Magen Cubed's Blog, page 30

Comic book review: FF #2

The Fantastic Four have left Earth for the farthest corners of the unknown universe. So, the question is…now what? Story by Matt Fraction and pencils by Mike Allred.

An unprepared Scott Lang is left in charge of the Future Foundation as the press descends. Articles about his past convictions become front-page news, which he has to explain to the children over a very awkward breakfast the next morning. Meanwhile the rest of the team adjusts, although Medusa is confused by the lack of servants and Darla isn’t entirely sure what to do with her newfound responsibilities. Everything seems to be going fine until Mole Man appears on the back of a giant monster, wreaking havoc on New York and looking to pick a fight with the stand-in Fantastic Four.

Weirdness and chaos ensues as the FF scramble to deal with the problem, with varying degrees of preparedness, causing a lot of damage along the way before finally subduing the giant. With the team still being blasted in the press, Darla tries to quit the team, unqualified for the kind of superheroics she’s found herself in. Before she can leave, a deranged Johnny Storm explodes out of the Chronostellar Manifold, closing the gateway behind him. The Fantastic Four, he claims, are dead, closing the issue with his foreboding message.

Full of action, clever dialogue and heartfelt moments, this is a wonderfully weird book with a lot of promise. Fraction delivers a solid story with both humor and emotion, finding the perfect balance of fun ad storytelling. Allred’s pencils, along with colors from Laura Allred, are just great, selling the eccentricity of Fraction’s writing while still being completely endearing. Despite a somewhat slow beginning, both here and in its sister title, this book seems to have hit its stride.

Comic book review: Captain America #2

One year after finding himself in Dimension Z, Captain America is lost in Arnim Zola’s wasteland of genetic mutations and experiments, fighting for the survival of the young boy Ian. Written by Rick Remender with pencils by John Romita, Jr.

Steve continues to be taken far out of his comfort zone in this story, pushed to the edges of his abilities as he tries to cope with the effects of Zola’s experiments on him last issue. Alone with Ian, the boy he rescued from Zola’s laboratory, Steve has to keep them both alive against the monsters roaming the apocalyptic landscape. They trudge through the desert and sleep in makeshift camps at night, when after Ian falls asleep Steve looks at a single bullet he keeps with him, engraved with the word Diligence, to keep from giving up. The story is carried along by Steve’s narration, interspersed with flashbacks to Steve’s rocky childhood in 1920s New York City after the death of his alcoholic father, showing how his strength came from his mother and grandfather.

This issue is all action, full of dramatic fight scenes and escapes. Inevitably, Steve and Ian are captured by mutates known as the Phrox and taken to their city, facing execution after being mistaken for underlings of Zola. About to be decapitated by his own shield, Steve is able to fight back only to be shocked by a cattle prod. The issue closes with Ian put on the execution’s block, presumably killed in a cliff-hanger ending.

What I like about this book is the writing. While I’m not a huge fan of the at-times overzealous narration (all the caption boxes can feel like overkill), Remender does a good job of stripping Captain America down to his core character and forcing him to survive by his training and wits alone. There’s nothing familiar and comfortable about Dimension Z, and it’s bringing out parts of Steve that we don’t often get to see. This is the story of a man forced to pull himself up by his bootstraps in every sense, from his humble beginnings to his struggle to keep Ian safe, and I enjoy that a lot. That said, I’m still not wowed by Romita’s artwork. His pencils just don’t completely convey the tone of the story, and tend to lose some of their punch in close-up, high-detail panels.

Despite some nitpicks with the art, this is shaping up to be a solid book with a refreshing take on the legend of Captain America.

Comic book review: Captain Marvel #8

The universe gets cute as Captain Marvel and Monica Rambeau battle giant robots in the Gulf of Mexico, written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Christopher Sebela with art by Dexter Soy.

This issue is all action, pitting Carol and Monica against a self-repairing robot made of the scrap of downed planes and wrecked ships. Damsel-in-distress Frank Gianelli lends a hand where he can in the spectacular brawl, providing some much needed exposition. It appears the robot is a misplaced unit from Avenger villain Doctor Hogarth Hamontree and his giant robot army, lost in the Gulf after a midair battle. Unaware that Hamontree is dead, the robot has been using the ocean’s current to power electromagnets and rebuild itself from scrap, programmed to seek out its master once the repairs were completed.

