The Mast Blogs/Reviews: More Interesting Thor Pictures & Thursday's Comics (22/7/2010).

Welcome back and shut your mouthes.

Hello, you. Welcome to this blog. It's a blog about comics. It's called Welcome to the Mast and I am The Mast, but so is the blog! Multiple meanings, I likes them.

Today, I make a painful decision. I am no longer going to be reviewing Deadpool's comics on this blog until further notice. In less uncertain terms, until Deadpool's comics actually start being worth my time, I'm not gonna give them the time. Deadpool: Wade Wilson's War and anything by Duane Swierczynski aside, don't expect to see anymore Deadpool here.

Before we get onto talking about the printed deliciousness that we all love so much, I have something excellent to share.

The previous pictures from the Thor movie have left people with mixed feelings, myself included. The new ones are no different, but they've certainly done a lot more to ease my mind!



Odin and his throne room. To the right you can see Hogan and Fandral of The Warriors Three, with what I assume to be Volstagg's leg. In the centre, of course we have Thor. To the far left, and most importantly, we have Frigga (Odin's wife) and Loki. Loki has his HORN HELMET. This is joyous, absolutely joyous.

Now, many have said it looks too shiny, clean and too much like a scene from the long-forgotten Masters of the Universe movie. In a way, it definitely does, but I don't think it looks bad at all. We've seen many different depictions of Asgard, and while I would have preferred a darker tone, maybe it will work well. You never know. Someone made a tremendous point regarding Odin's costume when they said that, in the comics, Odin has been seen wearing far more flamboyant and ridiculous attire.

So far, though, Loki and Thor look utterly brilliant in most shots.



Here we see the god of thunder with his father, Odin. I'm glad they're making Hopkins look bigger than Hemsworth, it really is a good idea. Odin is the Asgardian ruler, he SHOULD be immense. That's a thoughtful touch, I must say. Thor, again, looks terrific I feel. I do wonder where his helmet is, and I do hope he has it, but if he doesn't, it won't be the end of the world. That said, Loki has one and Odin has one. I see no reason why the most iconic of them all would be missing his.

Finally, the one that silenced by doubts most of all...



I saw Chris Hemsworth in Star Trek and I had seen publicity shots of him, neither of which gave me the vibe that he was going to look the part. This proves just what kind of dedication he appears to have to the role. He actually looks like Thor, a believable god of thunder. No, that is not him hitting something with Mjolnir. I'm guessing that is him removing Mjolnir from its crater, as seen after the credits of Iron Man 2.

My one curiosity above all else, besides whether or not it'll be good, is whether they'll have him use Asgardian dialect. I hope they do. I hope they don't welch out on it just because they think audiences will find it boring.

Get psyched!

Anyway, on to the comics!


The Avengers #3.

Let me prefix this review by saying that I love certain things that John Romita Jr. does as an artist. I love his Daredevil run, his first major run on any comic. I loved his work on The Man without Fear, a mini-series he did with Frank Miller. I generally like most of his early work.

On The Avengers? I must say that I am waiting to be sold on it. It was pretty good in the first issue, but I feel like as soon as action happens, it is the worst style to use nowadays.

So, The Horsemen of Apocalypse and Apocalypse himself have burst into the present day via an opening in time, caused by the various dilly-dallyings of Kang and The Next Avengers killing Immortus in the future. A gigantic battle erupts in which Bendis shows how well he can write Thor, punctuated by some pretty tense action pieces involving the other members of the team.

Eventually, Thor whoops them all and they disappear through time before he can finish the job. Maria Hill is on scene to call the shots, and I'm glad to see Bendis is still writing her character.

Iron Man and The Protector (Noh-Varr) are tasked with making a new time machine, necessary due to Wonder Man destroying the previous one. Noh-Varr does this fairly instantly while Hawkeye, Spidey and a few others take off to deal with some other business. Lo and behold, another time-travelling inhabitant arrives in the present day; Killraven. He also brought a dinosaur.

Now, I am very curious to see the development of this story and these characters. Bendis writes, as always, with extreme competence and makes it no hard task for you to enjoy the dialogue he packs the book with. My issue lies with the fact that the story has lost all sense of urgency to me. On top of that, I really need Romita Jr. to hook me in with his art. A combination of the less-than-enthralling story AND art that I'm not enjoying is a surefire way to bore me. Being that it IS The Avengers, I'm less inclined to ditch the comic, but to be considering that at such an early stage is no good sign.

It's only three issues in, so if this is something you're interested in, go grab the first two. I don't necessarily think the art or the story will make it too easy for readers with no prior knowledge, but I'm always here to fill in any gaps.


The New Avengers #2.

