First and foremost, you can scroll down or click here for my Haunt #4 review, which I have added to last week's post.
I feel like I haven't actually updated this thing in a while even though it's only been a week, crazy. I think what makes me feel like I haven't updated in a while is the fact that I haven't done any updates between last Thursday and now. I do have an album review planned and I do have my massive Daredevil post in the works, too.
The music post is going to be a guide. I'm thinking of doing a post revolving around Where to Start with *Insert Band/Artist*. You know, a run-down of a band or artist's sound and then recommended albums by that band or artist. Expect that sometime on Saturday or Sunday.
My Daredevil post will be on Monday or Tuesday.
Anyway, with all that said, let's get to my review of Thursday's Comics (14/1/10)!
Dark X-Men #3 of 5.
This is a series I've all but lost interest in. It's not that it's BAD, I just feel that it's a missed and mistimed opportunity. Let me clarify that point.
Dark X-Men, by name included, is an extension of the Dark Reign event (Although it's more a status quo than an event). It involves the return of prodigal mutant shaman, Nate Grey, also known as X-Man (Alternate reality son of a Cyclops clone and a Jean Grey clone). Nate had been missing for a while and I feel that his reveal deserved to be a bit more involving and handled with a bit more grandeur.
I feel as though he was crowbarred into Dark Reign and an ultimately ineffectual X-Men mini-series when his return wasn't even needed. Additionally, it's just hard to tell WHEN all of this is supposed to happen. All of the people featured are currently off raiding Asgard, so how are they also fighting/dealing with Nate Grey? I'm not gonna bitch TOO much, because it's hard enough to keep things as tied together as they do.
Last issue, Nate Grey discovered what Norman Osborn has been up to and he's really not happy. This issue pretty much involves Nate Grey fighting with the Dark Avengers for a bit before freaking Sentry out. Nate refers to a connection between the two and Sentry is visibly shaken, but all of the Dark Avengers descend upon him and eventually appear to have triumphed, even though Nate is not fully invested in the battle. Osborn's plan, obviously, is to use Nate Grey's immense power in the Omega Machine (For those just joining us, it's a device used to siphon mutant powers and pump them into Dark X-Men's Weapon Omega, also known as Michael Pointer).
Nate's body crumbles to dust after a great explosion of light and Osborn declares him dead, saying that his systems find no signs of life. The issue ends with Mystique confronting Osborn and handing out all these extravagant demands in exchange for keeping a secret. The secret, it's revealed, is that Nate has possessed Norman Osborn.
The issue ends.
Ok, so...if you're confused as Hell and happen to be thinking: "It probably makes way more sense if you read it.", then you're wrong. I'm as lost as you guys may be. I don't know if I'm missing something or not reading something, but it honestly seems to me like this is going nowhere. I'm not sure what they were thinking of by having Nate Grey possess Norman. That's a big deal, and considering it would probably put an interesting spin on Dark Reign, it's a shame they decided to wait until everyone had move onto Siege.
It's the continuity that really grabs me about this. In all the other Dark Reign-involved stories I've read, Norman has seemed to have no interaction with Nate Grey or the Dark X-Men.
It seems a shame to stop now, so I'll keep going until the end. If you literally want everything from Dark Reign or you're an X-Man collecter, then this is something you'll want. Outside of that, I can't recommend this title. It's just a little too cluttered and it has come at the wrong time. I think Marvel's writers just tried to have Dark Reign reach TOO far and now it's just too late, what with Siege bringing Dark Reign to an end.
A shame.
Nation X #2 of 4.
You already know my feelings regarding this mini-series by now, and let me say that it doesn't get much better.
Aside from how unstoppably cool Jubilee looks on the cover - in a very neo-'80s manner I might add - the pleasantries go no further. Nation X doesn't seem to be a four parter about life on Utopia, it seems to be a four part series that collects short stories regarding various inhabitants of Utopia. It doesn't seem to be ONE story, but a VERY vague underpinning thread that connects everyone.
I never liked Jubilee, never will. She's pointless to me. This issue focuses on stories from the point of view of Northstar, Jubilee and Gambit as the cover would suggest. Jubilee's tale isn't bad, to be honest. It features her trying to write and re-write a letter to her former compatriots on Utopia (She's no longer an X-Man OR a mutant anymore. See M-Day for details), whilst simultaneously having a chat to some of the current residents of the island.
