(Marvel – writer: Brian Michael Bendis; art: Chris Bachalo)

Marvel is building a case against Scott Summers, and Uncanny X-Men seems to be their smoking gun. With Brian Michael Bendis at the helm, and a surprise ally aiding the other side, Cyclops seems destined for a great fall in the very near future.

Bendis does some of his best work in this comic, scaling back on the action and instead going for fluid and engaging dialogue. Comic fans know that Bendis can be word heavy, but the man knows how to write a story that moves swiftly between scenes, keeping its main focus ever present.

And Bendis’ main point seems to be that while more mutants are appearing, their powers are also getting stronger, making them more dangerous than ever. Under Cyclops’ rule, they believe everything they’re doing is for the sake of the mutant race, but Bendis shows just how careless Summers is acting and how possessed he is by his own idea and ego – and how terrifying that is.

Chris Bachalo takes the art seat alongside Bendis, and while I don’t remember Bachalo’s art being this cartoony looking – like Paco Medina’s – his character designs are awesome. Characters look lithe but powerful, and Bachalo’s Sentinels are some of the best I’ve ever seen. In fact, the whole action sequence – from the Sentinels appearance to the destruction afterwards – is drawn with clarity and precision. My only complaint would be the limited color palette. The fight scenes are well drawn, but the images don’t pop off the page. Not that a myriad of colors would necessarily change this, but with such strong visuals, strong colors should have followed.

Marvel’s NOW! line has been consistently good (at least the comics I’ve read), and I think they should be proud of the work they’re producing. Bendis, as the lead for Uncanny X-Men, is the right choice to mix both character and emotion, and Chris Bachalo shows why he’s the right choice for this book. A strong read with a great premise, Uncanny X-Men should be on your pull list every month.

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The Walking Dead #107

(Image – writer: Robert Kirkman; art: Charlie Adlard)

In The Walking Dead world, no villain will ever match up to the Governor. After slicing off Rick’s hand, he stormed the prison where Rick and his crew were staying, killed his wife and his baby, and forced him out of his stable and protected home. The Governor met his fate, but his lasting impact is obviously still visible over fifty issues later whenever Rick lifts the stub of his right arm.

Negan, however, is trying to match up. He’s seemingly ruthless, psychotic and he swears more than a sailor on leave. And Robert Kirkman has been building him to something terrifying, particularly last issue when Carl snuck into Negan’s camp and the comic ended with Negan and Rick face to face, with Negan saying, “What until you seen what I’ve done to your boy.”

Chilling, no?

Well, no. This issue has to be the biggest letdown of any Walking Dead comic. After building to something that was potentially dramatic, issue #107 delivers absolutely nothing of substance, and I’m starting to lose my desire to keep reading a series that put zombies back on the map and vaulted Robert Kirkman into the stardom.

After his scary words in the previous issue, Negan reveals that he did nothing to Carl. So when he said, “What until you seen what I’ve done to your boy,” he was actually saying that he did nothing to Carl and wanted to prove that he could be reasonable. This brings up a myriad of plot and character circumstances with questionable outcomes. Why, for example, did he smash Glenn’s head open with a bat if he can be “reasonable”? Why did he storm into Rick’s camp and take their supplies if he can be “reasonable”? Why build a character up to be the reincarnation of everything unholy in the world only to find out that the character was trying to prove the point that he could be “reasonable”?

Seriously, this is a waste of an issue. I’ve been wearing kid gloves with The Walking Dead lately because I was sure it would get better and that Kirkman was building to something, but this issue is a waste of time and money. For a series about zombies, none even appear. What we’re given instead is 22 pages of conversation, exposition and the F-word. If you’re looking for a clever way to work the F-word into conversation, this issue is for you. Otherwise, don’t bother.

After this kind of letdown, I have a hard time finding anything positive to say. Usually I can praise Charlie Adlard for his solid and consistent artwork, but he’s relegated to a bunch of establishing shots. There’s no dynamism to the art, no creativity to the panel construction or point of view – just a straightforward, shot-for-shot story that gives its fans nothing of substance to take away.

My ire is really directed at how much of nothing has come about in this entire arc and how terrible a character Negan. He’s good at swearing, but that’s about it, and even now his volley of cursing has become annoying. Kirkman started this arc strong by killing Glen, but since then, the story has been at a standstill and we’ve been given page after page of wordy exposition and nothing to show for it.