Witty banter is the order of the day as Carol and Monica combine their powers to knock out the robot, Monica turning into electricity for Carol to absorb. What ensues is a gorgeous and satisfying two-page spread of violence as only Dexter Soy can deliver. The issue ends on a warm note, as the recovered ship wreckage is used to shore up the levees, and everybody lives happily ever after.

This is a fun, action-packed issue, full of great writing and art. Carol’s and Monica’s banter is a treat, and Soy’s pencils are as beautiful and energetic as always, making for an engaging and enjoyable read. It doesn’t get much better than this.

Comic book review: Avengers #2

There are gods and monsters on Mars as Ex Nihilo holds the Avengers hostage, and Captain America assembles a new team to rescue them. Jonathan Hickman continues his defining chapter of the Avengers, telling the story of The Builders and their conquest of the universe as we know it, with more stellar artwork from Jerome Opena.

Still trapped on Mars with the rest of the team, Thor and Iron Man are told the origins of Ex Nihilo and his mission to save the Earth from its people. A creation of The Builders, the oldest race in the universe, Ex Nihilo and Abyss are world-builders known as The Garden. Going out into the universe and looking for worthy species, they mean to transform the human race into something better through forced evolution. Hulk, it seems, is still under Abyss’ spell, turning on his fellow Avengers. Meanwhile Captain America is having the Quinjet retrofitted to return to Mars, underscored by flashbacks of how he and Iron Man assembled the current team.

There are familiar faces like Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain Marvel and Spider-Woman, along with newer members Cannonball, Sunspot and Manifold. These scenes filled with the familiarity of old friendships and war-hardened camaraderie. Captain Universe, Hyperion and Smasher are brought on as well, meant to push the boundaries of the Avengers’ reach as far as possible. However, the montage of team-building is cut short as a series of origin bombs strike all over the world, triggering radical ecological change and killing millions more. At Avengers Tower, despite the team’s hesitation, Manifold teleports them to Mars at Captain America’s order, prepared to take on Ex Nihilo before it’s too late.

Hickman delivers another satisfying issue, building on the foundations of the opening chapter. The cosmic scope of this story continues to feel grand and operatic, slowing down for some engaging human moments to break up the exposition. Ex Nihilo does a fair bit of monologing to help move the story along but still comes off as an imposing threat, even if the full breadth of his and Abyss’ powers are still unknown. Beyond this small nitpick, his characterizations feel complete, the relationships balanced and authentic. As with the last issue, I can’t applaud Opena’s artwork enough. His pencils are a gorgeous complement to Hickman’s writing, rounded out by the lush colors of Dean White, with Justin Ponsor and Morry Hollowell. I find myself flipping through the book again and again just to admire the art, unable to put it down.

This is a book that gets bigger every issue, without losing sight of the characters that drive the action. If it keeps up this momentum, this title could be a triumph.

Coming soon: The Crashers

If you’ve been following me anywhere online right now, you know I’ve been abusing the masses with endless talk about my latest project, tentatively called The Crashers. One part superhero fiction, one part treatise on the format of the adventure serial, it’s my two-fingered salute to everything I grew up reading. Loving and critical, jaded and romantic, it’s the story of a rag-tag group of modern day superheroes in New York City, struggling to get by in the face of bills and mortgages and divorces and mounting college debt. Basically? This ain’t your mom’s superhero team.

Imagine if Batman was just a disgraced cop who spent two years in prison. Imagine if The Invisible Girl was just a waitress with a special needs kid. Imagine if Captain America had PTSD and got booted out of the Army for trying to eat a gun. Imagine if The Flash was a mad boy genius who happened to be a girl with ADHD. Imagine if Iron Man was a Wall Street shark dying of lung cancer with nothing to show for himself.

Yeah.

Not so pretty, right?

Without the masks and costumes to fall back on, they have only each other and the powers they’ve been given, and one (dis)unique advantage: They can’t die. Well, actually, they do die — not unlike Uncle Ben who takes lead to the chest every time Spider-Man gets a costume change — they just can’t stay dead. They get shot and stabbed and blown up and run over and drowned and crushed, and then just get back up to do it all over again. Just like all our favorite comic book heroes, only without the pomp and circumstance. In a genre where your life is both your most noble commodity and an easily replaceable token, heroism is measured not in the size of the sword you throw yourself on, or how many people cry in the double-sized special edition farewell issue, but what you choose to do in the face of certain immortality. After all, your life is all you have to give, and you’re stuck with it.

