One awesome, and often overlooked, book has been at the center of all Marvel's recent blockbuster events. This book had major connections to Civil War and is playing a big part in the lead-up to World War Hulk. This book has humor, action, romance, and makes better use of continuity than any other Marvel title. It also has a lead character with the best green gams in the super-hero business.
Of course, by now you realize that we're talking about She-Hulk. Written by rising Marvel star Dan Slott with art by Rick Burchett, She-Hulk is one the smartest and most fun comics on the stands. It should be right up there on the sales charts with New Avengers, 52, and X-Men. I'm not sure why it isn't up there, but if you are one of the people who has not tried She-Hulk, we really need to do something about that ASAP.
As a result of the recent Super-human Registration Act, lawyer Jennifer Walters has found herself pressed into service by S.H.I.E.L.D. Tony Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. are less interested in Jen's legal abilities than in her smashing abilities as She-Hulk. Due to the machinations of the Illuminati, Jen's cousin Bruce (you know, you wouldn't like him when he's angry) was shot into space. Without the Hulk around to smash guys like the Abomination and Wendigo, S.H.I.E.L.D. needs help keeping them under control. Clay Quartermain makes Jen the muscle in his new Hulkbuster team. Joined by the magician Agent Crimson, and the super-sexy Life-Model Decoy Agent Cheesecake, Shulkie takes on all of the Hulk's old adversaries. Though things could turn ugly when She-Hulk figures out who is responsible for Bruce Banner going missing in the first place.
Trust me when I tell you that She-Hulk #17 is one great comic. If you haven't tried it, now is your chance. The folks at Four Color Fantasies are so sure you'll love this book that it's guaranteed all week long as FCF's Book of the Week. If you don't enjoy this comic, you can get your money back! And angels will cry, but don't let that sway you or anything.
P.S. Read She-Hulk. Have I mentioned it's awesome?
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Cool Again: Moon Knight #9
A year ago, very few people would have believed that Moon Knight could ever be made cool again. Moony had become a joke. He was seen as Marvel's white-suited version of Batman, with a silly Moon-copter and a stereotypical French sidekick. However, just nine issues later, thanks to novelist Charlie Huston and super-star artist David Finch, Moon Knight is one cool, hardcore, vigilante!
Moon Knight #9, still written by Huston, with new artist Mico Suayan, showcases this crazy, violent hero at his best. Marc Spector (AKA Moon Knight) is still single-mindedly struggling to overcome the damage his "career" as a hero did to his body. (Not to mention the mental damage Spector may be suffering from!) More of his disasterous past catches up with him, in the deranged form of a deadly former sidekick, and serial killer, who has a serious bone to pick with his former mentor.
If you like your heroes with a heaping dose of crazy, Moon Knight is a book you simply should not miss. Marc Spector is portrayed as a remorseless, driven, angry vengeance machine. He has no powers to speak of and succeeds by sheer, hard-headed, bone-crushing refusal to fail. He is either constantly accompanied by his god Khonshu (in the form of his late, mutilated arch-enemy) or he is a psychotic nut-job with a very minimal grip on reality. Either way, the last thing you would ever want to see is Moon Knight leaping down on you in some dark alley, because he puts his opponents in a world of major hurt.
Coming in after David Finch, artist Mico Suayan has some big shoes to fill. Fortunately, he delivers 100 percent. His art is very detailed and realistic, very much in the same overall style as Finch. However, I actually found his storytelling to be smoother and easier to follow than his high-profile predecessor. He brings plenty of grit to this down and dirty tale, and this issue's main fight is depicted with a level of tooth-pulling detail that made me wince more than once.
If you like the Punisher, Wolverine, Batman (at his most bada$$), or anything written by Garth Ennis, you should really give Moon Knight a try. Moony may be a complete nut-job, but he sure is cool again. Try out Moon Knight #9 now, while it is Four Color Fantasies' guaranteed Book of the Week.
Moon Knight #9, still written by Huston, with new artist Mico Suayan, showcases this crazy, violent hero at his best. Marc Spector (AKA Moon Knight) is still single-mindedly struggling to overcome the damage his "career" as a hero did to his body. (Not to mention the mental damage Spector may be suffering from!) More of his disasterous past catches up with him, in the deranged form of a deadly former sidekick, and serial killer, who has a serious bone to pick with his former mentor.
If you like your heroes with a heaping dose of crazy, Moon Knight is a book you simply should not miss. Marc Spector is portrayed as a remorseless, driven, angry vengeance machine. He has no powers to speak of and succeeds by sheer, hard-headed, bone-crushing refusal to fail. He is either constantly accompanied by his god Khonshu (in the form of his late, mutilated arch-enemy) or he is a psychotic nut-job with a very minimal grip on reality. Either way, the last thing you would ever want to see is Moon Knight leaping down on you in some dark alley, because he puts his opponents in a world of major hurt.