The problem I have with this, The Avengers and the Marvel Universe in general right now, is the fact that there are way too many conflicting stories.

I'm sick of Wolverine and Spider-Man. Please have one or the other, and one team each. Spider-Man being on this team, while doing his own thing in The Amazing Spider-Man, AND being on The Avengers...it's too much of a stretch for me. Wolverine more so! He's an X-Man, he's in X-Force, he's in two Avengers teams...you know? I totally respect how hard writers work to make continuity smooth, and thus I am willing to overlook certain errors in it.

Right now, though, it seems as if they're ignoring continuity for the sake of pushing certain characters into the market. Spider-Man sells, Wolverine sells. They do not need to be this over-exposed. It just makes it a little harder for me to lose myself to the continuity.

Anyway, that aside, this book really did grab my attention. I enjoy the specificity of magic-based stories because they require certain characters to be involved. Luke Cage is possessed, as are Daimon Hellstrom and Dr. Strange, which is NO good for The New Avengers. As they struggle to keep the Eye of Agamotto from the possessed heroes, a battle breaks out across Central Park. The dialogue, also by Bendis, is really enjoyable here. The interactions between Spidey, Dr. Strange and Wolverine are quite sharp. Ms. Marvel, thankfully, gets a lot of play here and I hope she remains a regular member.

As the epic battle breaks out through the park, drawn impeccably by the remarkable Stuart Immonen, Dr. Strange and Daimon Hellstrom come around back to normal. The Thing and Ms. Marvel take the lead in trying to subdue the maddened Luke Cage, and succeed in getting the Eye to Iron Fist. They do so just in time to see the, as yet, unknown demon transfer right into Iron Fist's body in a desperate attempt He disappears with the Eye of Agamotto, much to the horror of all the magic wielders present. Dr. Voodoo, having just shown up, is met with a lashing by Hellstrom. Deservedly so, being that he was the Sorcerer Supeme and should've protected it.

Dr. Strange ominously tells The New Avengers that without the Eye, they forfeit. When asked what is being forfeited, he says, "Everything". The sky is shown to be a fiery red, ripping open in a hellish blaze.

It's a terrific image to end the issue on, and one of my favourite splash pages of recent memory.

Like I said, I really enjoy that magical stories are more of a specialist situation, thus requiring more of a story/character driven scenario. I'm excited to see where this goes! It's only two issues in and you don't REALLY need prior knowledge, to MY knowledge at least, to get into it.

I do apologise if my reviews of Avengers titles can be a little non-descript lately. It's just that with so many of them out, spaced apart, and with all the other things I read and enjoy more, it's hard for me to be too invested.

I hope you still enjoy them though!

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That's about it for now. The only other comics that came out this week were Deadpool #25, Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth #13 (The final issue of that series) and Lady Deadpool's one-shot. As you've read and can probably imagine, it's not happening. Not until they give me reason to review them.

If any of you are at Comic Con, you suck. I just saw the Marvel booth's signing schedule and cried myself into submission.

Regarding comics, next week SHOULD be better, if a little quiet, and I will be back tomorrow with a pretty cool and timely reminder of something!

Until then, peace.

-The Mast

The Mast Blogs: The Future of Welcome to the Mast.

Somebody's poisoned the waterhole!

I want to keep this very tight and to the point, so I'll be as clear and precise as possible.

I am HIGHLY considering transfering my blog and all its posts to an actual domain. A domain I will be paying for. This will afford me the opportunity to track my readers, observe the traffic I'm getting, and hopefully get some search engine recognition. In a direct sense, it'll also allow me to properly and fully customise my page.

Now, don't get me wrong, I do love this page. It IS just Blogspot, though. There are people who probably have the same layout as I, so I'd really love one that's MINE. I've already got big ideas, so we'll see.

The point is, I don't want to do through this for nothing. Currently, I don't know how many viewers I get on average. I know a few certain folks who read it, but I really do not know if I'm getting the kind of readership that would warrant me changing. I do this because I love it, but at the same time I want to know if it's being seen or even liked.

What do those of you who read this blog actually think? Thoughts and replies in a comment, please. Also, if you like my blog, tell someone. Tell someone who might be interested even if you're not.

Anyway, thanks for reading.

Until next time, peace.

-The Mast

The Mast Blogs/Reviews: First Looks at Odin/Loki in Thor, The Green Lantern Movie Costume & Thursday's Comics (15/7/2010).

...and then, they made me their King!

Oh, sorry! Didn't see you all there. I do have some exciting stuff to say AND talk about today, though! So, all yous guys lucked out.

First, the picture that's causing some ruckus in the comics community. Nope, not the up-skirts of Psylocke we all wanted, but something else! Marvel posted the first publicity still of Odin and Loki! Thor is in shot, but we've seen him already.