So what do you do? Do you play hero, or maybe the villain? Do you seek fame and fortune, or slink off into the shadows? Do you pity yourself or do you get off your ass and make something of yourself? Only time will tell. This is going to be a book about living and dying. Actually, no, it’s going to be three books, I think. There will be hook-ups and break-ups, fate and manifest-destiny, time-travel, political intrigue, superhero street gangs, deaths, resurrections, archetypes, and a healthy dose of criticism about the heroes I grew up reading about. I think it’s going to be fun.

Monday morning in New York City, 9:03am. Five strangers get on the subway in Manhattan, heading to different destinations. At 9:17am their train derails, crashing head-on into a train on another line in the biggest commuter accident in recent years. All passengers are pronounced dead on the scene. Five people get up and walk away.

This is the story of what happens next.

 Adam Harlow / The Soldier

27. The Bronx, New York. Car mechanic. Three-tour Iraq veteran. Suffers from PTSD.

Profile: Always good with a wrench, Adam joined the military shortly after high school to make something of himself, securing work as a wheeled vehicle mechanic. He did three tours in Iraq before his supply convoy was decimated in a roadside bombing on the way to a neighboring base. Adam was the only survivor, trapped under bodies and debris for several hours, taking heavy shrapnel in the explosion and losing hearing in his left ear. The attack left Adam so traumatized, wracked with survivor’s guilt, that he tried to commit suicide and was eventually discharged. For the last two years Adam has been dealing with his PTSD, on a regimen of group therapy sessions and anti-anxiety medication, returning home to New York to get a job in a car repair shop.

Powers: Enhanced physical strength, dexterity and reaction time. Enhanced hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch, allowing him to better process and implement sensory information. Eventually develops abilities to track others by these enhanced senses.

Clara Reyes / The Bullet

19. Brooklyn, New York. Physics major at NYU. Genius-level intellect with a side of ADHD.

Profile: A gifted student, Clara has excelled in science and mathematics her entire academic career, setting her sights on the field of theoretical physics. Tuition to private schools and special programs has been a financial burden on her mother Tabitha, a widowed nurse working double-shifts just to keep the lights on, and it’s become Clara’s goal to pay her mother back for all her sacrifices. Unfortunately, Clara is a bit scattered, her brain moving faster than her body can keep up with, and she tends to leave her own best interests behind as she strives to become the next big thinker in her field. She’s worked hard to get to this point, and isn’t afraid to let others know that, yes, she is the smartest person in the room.

Powers: Superhuman speed, agility and reflexes, creating excesses of kinetic energy that she uses as a force field to shield her from harm. Eventually learns to store this kinetic energy in order to propel herself, approximating short-distance flight.

Norah Aroyan / The Witch

29. Queens, New York. Former elementary school teacher and waitress. Single mother to a special needs child.

Profile: After her fiance left her with a newborn with spina bifida, Norah had to juggle her career with the medical needs of daughter Hannah. Unable to make it on a teacher’s dwindling salary, she moved back in with her parents while she sought government assistance, forced to leave teaching to work double-shifts at Betty’s Diner to make quick cash. Norah finds it hard to accept help for long, so once Hannah was older she moved them into an apartment, determined to make it on their own. Her parents and sister Emily still help her with child-care, and at night Norah takes online courses to further her teaching accreditation for when she is finally able to resume to her career.

Powers: Elemental control over the physical forces of the universe (gravity, electromagnetism. nuclear forces, etc.). Can use these abilities to manipulate energy and gravitational fields, and eventually control the atomic composition of objects around her.

Bridger Levi / The Oracle

40. Manhattan, New York. Senior Account Executive at Baxter & Sans. Married to marketing executive Caitlin Connor. Dying of lung cancer.

Profile: After being diagnosed with Stage III cancer, Bridger’s world had a radical realignment. Looking back on a life spent making money off of other people’s economic misfortunes, he had no children and nothing positive to show for himself but a fat salary and a vacation house. He filed for divorce from his wife of fifteen years, keeping his illness a secret, hoping to free her of his wasteful existence and spare her the pain of watching him die. Caitlin wouldn’t go down without a fight, refusing to sign the papers until he came to his senses. Bridger quit his job and resigned himself to death, unwilling to treat the cancer despite his doctor’s urgings, leaving his estate to his wife until she put all the money she won in the divorce back into his account. Even with their divorce finalized, Caitlin still insists Bridger will come back, a fact she reminds him of regularly.

