack given that we’ve had a grand total of seven pages of exposure to her, most of which are exposition-heavy. Nothing that happens here is bad but it’s hard not to feel that the priorities of this issue are in the wrong place. Great stories are grounded in character and this merely breezes past that.
The artwork is strong in “The Madness” #1. Layouts are simple, but effective, particularly in the action sequences. The pacing is strong, especially for an issue that’s so wordy and exposition-heavy. The colors are relatively realistic and cool in tone, reflecting the thematic goals of the issue well. The moment that takes the cake is clear- the bombing. It’s swift and horrifying and brutal. A forest disappears, a man is burned down to just his skeleton, and a superpowered woman burns until she jumps into a river. It’s all visceral and haunting imagery. If that’s the kind of artwork we can expect in future issues, this revenge tale is bound to be horrifying in the best possible way.
Final Verdict: 6.8- Intriguing and intelligent but hampered by a lack of focus on its main character.