Loki...looks fine. Well, his costume is cool, and I've always said Tom Hiddleston looks perfect. Here he just looks calm. I wish they'd had him devilishly smirking, but most of all, I WISH HE HAD HIS HELMET. Seriosuly. Thor not having one would suck, but I'd get over it. Loki NEEDS his horns, man! Oh well.

Odin...just looks...like a pirate. I'll reserve judgement on performance of course, but he just looks ridiculous. He does not look like the ruler of Asgard. Maybe I'll warm up to it.

Another first was seeing Ryan Reynolds in the Green Lantern costume for the first time! It's been getting mixed responses.



Now, I like Green Lantern, a couple of the incarnations anyway. I'm not a mad enough fan that I will be as critical of the movie as his fans will, to be honest. It's SAID that the costume will be C.G.I. also. Now, I think it makes sense to have a bit more to the costume than it just looking like a body suit, or something like Daredevil or Spider-Man wear. The guy is recruited into an inter-galactic peacekeeping and defence force. You'd think they'd offer him more than spandex.

Regardless, I've never seen the suit as something that defines him. I think it's familiar enough, but it's not so different that it'll cause backlash. None that's reasonable anyway. For example, I didn't think Daredevil's movie outfit was bad at all. I think Affleck was too big, mass wise, to play Daredevil. Yet, I thought the costume was extremely realistic and practical. A flexible leather would make a lot of sense. I hope Green Lantern fans can see this the same way.

Well, like I said, this is a bit of a bumper post. LOTS of comics to talk about today, and they're all pretty spectacular!


The Thanos Imperative #2 of 6.

The big guns and heavy-hitters are really coming out in this one.

The war between The Cancerverse and Earth/Space's combined forces continues with great urgency in this issue. The unparalleled space-masters, Abnett and Lanning, pile on the dread and let you know that shit is not going to be easy. The Guardians of the Galaxy make hilariously short work of the evil version of The Defenders, but with what's going on in this issue, I don't mind. Thanos cleans up and notes that he can cause permanent death, even in their universe.

The big fight is out at the opening, however. In what I considered to be a really epic moment, The Silver Surfer bursts through one of the monsters to announce his arrival and aid of the Kree/Shi'ar forces. The art on that particular picture was incredible. It conveyed such a sense of speed and eruption.

Surfer didn't come alone. He says to Nova, "I am but a herald, Richard Rider of Earth.", and reveals that all the massive, cosmic abstracts have joined the fight.

Holy shit, is what I said.

We're talking Galactus, Celestials etc. They're here and they're actually fighting. Not since The Infinity Gauntlet or The Annihilation War has a situation been so grave that their involvement was needed.

Unfortunately, things are about to get worse. From out of The Fault comes a gigantic construction/organism known as The Galactus Engine. It is modelled after its namesake's head and dwarfs even Galactus himself.

What is this contraption? What does it mean for everyone else?

All I know is that I'm not gonna miss this. The one worry I have is whether or not I will be able to devote attention to it. There's so many great series I'm into, I just always find myself not totally into this. I mean, it's great when you read it, but if you've got a lot of other comics in between issues, it can kill the anticipation.

Nevertheless, it IS looking good. I wouldn't recommend it to you guys, though. Only read it if you read War of Kings and did research on Realm of Kings (Asking me would probably be better), and even then, you may not like the space characters.


X-Force: Sex & Violence #1 of 3.

I'm way more inclined to check out three part mini-series than any other kind of mini-series, simply because if it flops, it's only three parts.

My problem with Marvel flooding the market is the question of continuity. I'm normally not too big a stickler for it, but it's getting to the point that I'm wondering things. I'm wondering how Wolverine is a member of The Avengers, The New Avengers, The X-Men and X-Force. I'm wondering when all these stories are happening.

Regardless, this looks to be pretty much what it says on the cover. Sex and violence. A three-parter exploring the sexual tension between Domino and Wolverine, as he helps her out of a bit of trouble she's in. They kill lots of people together, too. The cover is very sexy and the art is very good. It has a gritty, grindhouse feel to it, really.

It could be a surprise hit! Check back for my opinion of issue #2 when it comes out.

I love Kyle/Yost's work on the X-Force books/characters. This is no exception.

Plus, the violence is epic. I'm VERY critical of what Wolverine material/stories I do like, but there must be very few characters who are as fun to write off-the-chain violence for.


X-Men: Second Coming #2 (Second Coming: Chapter 13).

It all ends here.

In a jam-packed issue, we're treated to a myriad of different plotlines. Mutantkind has been saved by Hope, but how? Who is she? What is she? These are the questions we head into this comic with.