Is this enough to drop The Walking Dead? No. I can’t step away from the book because I have faith in Robert Kirkman to do something. But even then, my patience is running thin. Will he miss one reader? God, no.

But I’ll feel better about putting my $2.99 to something more worth the buy.

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Batman #17

(DC – writer: Scott Snyder; art: Greg Capullo)

Bannen’s Book of the Week: The Joker does not offer Batman a physical challenge, but their battles never really center on them throwing punches like a fight with Bane, Killer Croc or even Hush would. No, the Joker is a master of mental manipulation, and this is the avenue writer Scott Snyder explores in Batman #17.

To be clear, the comic has a few failings. The story feels a bit bloated and the dialogue turns excessive at points, but Snyder is clearly having fun exploring the Joker’s mind. This is prevalent throughout the comic, because Batman #17 is more an exploration of the Joker’s madness and how it pervades not only everything about Batman but those around him as well.

For what Snyder promised, this comic is a bit predictable, too. The tension at the beginning of the book is palpable, and when Greg Capullo draws Batman’s sidekicks – Dick Grayson, Damian Wayne, Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon and Jason Todd – sitting around a table, faces wrapped in bandages and seated before domed dinner plates, I admit that I was trying to slow down my reading in order to really take in the moment before the Joker revealed what he had done.

And while the reveal is pretty horrific, I was still able to guess what had actually happened. Where the book works, of course, is in the conversation between Batman and Joker, and watching Bruce use Joker’s own methods against him was more cathartic than any beat-down the Dark Knight could have administered. The final moments of the comic are really where Snyder’s best work occurs, as we see the aftereffects of Joker’s rampage. The title of the arc, “Death of the Family,” really makes sense, as I don’t think we’ll see Batman’s team operate the same way for a long while.

Greg Capullo, as always, delivers stunning work. His panel construction, character designs and visual clarity make the book so visually engaging, and his Joker looks absolutely terrifying with his face hanging on by threads. The rest of the art team deserves the utmost credit as well. Jonathan Glapion’s sharp ink lines add copious detail to Capullo’s already powerful pencils, and FCO Plascencia’s colors (particularly with the Joker) bring the characters to life.

Scott Snyder has now delivered two major story lines, first with “Court of the Owls” and now with “Death of the Family.” From reading the solicitations, I’m thinking that Snyder appears to be scaling back on his scope and focusing more directly on Batman and not expanding his plans into a major crossover. I applaud this, as when writers start and finish successful maxi-series, they’re pushed more and more to do the same thing (look at Geoff Johns). From a marketing standpoint, this makes sense because if a story is that good, why wouldn’t you pick up side issues attached to the major thread.

And while Snyder is leaving his other successful series, Swamp Thing, he has no such plans for Batman. As a Batman fan, I couldn’t be happier. Batman #17 is a showcase of everything Snyder and Capullo are capable of, and of course everything for which they’re known. The comic isn’t perfect, but it delivers. And with DC falling behind Marvel in book sales, I’m glad to see that authors still exist who can catapult world-famous characters back to the top of the charts where they belong.

My favorite of the Power Records series was Batman: Stacked Cards. It’s a Batman story in which the Joker steals a Picasso painting and it’s up to Batman and Robin to get it back. I would study the comic and follow along with the record for what seemed like years. I pored over every panel once I’d memorized the story. Sure, I’d seen the reruns of the 1966 Batman TV series, but this was the first time, in my conscious memory at least, that Batman captured my imagination.

And thus began my love affair with comics.

Growing up in the 1980s and early 1990s was one of the best times to be a kid. Of course, I’m a wee bit biased. However, we had all that came before (Dennis The Menace reruns, Planet of the Apes on TV, the aforementioned Batman ’66 reruns) and we had some of the best new stuff ­– the 1980s was the decade that gave us the Star Wars sequels, Transformers, Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, Jem, Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends, Super Powers toys, Secret Wars toys, Pac-Man, Alf, Ghostbusters, the good Back To The Future movie and a whole mess of other fun stuff. All of it was akin to the kids of the 1970s getting Shogun Warriors, ROM, Mego dolls and Star Trek phasers. However, there was one item that built a rift between American kids growing up before 1985 and those born after. It was a box that often didn’t work so well after about six months of use. It was the Nintendo Entertainment System.