Coming in after David Finch, artist Mico Suayan has some big shoes to fill. Fortunately, he delivers 100 percent. His art is very detailed and realistic, very much in the same overall style as Finch. However, I actually found his storytelling to be smoother and easier to follow than his high-profile predecessor. He brings plenty of grit to this down and dirty tale, and this issue's main fight is depicted with a level of tooth-pulling detail that made me wince more than once.
If you like the Punisher, Wolverine, Batman (at his most bada$$), or anything written by Garth Ennis, you should really give Moon Knight a try. Moony may be a complete nut-job, but he sure is cool again. Try out Moon Knight #9 now, while it is Four Color Fantasies' guaranteed Book of the Week.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Shining Example: Nova #1
Back in the day, if you were an average space-person in the Marvel Universe and your planet was being stomped on by a giant space-monster or crisped by solar flares, you'd call the Nova Corps for help. A bunch of powerful folks in cool helmets would show up, loaded with equipment and experience, to save the day! Hooray for the Nova Corps! Unfortunately, that's not quite what happens now, as shown in the new Nova #1.
Thanks to that big space-jerk Annihilus, the entire Nova Corps was destroyed in the Annhilation Event. Well, ALMOST the entire Nova Corps. The Corps' Earth representative, Richard Rider survived, and he has to carry the weight of the whole Corps on his human shoulders. That is a whole lot of responsibility for one guy. Now when you call for help, if you're really lucky, you'll get one amped-up, over worked, inexperienced, and just plain cranky, Nova on the scene.
Nova #1 is written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, with art from Sean Chen. Abnett and Lanning have a long track record as writers for the UK's 2000AD, but they also handled Nova brilliantly in the just-finished Annhilation crossover in the cosmic part of Marvel's neighborhood. The events of Annhilation have left the often over-looked Nova with a new status quo. He has all the power of the entire Nova Corps at his disposal, and the complete knowledge of the Worldmind to draw on, but he is still just one inexperienced guy trying to save the whole universe.
This first issue sees Rider jumping from planet to planet to take on everyone's problems, so there is a ton of action to draw in new readers. Sean Chen does an excellent job showing Nova in action against a diverse range of alien menaces. He keeps up with the crazy pace the writers set for our hero admirably. This is definitely NOT one of those comics where readers will feel they didn't get enough story for their money.
Anyone who read and enjoyed the Annhilation series should absolutely not miss Nova. I don't want to give too much away, but this issue's cliffhanger ending might also interest fans of Civil War. (Hint: Next issue may feature some serious helmet on helmet action. If you know what I mean!) For older fans of the Human Rocket, it's nice to see the Man Called Nova getting a little respect again. It's about time! Try it out now, while this book is Four Color Fantasies' Book of the Week!
Thanks to that big space-jerk Annihilus, the entire Nova Corps was destroyed in the Annhilation Event. Well, ALMOST the entire Nova Corps. The Corps' Earth representative, Richard Rider survived, and he has to carry the weight of the whole Corps on his human shoulders. That is a whole lot of responsibility for one guy. Now when you call for help, if you're really lucky, you'll get one amped-up, over worked, inexperienced, and just plain cranky, Nova on the scene.
Nova #1 is written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, with art from Sean Chen. Abnett and Lanning have a long track record as writers for the UK's 2000AD, but they also handled Nova brilliantly in the just-finished Annhilation crossover in the cosmic part of Marvel's neighborhood. The events of Annhilation have left the often over-looked Nova with a new status quo. He has all the power of the entire Nova Corps at his disposal, and the complete knowledge of the Worldmind to draw on, but he is still just one inexperienced guy trying to save the whole universe.
This first issue sees Rider jumping from planet to planet to take on everyone's problems, so there is a ton of action to draw in new readers. Sean Chen does an excellent job showing Nova in action against a diverse range of alien menaces. He keeps up with the crazy pace the writers set for our hero admirably. This is definitely NOT one of those comics where readers will feel they didn't get enough story for their money.
Anyone who read and enjoyed the Annhilation series should absolutely not miss Nova. I don't want to give too much away, but this issue's cliffhanger ending might also interest fans of Civil War. (Hint: Next issue may feature some serious helmet on helmet action. If you know what I mean!) For older fans of the Human Rocket, it's nice to see the Man Called Nova getting a little respect again. It's about time! Try it out now, while this book is Four Color Fantasies' Book of the Week!