Lots of this issue is just detailing how the team are settling after such an ordeal. Beast leaves, for good, unable to take Scott's decisions with forgiveness. I assume he's gone to be a full time Secret Avenger (He's meant to be on Mars, but that's what I mean about continuity).

Various X-Kids are being patched up after the battle, too. Magneto tells Hope that a lot of good can come of being perceived as dangerous, and gets rather annoyed when Hellion hilariously asks if there's a bidet anywhere, having lost his hands in the battle.

Most touching of all is Cable's funeral. Hope describes him to a T, by saying that nobody should cry for him because he died as he wanted to; fighting for something that matters, alongside people he loves. Deadpool even makes a cameo, looking rather saddened in the background. That's what got to me. Those two became the closest thing to best friends that I think either of them have ever had. It was sad.

Storm confronts Cyclops about X-Force after Cyclops puts Rogue on suspension for risking Hope in the battke. Another pivotal moment, and great piece of Kyle/Yost writing, comes when Wolverine and Storm have a talk. These two are close, they've always been close. She expresses great disappointment in Wolverine's decision and, when he says he'd do it all again, says that this may be the last conversation they ever have.

It's all very sad. It's dawn, but at what cost, you know? On a similar note, Cyclops tells Wolverine that X-Force is no longer needed, it's disbanded and over. Wolverine agrees after some debating, only to walk to a hidden area of the island and into a darkened room. He speaks to some unseen characters and it is revealed, epically, that he is going to continue X-Force in secret.

The team?



It's ok, I nearly had to change underwear too. You may remember, during my X-Force Annual review, that I loved Kyle/Yost's depiction of Deadpool in the mini-story they included. Well...THEY'RE NOT WRITING THE NEW UNCANNY X-FORCE BOOK. Rick Remender is.

We'll see.

Anyway, things culminate at the very end when Emma Frost is watching after Hope. Hope begins radiating fire and, with a smirk toward Emma Frost, begins showing the Phoenix symbol in her hand. Emma, running to tell Cyke, discovers him smiling at a computerised image of the world. Five new mutant births/signals have appears across the world.

The mutant race has been born again.

I must say, I both loved and disliked things about this ending. On one hand it felt complete, like the battle had been won and that the mutant race had been revived. It had. On the other hand, I just feel as though they're gonna drag this Hope thing out for longer. I had the impression THIS was going to be the story to reveal who and what she is.

Aside from that, I have to say Second Coming was an absolutely blistering, exciting ride. One I never expected The X-Men and it's associated teams to give me, outside of X-Force.

Definitely unexpected.

So, a second coming for mutants and in my opinion, a second coming for the quality of X-Books. Will this resurrection of quality be upheld? Let's see.


Avengers Academy #2.

I suspect these issues will start off a little slow as we're introduced to the characters and their histories, which is cool as long as it picks up later.

This time, we are treated to a Finesse-focused issue, the polymath capable of learning anything instantly.

She is kind of like a female Spock. Every intellectual excellence under the Sun, but zero ability to interact with people on a human level, even though she is human.

The issue consists of some nice, fitting art by McKone that compliments Gage's writing. Speaking of which, he seems to have really worked out how he wants to individualise these characters.

Finesse ultimately seeks guidance from Quicksilver, but not the kind you'd expect. She wants him to teach her what he learned during his time in The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. He neglects, but she blackmails him by saying that she knows he was never copied by The Skrulls, that everything he did during their invasion was him.

Edgy stuff! I would say it's a great series for new fans, too. It's not just a good jumping-on point for existing characters; these are brand new characters. You would be getting to know them with everyone else.

Check it out!


X-Men Origins: Deadpool.

I swear to God and every available deity, if Duane Swierczynski isn't given the main Deadpool title soon...

This is fucking...amazing. Deadpool opens the narration by telling us that a movie adaptation of his story is coming out, but before they mess it up, he wants to get the real story out there.

In this gem, this delicious gem of a comic, we get treated to Deadpool hiring two screenwriters to pitch their ideas. One says they should do Michael Bay shit, so Deadpool shoots him in the arm. The other wants to scrap the merc stuff and have him play a country singer, so he shoots him in the leg.

Eventually, and among some TERRIFIC dialogue, Deadpool meets one who simply asks him to tell the story rather than it being pitched.

Now, nobody really knows what Deadpool's true origin is, in detail. Thus, the freedom with an origin story! Anyone can write anything and say, "Well, Deadpool lies a lot." It can cause real shoddy work, or creative bursts of genius. That's what this is.

Eventually the movie is made and it's awful, resulting in Deadpool blowing up the director's car. It's just...such a cleverly done, excellently written Deadpool story. It's the Deadpool I fell in love with.