Powers: Clairvoyance, including remote viewing, precognition, telepathy and dream-walking. Eventually learns to psychically possess others.

Kyle Jeong / The Detective

32. Long Island, New York. Former NYPD cop. Ex-convict. Chess savant.

Profile: Excelling at his aptitude tests, it was Kyle’s dream to make detective, but budget cuts killed his dreams when he was squeezed out of the police force before getting his badge. Unable to find work and struggling to make end’s meat, his cousin Doug made him an offer he couldn’t refuse: Help him steal some A/C copper from a corporate construction site and keep half the profits. Kyle agreed, unaware that Doug brought a gun on the job, shooting and injuring a security guard before fleeing the scene. With his connections to the police department, Kyle was able to beat aggravated assault and organized crime charges by rolling over on Doug and his fence, going to prison for two years before being released on good behavior. Disgraced, Kyle was again out of work, haunted by his criminal record and the aspirations he could never hope to reach.

Powers: Invulnerability, unbreakable skin, resistance to extreme temperatures. Potentially immortal.

Comic book review: Iron Man #4

With one issue left of this title’s introductory arc, Tony’s globe-trotting hunt for Extremis takes him to Paris. Donning new Hulk-busting armor, he travels into the catacombs beneath the city to square off against a horde of demons. Science meets superstition in this horror-inspired jaunt, and raises a few interesting questions along the way, but the Adventure of the Week format proves too flat to do much with it.

As not to spend too much time repeating myself, I’ll keep this brief. This issue does deal with Tony’s relationship with women and the way he treats them. The scenes with Pepper that bookend the issue show a more introspective Tony owning up to the fact that he’s (sometimes willfully) crap with women, treating them like pretty, nameless things sent to amuse him. I do rather enjoy Gillen’s Tony Stark in that respect, because it seems like he genuinely wants to move the character forward in his personal relationships. Other aspects of this issue work well, too. The setting is pretty interesting, sending a superhero off to do battle in the catacombs beneath Paris against the supernatural products of science-gone-wrong. There’s a nice blending of genres here as well, invoking a little horror with the science and adventuring.

That said, it is a one-off, and there’s little time to explore these themes, which is disappointing. I was hoping for more development of the story, because it seems to be stalled. There are these nice little “Aha!” moments in every issue, but the Weekly Adventure format doesn’t give enough time to move anything forward. It feels like Gillen’s trying to push toward a larger goal, but we’re not really getting anywhere. I keep trying to love this book, and it’s not working out.

More disappointing still is the art. This issue is kind of inexcusable in that respect. The Extremis-enhanced  horde of mindless demonic harpies was literally the same Pretty White Girl copied over and over in a stiff, generic poses. I get that there’s some commentary there, as Tony admits earlier in the issue that the only way he can tell women apart is by their hair color, but come on. Coming from any other artist, I could believe it was intentional and not just lazy. The sequence where Tony backs himself into the protective circle while the demons surround him and mercy-kills them was so laughably, cartoonishly bad, I really can’t even explain it. It just has to be seen to be believed. Land’s pencils suck all the tension and drama out of these stories, and it’s almost impossible to overlook that. It’s also hard to find any sense of dread in an underground catacomb laboratory as shiny and polished as the one offered here, which is yet another casualty in Guru eFX’s attempts to pretty up Land’s art.

There’s one issue left in this arc. Maybe — just maybe — we’ll get the book we’ve been looking for by the end of it, but I doubt it at this point.

Comic book review: Avengers #1

In order to deal with the ever-growing, ever-changing threats of the modern age, The Avengers shift their focus toward grander ideals and even loftier goals. This book, from writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Jerome Opena, promises to go big or go home, and the first issue delivers.

Something terrible is coming. We are told of beings racing toward the light after The Big Bang, of Hyperion being rescued from a dying universe, and of the Imperial Guard being defeated on a dead moon.  A being named Ex Nihilo is terraforming Mars, wanting to make a world in his image, and setting his sights on the Earth to complete this task. This leads to The Light, The War, and The Fall, events that are brought about by the actions of Iron Man and Captain America. On Earth Tony Stark is dreaming of expanding the Avengers, and building something bigger than he and Steve Rogers have ever tried before. Just how this leads us to the brink, we don’t yet know, but the road to Hell appears to be paved with their best of intentions.