It has interesting elements that could be worked with; a girl who never fit in because she was a mutant, and now she feels left out because she's no longer a mutant. There's themes of mid-to-late teen-ery there that could be used to non-annoying degrees, but like EVERY ONE of the X-Books right now, nothing will come of it.
Northstar's story is accompanied by such abominably awful art that I couldn't bear to read it. Seriously, if you ever get the chance, check it out for a laugh (Andrew, if you get a chance to flip through it at work, do so! I've not seen art so bad in a while!). Gambit's isn't as bad, but the dialogue is utterly dreadful and the story is nothingness.
I started picking up Nation X because it stemmed from Utopia...which had ties to Dark Reign. This is just bullshit. I'm definitely convinced it IS the X-Men, not the writers. Matt Fraction (Not the writer of Nation X) writes a MEAN Thor and according to Andrew, a good Iron Man (I need to get some trades for the recent Iron Man series actually!), but his X-Men works are just failure.
X-Men exist in that area of uselessness. The Avengers have always had individual characters that, alone or together, make up great stories or are capable of great stories. The X-Men do not, and I wouldn't mind if they combined to form something good, but they don't.
If you're short on cash, even if you're not, avoid the X-Books. Really. Avoid Nation X, avoid Uncanny X-Men, avoid Dark X-Men.
Bloody Hell! There are only three comics today and two of them have been negative reviews! We'll soon fix that.
Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard #3 of 5.
Ahhh! *Bathes in good comic-ness*
Last issue we saw The Shi'ar Imperial Guard and their former enemies, The Starjammers, venture into The Fault to retrieve empirical data on this STILL unknown force. Upon being swallowed by a dead biological warship of IMMENSE proportions, they discovered that cannibalistic organisms were feeding on it, and fancied a taste of Shi'ar royalty and intergalactic pirate!
In this issue, the suspense is built around them being closed in on from all angles and having to repair their ship in time. If that wasn't enough, the ship that they're currently residing in has decided that it would rather self-dissolve than be eaten alive...or dead. I gotta say, Abnett is doing a BANGING job of making The Fault seem indescribably dangerous. We have already seen a snippet of what's come to be known as the Cancerverse, of course (See Realm of Kings #1 review), and it does The Fault justice.
As you'll know from reading this blog, I'm a big fan of dialogue that SELLS me the story. If you can convince me that the enemy is a big bad-ass that deserves to be feared, if you can make me believe that it poses a threat, I'm in. Bendis is great at this, amazing in fact. Abnett, cosmic-story wizard that he is, also happens to be a master of this. When Oracle surmises that the only reason for a biological ship to be eating itself into oblivion is because it has enemies of such ravenous hunger and evil that even in death it does not which to suffer them, you KNOW the shit is serious.
Eventually, they escape and continue along their journey to find the data they are looking for. Unfortunately for them, they also find what the ship before them was seemingly so afraid of...and it's the first real, big encounter that anyone has had with creatures from The Fault.
This thing...things, I don't even know what they are or IT is, but The Starjammers' ship is dwarfed by it. Hilariously and frighteningly dwarfed by this nightmarish concept and monstrosity that lay before them.
Finally, the two mini-series' that seemed lost without a central series to anchor them seem to finally be picking up. I'm VERY excited for #4, I can say that much. I only hope that between the last two issues of Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard and last three of Realm of Kings: Inhumans, we get lots of shit that makes the event worthwhile. Two/Three issues to get shit done isn't always a lot, really.
There are always the Nova/Guardians tie-ins, but you should never rely on those things.
Regardless, Abnett is on-point yet again. Unsurprisingly. I sound like a broken record, but if you want a solid writer to invest in outside of Bendis, Brubaker or Van Lente, you go with Abnett. He has single handedly not only revitalised a lot of fringe cosmic characters, but written them into stories so epic that I can't recommend them enough.
Realm of Kings is one of those.
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Well, I'm afraid that's about all I've got for you guys today!
One last thing, though. I may be ready to unleash my mega-announcement in the near future. Trust me when I say that if it works out - me announcing it will mean such, as I won't announce it if it's uncertain - it's going to be amazing!
Watch this space for 2010, guys and girls. You WON'T regret it.
Until next time, peace.
-The Mast