What I didn't expect was the heart-breaking emotional story that Swierczynski has woven into it. Whether or not it's true, whether or not Deadpool is lying, I don't know.

During his convo with the director, Deadpool says that he loved his Dad. He says that, as a kid, his Dad would go outside the door and they'd actually act out knock-knock jokes. When he ends the tale with, "One day Dad slipped behind the door and never came back. I used to act out our knock-knock routine just to see if he was waiting me out, but he wasn't.", it's truly saddening. I mean, I felt something. Even though Deadpool wipes a tear away and acts like he's just sweaty, you know he's not.

This thread continues when the director asks Deadpool, as he's leaving, what he'd ask his Dad if he had the chance. Deadpool simply replies, "My Dad? I think I'd ask him for the punchline."

It's such a truly, honestly sad and depressing portrayal.

The worst part, and the most heart-wrenching piece of Swierczynski's writing in this book, comes at the end. Feeling down due to the flopped premiere and an overwhelming sense that nothing in his life is really genuine, he drives off to an address he claims to have had for a while. Walking up to a rickety old house, he knocks on the door and the man behind asks who it is. He says "It's Wade." The man opens the door, decrepit and old, replying "Wade? Wade who?"

Deadpool ends the issue by pulling off his mask and saying, with the most forlorn look of sadness:

"Wade until you see what happened to me...Dad."

It's the kind of stuff that people cry over in movies.

I honestly felt so emotionally drawn into this issue that I had to take a break from reading the others.

It's only a one-shot, so please...if you can, pick it up.

Absolutely breathtaking.


Daredevil #508.

This truly is Matt Murdock's downward spiral. It's the worst I've ever seen him.

Whatever The Hand did to him, it's truly taking its toll. Matt has become distant, reclusive and has alienated his remaining friends. The Hand, and especially White Tiger, are very protective of him. When Dakota North and Foggy Nelson go to Shadowland to speak with him over murdering Bullseye, they are threatened by White Tiger and told he doesn't want to see them.

White Tiger, possibly being manipulated by The Hand's magic herself, is really pulling off the devil-on-shoulder role. Diggle KILLS this writing, he really does. So does Johnston. The art, compiments of the sickeningly excellent Roberto De la Torre, is just mindblowing. It's Noir without the Noir.

Things just go horribly wrong. Matt is talking to himself and losing the battle with whatever force is controlling him, and The Hand cause Dakota North and Foggy Nelson to endure a near fatal car crash which they may not walk away from.

Of course, though, what is Daredevil without a shocking end?

Master Izo is seen speaking to an off-panel character, describing his opinion that Matt is way over his head, not in control. The off-panel character says that Matt probably planned for all this and IS in control.

Izo asks if that's what this person believes, or if it's their love for Matt Murdock speaking.

The last page reveals this person to be none other than ELEKTRA! Motherfucking Elektra! I swear.

I sorta knew she'd turn up from the unavoidable teaser posters (That reveal entirely too much, Marvel!), but her presense in a Daredevil comic is ALWAYS so mindblowing.

To quote Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys 2, shit just got real.

BRING ON SHADOWLAND #2 FOR GOD'S SAKE!

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That's about it for today, guys and humans without guy parts.

Catch me on Saturday with a blog post regarding the future of Welcome to the Mast!

Don't forget to check out, and subscribe to, Direct Edition on YouTube! This week's episode should be up soon, as well as their customary Monday news episode. Sorry to Iyare for my lack of guesting this week, as I'd LOVED to review Daredevil #508, but hopefully I'll have a catch up next week! Congrats on the job opportunity too! Whatever it is. Happy for you, bro.

Take care, everyone.

Until next time, peace.

-The Mast

The Mast Blogs: Promotions!

Mr. Sulu! Ahead Warp Nine!

I'm just swinging by to let you ALL know a few things.

1. I have a blog post in the pipeline that will be detailing the possible future of this blog. That will come tomorrow, posshap. Maybe Saturday.

2. You should be subscribed to Direct Edition on YouTube if you aren't already.

3. My guest appearance on last week's news episode is up now! We filmed it at the same time as the other one, don't think we're all wearing the same clothes. Guess what? You should go watch that too!

4. The first rule of Direct Edition and Welcome to the Mast is that you DO talk about Direct Editon and Welcome to the Mast. It's not like Fight Club, we're not elitist pricks like those guys (Ok, I am). Spread the word around, even if you HATE both our projects/sites, just tell people you think might dig them.

That's all I have until Thursday. So come back then and hear me talk some comic words real nice like.

Until then, peace.

-The Mast

The Mast Blogs/Reviews: The Mast on Direct Edition & Thursday's Comics (8/7/2010).

The mystic portal awaits!