Ex Nihilo has already put his plan in motion, deploying two bombs that radically change the biospheres of the impacted zones, altering billions of years of evolution in a span of a few minutes.  He kills millions. In retaliation, The Avengers go to Mars to stop Ex Nihilo. They are easily trounced by his other-worldly forces, held captive as Captain America is sent back to Earth as a warning against anyone that might try to stand against the coming war. Three days later, he wakes and resolves to go back to Mars, putting the call to the rest of the inactive Avengers all over the world to assemble at dawn.

Hickman sets up a very ambitious story here, hinting to the dangers that lie ahead with a lot of flourish and grandeur. This book definitely feels big, with the cosmic scope of the story and the ideas being talked about. Unfortunately this issue is all about laying the groundwork for the larger arc, which leaves little time to develop just who Ex Nihilo is and what he wants. The Avengers themselves end up getting a bit lost in the scope of the story, with the exception of Cap and Iron Man, whose conversation about the future serves as the backbone of the story. In a first issue with such solid writing, it’s a small nitpick.

Opena’s art is absolutely stellar and carries the issue with grace and sensibility. The perfect balance of bigger-than-life heroism and emotional resonance, I can’t find a bad panel in the book. With amazing pencils and intriguing groundwork, this title looks to be one of the biggest Avengers stories ever told. And for once, bigger might actually be better.

Comic book review: Deadpool #3

When the fight against the undead doesn’t go according to plan, Deadpool turns to Doctor Strange for help. As usual, it doesn’t exactly work out the way Agent Preston was hoping, in issue three from Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan with pencils by Tony Moore.

Doctor Strange agrees to help search for the necromancer, explaining that the zombies are being brought back with noble intentions but no humanity to implement them with. He is able to teleport Deadpool and Agent Preston to the presidents’ suburban hideout where they’re keeping the necromancer. Chaos naturally ensues. Strange takes the necromancer (who turns out to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Michael) to the astral plane while Preston and Deadpool exchange blows and one-liners with the undead.

In the subsequent bloodshed, zombie Gerald Ford gets chopped up by a helicopter propeller, which qualifies as the Big Kill of the issue. (I’ve noticed there’s at least one spectacle death per book; I’m not sure I’m overly fond of the gimmick so far.) The story concludes in a fight with Richard Nixon.  Strange gives Deadpool a magic-enhanced blade that allows him to kill the undead, and then departs with an ominous warning to Deadpool, leaving him and Preston to continue the merry chase.

With an unnecessary amount of fourth-wall-breaking and the cheesy one-liners quickly wearing thin, I’m losing my patience with this book. It’s a fun read with great art if you’re looking for mindless bloody hijinks, which I’m sure works for some readers. Still, longtime fans will probably be turned off by the diluted characterization and jokey dialogue that has become the norm with this title. I’m hoping it picks up, but as it stands now, I’m not a fan.

Comic book review: Iron Man #3

The hunt for Extremis takes Tony to Colombia in the third issue of Iron Man, from writer Kieron Gillen and artist Greg Land. Action, adventure and grilled cheese sandwiches abound as Tony’s promise to save Maya Hansen’s legacy pits him against Vibro, Firebrand and The Living Laser. With the first arc now underway, the plot feels like it’s beginning to take shape and the Villain of the Week theme might yet give way to a larger story.

Following his tracking programs to Colombia, Tony discovers cartel boss Juan Carlos Valencia has come into possession of the modified nano-virus. Valencia realizes Iron Man will soon be on his doorstep and hires Vibro, Firebrand and The Living Laser to hold Tony back until he’s able to finish his plans for Extremis. Finding use for his new stealth suit, Tony sneaks into the Valencia compound, discovering that Valencia is using the nano-virus to cure his daughter of her rare cancer. He’s quickly intercepted by the hired villains, who try to stop him in a brawl across the compound before being easily trounced. Tony confronts Valencia about his plans, learning Valencia sunk his entire fortune into trying to rewrite the virus to fix his daughter’s broken repair center, but to little avail. Taking pity on Valencia, Tony uses the hack in Maya’s data packet to help Valencia’s daughter before turning him over to authorities.