The NES was something of a playtime dynamo for my generation. Before its release, we ’80s indoor kids, like the generation before us, were raised on a steady diet of movies, cartoons and comic books. We’d play card games or board games like Clue or Hungry, Hungry Hippos. In the nicer weather, we’d venture outside and play games like kickball or hide-and-go-seek. Heck, I played baseball in my town’s Little League. My favorite hobby was reading comic books, though.

While the NES revolution was beginning, my parents were hesitant to spend so much money ($100.00) on what they thought was a fad. I was, however, allowed to read copious amounts of comic books. The first books I’d convince my parents to buy me were Batman, G.I. Joe and Transformers comics. I’d also get the occasional Marvel Team-Up as it tended to feature Spider-Man and another Marvel superhero. This eventually led to me getting old Conan The Barbarian, Amazing Spider-Man, Justice League of America, Incredible Hulk and Uncanny X-Men comics from the flea market quarter bins. While my peers (and some friends) were looking for Warp Zones, shooting ducks and collecting equilateral triangles, I was learning about the Hyborian Age, Multiple Earths and a group of strange teenagers tasked with protecting a world that fears and hates them.

As much as I loved comics, I did enjoy going to a friend’s house and playing Super Mario Brothers, Duck Hunt and Contra. Time went on and my parents were less and less opposed to owning an NES, but it still cost a hundred beans and the games were fifty bucks a pop. Also, they still thought, once I had it, I’d lose interest in a few months anyway. I mean, I was lobbying them to buy me a VHS of Transformers The Movie at the time too, and that thing cost $90.00!

So, they decided to teach me a lesson in finance. If I could save up $100.00, they would pay the sales tax and buy me any game I wanted. Over the course of a year, I saved up a dollar or two a week of allowance money (5 bucks a week). I’d collect loose change I found in couch cushions and behind dressers. I saved up birthday money. And then finally, I got money when I made my first communion. The following weekend, we went to Crazy Eddie and I was the proud owner of a Nintendo Entertainment System. The game my folks bought me? Top Gun (Crazy Eddie had an abysmal game selection).

I played Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt like a crack fiend in an unguarded police evidence locker. Top Gun sucked. I could never get the hang of refueling the damn plane in midair. I tried for weeks though. But, as the months passed, it turned out my parents were at least partially right. When it came to playing videogames solo, I lost interest pretty quickly. I’d play the NES whenever friends came over. RBI Baseball and RC Pro Am were great to play with friends. But playing solo? The only two NES games that caught my attention were Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest and Maniac Mansion. Every other single player game bored me to tears (literally, in the case of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?).

About a year after I got the NES, I picked two comics at the local 7-11 that furthered my love of superhero comics – The Mighty Thor # 390 and Uncanny X-Men # 227. In Thor, Seth invades Asgard and it’s up to Thor and his Avengers pals (who guest-starred) to put the kibosh on his plans. A battle ensues and Seth is able to separate Thor from his hammer, Mjolnir. As Seth beats on the thunder god, Steve Rogers, The Captain (he was stripped of the Captain America mantle at the time in favor of an ultraconservative nut job named Superpatriot), dove towards the hammer only to be attacked by dozens of Seth’s soldiers. And like the inscription on the mighty Mjolnir says, “Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.” And oh boy, was the once and future Captain America worthy! The splash page where Cap lifts Mjolnir and smashes all of Seth’s soldiers into the air is still one of my all-time favorite comic pages.

Uncanny X-Men # 227 is a gut-wrenching comic. The X-Men are in Dallas, fighting to save a weird-alien-magic-something or other woman named Roma from a near-omnipotent enemy known as The Adversary. The X-Men, realizing they had no hope of physically besting the monster, go metaphysical and beat the agent of chaos with their combined life forces. After supposedly sacrificing themselves, Roma resurrects the X-Men. But what really struck me was when Havok says that as far as the world is concerned, the X-Men should stay dead; that they should work behind the scenes, taking the fight to their enemies while simultaneously protecting their loved ones from any retribution. The concept blew my 8-year-old mind.