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

The Mast Reviews/Blogs: Thursday's Comics (1/7/2010) & More Shameless Promotion.

This is the newest month of all time.

A weird opening sentence, but true nonetheless. It's a little joke for those of you who appreciate temporal contemplation.

I'm giving Thor reviews a rest until the mop-up after Siege is done. They story is good, and so is Thor #611, but I just feel like it's a stop gap between Siege and Fraction's run. Gillen's Thor is DEFINITELY something you should grab trades of, though. Following J.M.S. couldn't have been easy, but he's doing splendid. He's also a man after mine own heart in that he's very articulate.

Anyway, as a result, I only have two comics to review this week. I was GOING to review The Invincible Iron Man Annual, but as good as I think it is, it's essentially just a flashback story of The Mandarin.


Secret Avengers #2.

I predicted this would be my favourite series of the new Avengers material, and it is. Granted, it's very early, but it's really pleasing me.

Ed Brubaker's experience in crime/thriller comics really does allow him to add a degree of taut expressiveness to his stories, and that really grabs you with meathooks when it needs to. Mike Deodato has a style so deliciously suited to what this is meant to be; a blockbuster comic. Though it does feel like what it is, that being a black-ops version of The Avengers, it feels like it is definitely not anything less than a main title.

I was amped for him to be working with Brubaker and the characters in these pages.

So, we left off with Nova getting himself into a spot of bother on Mars, the Secret Avengers being formed and sent on individual missions and Nick Fury revealing that he now leads something called the Shadow Empire. He revealed this to Sharon Carter after he knocked her out, of course! Genius.

So, Sharon goes off to track down the people who stole the Serpent Crown and realises that they used S.H.I.E.L.D. stealth suits. Gasp! The rest of the guys and girls are on Mars when they discover that the Roxxon dig sites have been visited recently, despite them being unused or shut down for a few months. After being unsuccessfully ambushed by the Shadow Empire fodder, they split up to find Nova. Each team successfully, or unsuccessfully, finds themselves encountering something that explodes or generally isn't very safe.

War Machine and Ant-Man, who I really love the tense interactions of, discover some kind of weird window/portal thing (To my memory), where as everyone else ends up finding Nova. The bad news is that Nova is now wearing the crowd he was apparantly sent to receive, so can you guess what happens? Nova has gone all brain-washy and decides to attack the team he had only just become a member of.

I really like the way the story progresses and I think the choice of characters is something pretty fresh. It's ANOTHER new team, but it IS a NEW team. You know? It feels legitimately as though Cap. Rogers looked over a file, decided who would work well as a team that wasn't already IN one, and put it together.

The art is gorgeous, as expected, and you'd do well to pick this series up.


Deadpool: Wade Wilson's War #2 of 4.

Why...the fuck...is Duane Swierczynski NOT writing the main Deadpool series?

Look, Daniel Way had a good first 12 issues. He did. Since then, Deadpool had been saturating the market and, let's be honest, NONE has been acceptable. There's been an odd issue here that's been good, but otherwise, no. It's causing MASSIVE Anti-Deadpool backlash and my boy deserves better.

This guy? The best Deadpool writer since Gail Simone and they give him a non-canon MINI-SERIES?! JUSTICE! RABBLE! RABBLE, RABBLE, RABBLE!

As you can guess, I am so pleased with this. After what has felt like eons of disgustingly poor Deadpool material, we get this. No head-voices, here! Just corrosively funny wit, pop culture references and fourth wall-breaking. Deadpool remains in court where we last saw him remove his mask, from behind, as he tells the Senate of his military exploits.

Under his mask? Another mask. A Michael Jackson mask. He then starts singing Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'. What more do you want? The story progresses well, with typical Deadpool past-altering tales and mockery of everyone but himself. It ends with an investigative reporter telling his boss that Deadpool eventually lost his mind and thought him and his team were comic book heroes. Thus resulting in the deaths of many, many civilians somehow.

The story is told perfectly and it's truly hilarious. Moments like when Deadpool takes a tank shell to the chest and then acts proud because now they have one less bullet are exactly what's been missing. The violence isn't shy, either. Deadpool kills people in the first issue. Hopefully it continues.

I really fucking love this. I love the art, I love the feel. It's making me very happy. As someone who spent roughly a grand collecting all of Deadpool's appearances EVER, to be rewarded with something this good is pleasing.

It's just a shame it's out of continuity and only a four-parter.

When this comes out as a trade, BUY THE FUCKER. If the sales of this go through the roof, Marvel might put Swierczynski on the main title. So please, buy it. Better yet, go buy the single issues!

Fantastic.