Gillen’s treatment of Tony has really won me over, finding a good balance of snark and sincerity, humor and cynicism. The issues so far have been formulaic: Tony doing fairly lighthearted Tony-things before going off on this week’s adventure, his narration peppered with little character insights and nods toward a larger plot-line. This issue is no different, but the formula is growing on me. Tony’s scene with Pepper in the workshop was entertaining, showing a nice slice of Tony’s head-space as he fiddles in his workshop. Gillen has done a good job of embracing the different facets of Tony’s personality, both as a wealthy playboy dashing around the world and an engineer constantly tinkering and teasing out problems. Each issue has built on the mythology that Gillen’s developing, feeling a little nearer to a cohesive vision at the end of every adventure. Land’s repetitive, awkward pencils are still the biggest stumbling block, but I’m trying to ignore it in favor of the writing.

Despite the art issues, this title is shaping up to be a solid, entertaining read. It’s still early days, but I’m hopeful the mythology continues to build toward a satisfying arc.

Comic book review: Uncanny Avengers #2

Picking up from last month’s surprising offering from Rick Remender and John Cassaday, in the violent aftermath of the death of Charles Xavier, life for mutantkind is more difficult than ever.

After Avalanche’s attack on Manhattan, Logan arrives on the scene to lend a hand, and ends up butting heads with Captain America instead. Logan remains unmoved by the Avengers’ new interest in facilitating human/mutant relations, not seeing much use in Cap’s decision to recruit Alex Summers (brother of Cyclops, who killed Xavier during the AvX event) to lead an Avengers unit. Cap’s optimism and ideals don’t carry a lot of weight when mutants are scattered and fearing for their lives, but as Alex emerges a hero for survivors of the attack, the debate is put to rest. Meanwhile, aided by Xavier’s telepathic abilities, Red Skull begins spreading anti-mutant propaganda on news broadcasts, causing humans to immediately murder any mutant nearby.

Rogue wakes in his custody, where she steals the abilities of one of her mutant captors to escape and try to reach Wanda. Wanda, as we find out, was also kidnapped after last issue’s ambush, and is the real focus of Red Skull’s plan this issue. Skull wishes to court Wanda in aiding his Eternal Reich, emerging as a clear and present threat in his plans to wipe out mutantkind and succeed where Hitler previously failed. He is able to persuade her, but Rogue’s failed rescue attempt is enough to jar her out of her controlled state, only to be confronted by Red Skull and his mutant team.

The overall plot I find clever and interesting, such as the resurgence of Red Skull and his anti-mutant agenda, but this issue, like the last, does have a few little problems along the way. One being that Skull’s mutant team is a little lackluster, and while they have the revenge motive going for them as we see in Rogue’s escape scene, I’m not sure how they expect to survive Skull’s Eternal Reich. Unfortunately, it does muddy the waters a bit, as humans seem to love mutated/enhanced human teams such as The Avengers and Fantastic Four, but are still driven to insane bloodlust at the sight of naturally-occurring mutants. That issue still needs to be addressed.

The second problem is John Cassaday’s art. Though robust and engaging, it just isn’t at its strongest here. I find his take on Cap’s uniform puzzling, incorporating the streamlined modern helmet with almost cartoonish scale armor, which ends up looking like bad cosplay. (It’s hard to take Cap seriously when I swear I saw him at Dallas Comic Con once.) Another nitpick I have is that his faces tend to be a bit inconsistent panel to panel, losing a lot of detail and structure in wide shots.

All of that said, I still find his renderings of Wanda and Rogue particularly enjoyable, especially in regards to Rogue’s totally sensible uniform and how Wanda’s outfit is so aesthetically reminiscent of her father’s. (Things like that make me happy.) As for the writing, I do find Remender’s linear slide through multiple narrators successful in portraying every angle of this story. His characterizations feel fully-realized and earnest, and the narration doesn’t detract from the pace of the story. Not all of the lines are winners, but overall I don’t really have many complaints.

Overall this book has a strong concept with good pencils going for it, working on a more cerebral angle to approach human/mutant relations, which I really enjoy. As a flagship for the Marvel NOW line, it’s still sorting itself out, but I look forward to coming issues as the book as it moves through its first arc.