Storytelling in Nintendo’s 1980s games was pretty thin. The way I saw it (and still see it, now that I think about it), if I was going to devote hours of solo time to a hobby, I wanted to be able to learn from it, to study it, to be challenged beyond simply timing a jump. I guess that’s why I dug Castlevania II and Maniac Mansion so much – they had inherently strong stories. I didn’t have a lot of friends in those days, so I subconsciously assigned the fun I had with games to the times I got to play them with the few friends I had. I loved (and still love) playing games with friends (OK, friends in the same room as me), but sitting alone and spending hours crawling through dungeons and trying to assemble the Tri-Force? Honestly, that was supremely boring.

And so, I became the comic book kid in a sea of budding gamers. In grammar school, that made me an outcast among the outcasts.

To be continued…

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Ian Gonzales is quoted as saying the Internet was a fad in 1995. See what else he has to say on Twitter at @IanGonzales.

(Marvel – writer: Dan Slott; art: Stefano Caselli)

With this issue comes the end of the “Spider-Island” story line. Much like a parent talking to a kid who injured himself goofing off, I’m left asking, “What did you learn?” From the beginning of “Spider-Island” it was evident that Peter was going to get his spider-sense back. But was it worth all the hullaballoo? Not really.

This is more like an end cap issue: loose ends tied up, new threads revealed, a lot of naked heroes. The beginning is fun in the usual Slott sense of the word. The banter between characters is lighthearted, humorous and more fun to read than the rest of the issue, which immediately falls apart. Before the end of the fourth page, new drama is already revealed and much of the issue is dedicated to what the future holds for Peter Parker. A little more than twenty-five issues from #700, this feels like a run up to the finish line, and not enough time is spent letting the dust settle before a new conflict arises.

Also (and this is the part that irks me), readers are given a blatant introduction to a new Spider book. Spin-offs are one thing if they feel organic. This, however, feels forced. Slott hammers readers with the knowledge that one of Spider-Man’s clones (yes, they’re back – again) is going to be roaming America with a new identity and a new Spider costume. But the conversation is too “wink-wink, nudge-nudge” to have any real impact. Additionally, there’s a weak attempt at encapsulating the way New Yorkers feel about Spidey now that they’ve had his powers (presented through an artificial conversation between him and a union worker). The scene doesn’t have the emotional impact I think Slott’s going for.

Much of the issue feels this way. It’s meant to show that there can only be one Spider-Man, but it feels like too much of a throwaway story rather than a deep reflection on the events of “Spider-Island.” I think a bit more introspection is needed to really articulate the newfound respect people have for Spider-Man. One issue doesn’t really do this justice.

In the end, “Spider-Island” was not the clone saga of this generation. It wasn’t a great series, but it wasn’t terrible either. I think giving it time to settle, then going back to it, might make me appreciate it more. But when things become “events,” they really take away from the initial intention. Instead, they feel more like cooked-up marketing schemes than serious character meditation.

I’m glad “Spider-Island” is over, because Slott is a much better writer with short arcs. His previous work on Spider-Man is stellar, and I’m happy to see that many of the character changes/updates he made are going to be making their way back into the regular mythos. Back to basics, friends.

Let us not go to Spider-Island; ‘tis a silly place.

———

Uncanny X-Men #1

(Marvel – writer: Kieron Gillen; art: Carlos Pacheco)

Rediscovering the X-Men has been a wonderful experience. Chris Yost and Victor Gischler started me on my journey, and I was lucky enough to see the beginning and end of Schism. Uncanny X-Men: Regenesis is the continuation of that split and the beginning of a new direction for half of the X-Men. Much of Uncanny X-Men #1 reads like a political thriller, which is probably why I like it so much. Kieron Gillen does a fine job of setting up the next stage of the X-Men story – this time with the introduction of an old thorn in the X-Men’s side: Mister Sinister.

I have to admit that I know very little of Mister Sinister. From what I’ve read about him, he seems more like a mischievous villain who has a set of undefined and unlimited powers. Much like Doom, Mister Sinister is egocentric and a master tactician. So while the final page of the issue made me laugh out loud, I’m sure it will have larger ramifications in the X-Universe.

