Greetings one and all! This is Welcome to the Mast, I'm The Mast and if you didn't know that by now, get out.
This is a pretty big post for me, true believers. I have a big announcement!
Iyare of the YouTube comics show, Direct Edition, graciously allowed me to do a guest appearance on both this week's comic review show AND Monday's news show! That's right! If you want to see The Mast talk some comics with others who like to talk comics, get your ass on over to Direct Edition on YouTube! Watch all the videos, pass the link on, and check out the most recent video! It's the one I'm in!
Big thanks to Iyare and Chris for having me on. I very much appreciate it. Those of you who have shown love to this blog, show some love to those guys.
Next, to the comics! Only two, but they're fucking wicked. I reviewed one of them VERY briefly in the show, but this will be more in depth.
To the Blogmobile!
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X-Force #28 (Second Coming: Chapter 13).
...and then there were two.
The penultimate chapter in the 14 chapter epic that is Second Coming is upon us. X-Force #28 combines tragedy and apparant triumph in a blistering final burst toward the finish line. With the last chapter just around the corner, though, we're still not much closer to finding out how this will all end.
In an attempt to get X-Force back through the portal in the dome, Cable let his long-at-bay techno-organic virus take him over. He passes through and brings all the others with him. Hope is overjoyed, but it's short-lived. Cable crumbles away and is seemingly lost. I didn't treat this as a death scene because I'm not sure it is one, but if it is, I am saddened!
Bastion, pissed as anyone would be, attempts to kill Hope himself. In the midst of trashing the Golden Gate bridge, Hope lets all her rage and emotion burst forth from within; beams of fire erupt from her eyes as she disintegrates Bastion with a glance. A further, omni-directional burst of flame-like energy shatters the dome, reuniting everyone.
The end shot is of Hope floating in mid-air, glowing.
It's a tricky issue, a penultimate one. You don't wanna reveal much, but you also want to make it worthwhile. It was pretty good, but it DID feel somewhat out of nowhere. It felt as though the collaborative writers thought, "SHIT! Second from last issue, make shit happen!"
Regardless, I am so very excited for the end of Second Coming. My only hope is that the ending lives up to the manner in which the story has progressed.
Shadowland #1 of 5.
As a Daredevil fan, this is what I've been waiting for. As stated on Direct Edition, this issue is THRILLING.
Shadowland has been constructed. A Pagoda-style fortress designed to house The Hand and the criminals they get rid of has been erected in the middle of Hell's Kitchen. As you can imagine, this gets the attention of pretty much every hero dwelling within the city.
The Avengers themselves offer their support, telling Iron Fist and Luke Cage to pass the message on. Bucky highlights the fact that, despite having his back, the building is to come down as soon as the streets are reasonably safe again. Ominously stating that it would be unwise to ignore this.
The most shocking turn of events occurs when Bullseye sadistically escapes his prison transport by using defibrilator pads on the guards' faces. Donning his old uniform, he travels to Shadowland and challenges Daredevil to a fight. A quite poetic site, really. Especially since it's built on the site that Bullseye blew up, causing Daredevil to decide to lead The Hand anyway.
I truly hope Daredevil's new costume is just temporary. I don't really like it at the cost of his traditional one. It does capture his darker side, but I really hope it doesn't stick.
Bullseye manages to coax Daredevil out and deals with all the ninjas that are sent his way. Luke Cage and Iron Fist are rather perturbed that when offering help, Daredevil makes them swear allegiance to The Hand or get out of his way. After dealing with the ninjas, Bullseye goads an angry and taunted Daredevil into combat. Shocked by his new-found decision to fight without compromise, Bullseye starts to beg Daredevil to end the fight, which he does.
Iron Fist and Luke Cage attempt to intervene, but they cannot do so in time. Daredevil picks a bloodied Bullseye off the ground and impales him through the chest with his own sai, much like Bullseye did to Elektra all those years ago.
I have to emphasise and give praise to Billy Tan's art here. The look of sheer contempt on Daredevil's face as Bullseye's face contorts with the pain of impalement is brilliant. It's a poignent and markedly game-changing image for any Daredevil fan.
Daredevil, having committed murder before his friends and collegues' very eyes, has now truly began his journey down the darkest path he's known.
I cannot wait for this to tie into Daredevil #508. Will Second Coming have a rival for Story-Arc of the Year? Perhaps!
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That's about all I've got time for right now, but I hope I've pursuaded some or all of you to check some of this stuff out. Marvel are flooding the market right now, and while that may make it harder to find a starting point, it also provides lots of choice. It's a very prolific time to be a comic fan!
Please remember to check out Direct Edition and as Iyare says, "If you're feeling the show, let somebody know."
Until next time, peace.
-The Mast