A Tasty Anthology: Savage Tales #1
I love comics anthology books. This particular form is, all too often, neglected. What could be better than getting different stories by different creators all under one convenient cover? As a reader, you get to experience work from a range of writers and artists and you have an excellent opportunity to find out about stuff you didn't even know you liked. This is essentially the way the pulp magazines, the forebearers of modern comics, worked, and that's why the anthology format is the perfect form for the awesome stories waiting to be discovered in Savage Tales #1.
Dynamite Entertainment's Savage Tales comes out of the gate strong, with an excellent starting line-up of stories and creators. There are four ongoing stories in this first issue, and each one offers readers something different.
First up is The Witch's Familiar, starring cover she-devil Red Sonja. (By the way, all of the variant covers are nice, but the Arthur Suydam version is worth the cover price all by itself.) It's certainly a good idea to start off with Dynamite's most recognizable character, and Sonja is in fine form here. Part one of this tale, by Ron Mars and Adriano Batista, has gorgeous art, a very clever opening scene, a bit of sword-wielding action, and a cliff-hanger that will leave you counting the days until the next issue.
Battle for Atlantis, by Leah Moore, John Reppion, and Pablos Marcos sets the stage for a somewhat different take on the question, "Why did Atlantis fall?" The art is lush and detailed. The blend of primitivism with Atlantean super-science is very "pulpy." Maybe it's just me, but the inflated pride and corrupt politics of the Atlanteans may also be a sly commentary on current world affairs.
A Red Sonja spin-off, Where Walks the Hunter by Lieberman, Oeming and Sharpe, is the third offering in this issue. This story follows a brutal warrior, the Hunter, who is an enemy of both Sonja and her mortal foe Kulan Gath. This character first appeared in Red Sonja's ongoing title, but everything you need to know about him is filled in quickly in this story. Seeing his encounters with Sonja from the "villain's" point of view gives this story a neat twist.
Finally, we have The Elder Things that Fell to Earth by Mike Raicht and Pere Perez. Keeping the pulpy theme going, this story has elements of both Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft, doing justice to both creators. A group of warriors (Out hunting dinosaur monsters!) run into a weird space vessel. The ship's pilots are a powerful race of aliens looking for help reigning in the escaped power of the evil Lovecraftian deity Cthulhu. Of course, Cthulhu has some recruits of his own and is not going gently back into his cage...
For fans of good, old-fashioned, sword swinging, monster battling adventure, Savage Tales #1 is a wicked tome full of fun! You may pick this up just to check out Red Sonja, but all of these stories feature great art and pulp-tacular adventure. You have nothing to fear (except maybe Cthulhu), because this book is guaranteed awesome this week at Four Color Fantasies!
Dynamite Entertainment's Savage Tales comes out of the gate strong, with an excellent starting line-up of stories and creators. There are four ongoing stories in this first issue, and each one offers readers something different.
First up is The Witch's Familiar, starring cover she-devil Red Sonja. (By the way, all of the variant covers are nice, but the Arthur Suydam version is worth the cover price all by itself.) It's certainly a good idea to start off with Dynamite's most recognizable character, and Sonja is in fine form here. Part one of this tale, by Ron Mars and Adriano Batista, has gorgeous art, a very clever opening scene, a bit of sword-wielding action, and a cliff-hanger that will leave you counting the days until the next issue.
Battle for Atlantis, by Leah Moore, John Reppion, and Pablos Marcos sets the stage for a somewhat different take on the question, "Why did Atlantis fall?" The art is lush and detailed. The blend of primitivism with Atlantean super-science is very "pulpy." Maybe it's just me, but the inflated pride and corrupt politics of the Atlanteans may also be a sly commentary on current world affairs.
A Red Sonja spin-off, Where Walks the Hunter by Lieberman, Oeming and Sharpe, is the third offering in this issue. This story follows a brutal warrior, the Hunter, who is an enemy of both Sonja and her mortal foe Kulan Gath. This character first appeared in Red Sonja's ongoing title, but everything you need to know about him is filled in quickly in this story. Seeing his encounters with Sonja from the "villain's" point of view gives this story a neat twist.
Finally, we have The Elder Things that Fell to Earth by Mike Raicht and Pere Perez. Keeping the pulpy theme going, this story has elements of both Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft, doing justice to both creators. A group of warriors (Out hunting dinosaur monsters!) run into a weird space vessel. The ship's pilots are a powerful race of aliens looking for help reigning in the escaped power of the evil Lovecraftian deity Cthulhu. Of course, Cthulhu has some recruits of his own and is not going gently back into his cage...
For fans of good, old-fashioned, sword swinging, monster battling adventure, Savage Tales #1 is a wicked tome full of fun! You may pick this up just to check out Red Sonja, but all of these stories feature great art and pulp-tacular adventure. You have nothing to fear (except maybe Cthulhu), because this book is guaranteed awesome this week at Four Color Fantasies!
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