To get to the point, Gillen introduces Sinister as the villain immediately when he kills two tourists with a glowing sword. Next, readers are given a few pages of political introduction where Scott outlines the new purposes of his X-Group. I loved this part of the issue. For newer readers, it reintroduced characters as well as divulged changes in others (Colossus is bonded with the Juggernaut avatar?).

The issue is not devoid of action, as half of the story features Cyclops’ X-Men battling things known as battle-bots. Pacheco does a phenomenal job of illustrating the chaos that ensues (including Emma Frost losing one of her limbs). Like almost all X-Men comics, this one is beautifully colored and visually engaging. Cam Smith‘s inks are amazing and Frank D’Armata creates some impressively vivid imagery through his coloring work.

Maybe because much of the X-Verse is new to me, I’m enjoying most X-Comics I read. If the luster has worn off for you hardcore fans out there, I hope you can at least appreciate this newbie’s take on some very old heroes. This may be Marvel’s attempt to reinvent the X-Men the way DC has reinvented its hero lineup, or this may be the natural progression of things over at the X-Men headquarters. Either way, this was another issue of X-Men that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Now we have to wait and see what’s happening with the other team in Wolverine and the X-Men. The competition is on!

———

Daredevil #5

(Marvel – writer: Mark Waid; art: Marcos Martin)

Bannen’s Book of the Week: I’ve tried to start this review several times, and I still feel it will come far short of explaining just how wonderful a comic Daredevil is. From Marcos Martin’s simple, yet effective art styling, to Mark Waid’s subtle, yet brilliant revitalization/reintroduction of the comic world’s favorite blind superhero, Daredevil is a comic every comic fan should have on his or her pull list. I want to reminisce a bit as I review, so with your permission, I’m going to digress a bit…

My first introduction to Daredevil was through my cousin Tim. He explained how Daredevil was blind, yet had the ability to use an internal radar to “see.” Because of his lack of sight, he coped with his other skills, namely his ability to hear well, to sense things through changes in wind and pressure, and his acrobatic prowess. And he used canes. This was too much. A blind superhero who used canes to fight people? There is no way this was an interesting character.

I remember when DD went through another revitalization phase, namely his costume redesign at the hands of D.G. Chichester and Scott McDaniel. This new armored version of Daredevil was more appealing because of its dark colors, but the character still didn’t matter (and other, more iconic characters were changing their costumes as well – Batman wore darker threads, and Superman turned into an electric blue dude).

So it was with this kind of mindset I picked up Daredevil #1 by Mark Waid. I’m a Mark Waid fan. I loved Alpha, and Waid’s writing on Amazing Spider-Man includes some of my favorite Spidey stories to date. I had no idea how much fun reading a Daredevil comic was going to be. Now, I can’t imagine anyone who wouldn’t find this a compelling, detailed read that hearkens back to a more lighthearted character who still seems pretty badass. I am a Daredevil convert. And Daredevil #5 is more of a reason why.

Matt Murdock has been taking on cases as a consultant because everyone thinks he’s Daredevil. This may seem cumbersome, but it makes for great storytelling. Unlike Bruce Wayne, whom no one suspects as Batman, Matt is believable as a superhero. He’s blind, very intelligent and claims to have connections to the blind, very intelligent superhero Daredevil. Waid has a lot of fun with this as poor Foggy, Matt’s loyal yet bumbling assistant, tries his hardest to convince people that his partner is not Daredevil.

The issue seems to be building to some sort of climax as we’re introduced to The Bruiser, a villain who is a cross between Rey Mysterio and Bane. Waid and Martin do their best to show us that Matt is outmatched physically but is smarter and more strategic than his opponent. The end result is Matt getting kicked off a boat, but you get the general idea.

I mentioned Marcos Martin’s art as being simple. I say this because the art is clean and retro in its styling. But with Javier Rodriguez’s coloring, in some panels Daredevil appears more intimidating than Batman (if that’s possible). A few months ago, I stumbled upon the Ben Affleck Daredevil movie. The introduction hooked me, but the movie fell apart soon after. It seemed like the writers missed the heart and soul of Daredevil.

Waid, however, has captured it brilliantly. I can’t recommend Daredevil enough, and I hope it finds its way into your comic collection because these kind of seminal series are few and far between.

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Brian Bannen uses his internal radar to find good comics. Let him bounce some sound off you on Twitter @Oaser.