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That's all I got today, you scumshits. Before I go, I want to give a shout-out to Iyare and Aleks over at Direct Edition. They create and host a quickfire comic book reviews and news show over at YouTube, also called Direct Edition. I've watched it for a while, and they film it in Comicana Comics! So, if you've ever wanted a visual companion to the spectacular service I give you here, go watch it!

This is the link you'd click to do that thing I just said then: Direct Edition on YouTube.

Subscribe and pass the word on!

If all goes well, you MAY be seeing none other than THE MAST HIMSELF on the show. Ever wanted to know my real name? MAYBE YOU'LL FIND OUT IF THEY DON'T LET ME INTRODUCE MYSELF AS THE MAST! I hope they do, I've had issues with stalkers!

Exciting and crazy times to be a comic book fan.

Go check that badness, or Iyare will punch your face off. He's Luke Cage, I'm certain.

Thanks for reading, guys and girls.

Until next time, peace.

-The Mast

The Mast Blogs: The iPad Cometh, New Fans & Geek Chic's Non-Existence.

Ha, ha, haaa! Loins...

Greetings chaps and chaps who are women. Welcome to this blog, it's called Welcome to the Mast. I am The Mast and I have made this thing where I can talk comics.

I've been thinking about how to tackle this post, because it's liable to become an essay of heft-meister proportions. I've had many discussions about both topics and thus I wanted one source I could just direct people to. Ultimately, I put a lot of effort into having to make no effort.

With the invention of the iPad, many people have been wondering what this means for regular, physical reading material. The debate and concerns about whether or not the iPad will be to books and comics what the iPod is to CDs has raged like a horse's erect spermhammer, with no signs of pleasant resolution in sight. To continue the metaphor; things only get more sticky the longer it goes on.



Yes, the iPad is a revolutionary tool that will change the way people enjoy certain luxury items. I, however, see no reason to start engraving the gravestone of written, physical literature just yet.

You listen to music wherever you are, whatever you're doing, and this is the difference between a book and a CD. You could be strolling along the street and feel the sudden urge to listen to The Smiths, or if you have less desireable taste and are an idiot, Miley Cyrus or somethin, and an iPod allows you to instantly do so. You can change and choose from multiple hundreds of albums at your own desire.

By that same hand, I don't see anyone strolling along the street and suddenly getting the urge to crack out Pride and Prejudice, War and Peace or À La Recherche du Temps Perdu. Typically, reading while travelling or out in the world is done on trains or in coffee shops. I can understand the functionality of the iPad in this sense. Despite everything, I will always believe that when people take time to sit down and enjoy a book, it will make no difference if it's digital or physical. You still have to hold it and you still own it.

People, I think, will still buy books and comics. Reading is a much more engrossing and demanding experience than listening to music is. Even reading something so much as a tabloid newspaper, reading is something people do specifically because they enjoy it. I don't think the advent of the iPad is really changing enough about the act of reading that will do damage, significant or otherwise, to the way we've always done it. More and more people out of necessity and convenience may want to just digitally buy books, but I don't think there'll be any danger of losing bookstores.



How will comics suffer OR benefit specifically? The worst case scenario, for comics, is that single issue will no longer be made. That would be greatly saddening to me, I have to say. However, I do not think this means comics will die. To echo the sentiments of my friend Andrew, I think comic companies may just end up serialising their issues online and putting them all in a physical trade paperback every few months. It's not what I love most, but it's better than having to settle for looking at comics on a screen.

If anything, the reverse could happen. People could slowly gain greater interest in comics and comic stores, this ensuring the lifespan of the physical medium. That's the beauty of the way things are going now, really. The comic stores in London are all a stone's throw away from each other, but I still have to get three trains to get there. It takes me 30 mins on a good day, and I love the journey/experience. Some do not and some CANNOT make the journey, though. This is a really good way for people to not only get INTO comics, but to STAY into comics.

I really don't think it's doom and gloom. I think the medium is changing, undoubtedly, and it COULD spell distress for certain comic fans and some areas of the medium...but all in all, I really don't think there's anything to worry about.

MP3s are exactly the same as what you get on CD, sometimes even better quality. I am a big supporter of owning an actual item, but that's the truth of it regarding CDs. Comics are NOT the same on a screen as they are in person. It is more of an experience. When you rip music from a CD, the CD effectively becomes useless. You can read a comic, but then you can read it again and again. You don't always feel like sitting at your computer and clicking through pages, you want to relax with the book or comic.

There is way too much going for the medium and for physical literature for it to be killed off by anything digital.

Saying that, comics thrive on the idea of being a collector. If you don't care about owning them physically, then the game changes in terms of how a physical item will survive.

That's what I think, anyway. What do YOU think? The comment link is below, use that bitch.



That's the Marvel iPad app, I believe. DC have one too, but I'm not sure of others. It looks very impressive and IS very impressive. It's not a comic, though.

So! From one area of discussion to another. One that has had people either cheering for me or cursing me out, so I wanted to open up my blog to comments or replies regarding this topic.

New Fans: Wot's de Big Oidear? *End Irish Accent*

Let me clarify, right away. I have NO problem with people getting into comics. Why on Earth would I? I have this blog and we all had to start somewhere, right? So, what is the problem I have?

My problem is NOT with new fans of ANYTHING. It's with new people PRETENDING to be fans or being rather disrespectful about their new found interests. Allow me to elaborate that point and explode it out like Britney Spears' waistline.

I know readers of this blog who have become more aware of comics or comic characters due to movies or hearing me talk about them, and have asked me for recommendation. I'm flattered when this happens and, to those who have asked, I hope I helped. My issue (HAW!) is with those who pose.

When I was a kid, long story short, I was made fun of and picked on for liking comic books. I was teased for having a Spider-Man keychain hanging from my Arsenal F.C. backpack in Secondary School. Sometimes it was just silly comments, but sometimes people were unspeakably rude. What, in Christ's name, does this have to do with anything? I'll tell you.

I do not like the fact that the people who gave me so much shit for an interest I love are now going on dates with their girls, or boys, to see the likes of Iron Man and Iron Man 2. I hate that, "Why so serious?", became a catchphrase for every boy or girl who never knew that people in comics were actually the shit. I hate that, far from being realised as an extremely intricate character, Rorschach is known as that badass dude who threw hot oil into that guy's face in Watchmen.

People never did, and still don't in many cases, get why I love comics. So it DOES piss me off that they suddenly try to, and still fail. Rorschach is not "cool", he's a murderous, borderline fascist psychopath.

I hear tales of people saying that certain people in comic book stores act like assholes when you ask for help and you're a new fan. I've never experienced that, but I'm certainly not gonna jump out and condemn it. There's no excuse for bad manners, but I AM of the mentality, "Oh, so we're cool enough for you now?" sometimes. I can't help it.

Let me give examples. I have seen so many newer fans TELLING ME that Iron Man is better than characters I like, based on the movies. Firstly, any self-respecting geek knows that only sources are canon. Secondly, how do you get to do that? Don't sit there and tell me that a character I've been following since I was about eight is awesome. I am aware. I've been aware. This sort of thing reminds me of The Great Muse Bandwagonning of '04, as it's now known. Everyone suddenly discovered Muse existed, and thus began hoardes of Americans telling us they're a great band, despite the fact that Brits had heard them on the Steve Lamacq show before they even had an album.

That's what I hate the most. With the exception of the fashionably iconic Batman and Superman logos, don't go around wearing a shirt with The Avengers on if you aren't a fan. It's not cool. This brings me to my third and final point...

It's actually just something I want to say to any males or, specifically, females who may read this (HAHAH!). There is no such thing as Geek Chic. Lemme pop that bubble. I'm gonna do a Bill Hicks and talk to the women here. You do not find nerds or geeks sexy, do you? Let's find the chase, grab some scissors and cut right to that motherfucker. You do not find geeks sexy, you find fashionable people wearing specs and chequered sweaters to be sexy. Those are not geeks.

The key word is Geek, right? To be a geek, you must do more than wear an Argyle sweater, spectacles and carry a back-pack. You are not a geek because you do these things, so please stop it.

I'm not even saying I am or am not one, I'm not saying there's a list of rules. I just know what absolutely is NOT a geek. To anyone this applies to:

Stop trying to put yourselves into a group of people that your kind probably would've beaten up at school. If you must, don't do so and then have the bold-faced nerve to try and make it a fashion trend. Dane Cook will do stand-up in my house, with Russell fucking Peters as a support act, before that kind of behaviour becomes acceptable. Speaking of unacceptable, here's a story...

During the end of Iron Man 2, the credits were rolling and I was talking with my Dad about the franchise and how everything fits. Some guy noticed my Captain America shirt and asked if I was excited to have seen the shield, and we chatted for a bit. He insisted he was a fan of the comics and loved The Avengers etc, so I didn't press the matter.

Upon the end of the EPIC post-credits scene where Mjolnir, Thor's hammer, is revealed, I went crazy. The guy said how awesome it was, too. Fast-forward and I'm waiting outside for my Dad when the guy walks by. He doesn't see me, but I overheard him say, "I waited all that time to see a fucking hammer? What's that supposed to be?"

That, ladies and gents, is how NOT to live your life.

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I've had this in me for a while now, so excuse the long post. Feel free to comment on any of the issues or opinions contained herein, you're always welcome to.

Thanks for reading!

Until tomorrow, peace.

-The Mast