SDM’s Sneaks of the Week 2/28/06
Reviewed this week:
The Ultimates 2 #10
Infinite Crisis #5
Ex Machina #18
JSA #83
Nextwave #2
Best of the week: The Ultimates 2 #10 (10/10)
Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s The Ultimates 2 is the best title being published right now by Marvel, despite Astonishing X-Men, Runaways and whatever Ed Brubaker is working on. It’s the best title being published even when you throw in the titles from DC, Vertigo, and Wildstorm, like 100 Bullets, Fables, and All-Star Superman. When counting indie books, it’s hard to put it over The Goon and The Walking Dead – for about a second, that is. Millar’s brilliant superheroics coupled with a relevant take on global politics and Hitch’s gorgeous, ultra-detailed art have created the new standard for superhero comics, and this volume of The Ultimates has improved leaps and bounds over the last one.
Now, onto the issue. Previously in #9, there was a surprise attack on the U.S.A, with most of the Ultimates taken out of action thanks to the efforts of Black Widow, who was revealed to be the team’s traitor. That left Nick Fury, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, and the still-green Ultimate reserves to fend off a myriad of super soldiers and super villains assembled by a cabal of foreign countries eager to see the U.S fall. As expected, it didn’t go so well. This issue is all about the fallout of that attack with focus on the assembly of this supervillain team as well as a look at some of the Ultimates who were out-of-commission when the attack hit New York City.
Oh yes. It would be spoiling to talk about who gets a big moment in this issue, but think about anyone who’s been wronged in the last nine issues of The Ultimates 2. Think about what their perfect revenge would be. What happens here is better than that. Even though Millar’s allusion to current global politics is well-done and seamlessly blends with the story, he knows that the comic fan loves to see their superheroes kick ass. Some ass gets kicked, and quite well at that. There is an boundless energy flowing through every page, and it builds up to an explosive last page, in which anyone who enjoys this title should yell, “Yes!”
Bryan Hitch is the most detail-oriented artist in the business not Gene Ha, and he is proficient at not only putting those awe-inspiring splash panels on paper, but showing the sadness, arrogance, and sheer rage on the face of every character in this issue. The two months it takes for every issue to come out is evidently well-spent, as the effort poured into every page truly conveys the larger-than-life aspects of the story.
There is some confirmed Ultimization of a few 616 villains as well, but that is just a minor note in this next-to-penultimate chapter of The Ultimates 2. This is the best title being published today, and it would be a crime not to pick it up in the midst of all the big crossovers that are taking place in both Marvel and DC. Millar and Hitch prove once again that they are the premier creative team working in comics, and whatever they decide to take on next after issue #12, I will instantly buy.
Best of the rest:
Nextwave #2 (8/10)
Wacky story! Wild art! Giant dragons wearing purple pants! Androids! Ex-Avengers! Ex-New Mutants! An amusing Nick Fury rip-off! These are the things that make up Nextwave, and it is a fresh breath of indescribable fun that makes no sense but is still a great read. Editor Nick Lowe said that this series was dedicated to all of the crazy things you saw in cartoons as a kid that made no sense, but still made you smile for some reason. With one-to-two issue arcs, how can anyone resist Nextwave? I certainly couldn’t, and it is infused with Warren Ellis’ typical brand of random yet morbid humor that makes me feel slightly guilty for laughing. It’s just so silly. The cover of the book reads, “Nextwave gets their lovin’ from your mama!” for Chrissakes.
In this issue, the superheroes fight the giant dragon. It’s a typical set-up (because giant dragons need their beatings), but Ellis fills it with enough funny to make it a worthwhile read. Nextwave is one of the better titles to premiere recently, and I like that Marvel is giving it time to establish its identity instead of thrusting it into the middle of Civil War. This review is a little short, but what more can be said? Some people get beat up. I laugh a lot. The end!
Infinite Crisis #5 (of 7) (7/10)
Warren Ellis wrote once that no one reads crossovers for character moments; they read them to see the heroes get together and fight something or someone. At this point, people are reading Infinite Crisis to see what the hell exactly is DC doing, and also to see their favorite characters fight some vague threat (Alexander Luthor? The OMACs? Max Lord? Superboy Prime? The Spectre? Lex Luthor? WHAT?). Nightwing and Superboy! Batman and Kal-L! Kal-L and Kal-El! Wonder Woman and Superman! Blue Beetle and Booster Gold! It goes on and on. The original Crisis on Infinite Earths mini-series was twelve issues and every issue was used to its fullest potential; here, the relevant parts come and go. DC is trying to cram a little too much into these seven issues, and the result is a little uneven. The first purpose of this mini (what the hell is going on) is a bit neglected (not much the hell goes on), but there are some fairly obvious character interactions and spot-on characterizations that lend a lot to the symbolic weight of the title.
Infinite Crisis is all about bridging the old continuity with the new, and in the process, tying the Golden, Silver, and Modern Age characters together. Kal-L and Kal-El share a moment (looking at the George Perez cover, what do you think happens in that moment) as well as Wonder Woman and *EDITED FOR SPOILERS* (look at the Jim Lee cover for the obvious answer). There is conflict over which set of heroes was better, the ones of Earth-1 or Earth-2, but the torch is passed to the previous generation of sidekicks who are all grown up now. A heartbreaking loss and revelation for Kal-L is the emotional center of this issue, which somewhat makes up for the lack of happenings. The ending was a little obvious because of some solicitations released by DC, so it didn’t really have any emotional impact for me.
To me, DC is marketing their giant event incredibly poorly. The two big emotional and physical reveals of this issue were made known to the public weeks ago, and nothing happens with them when they finally happen. The first surprise appearance just kind of fizzles away, and the second surprise appearance is a cliffhanger for the next issue. Rather than spoiling the external events leading up to the core of the story, DC is showing its cards too quickly. A comparison would be Marvel and Civil War; a solicitation released for May reveals the cover of Fantastic Four to show Dr. Doom’s hand holding Thor’s hammer. WHAT!? That is enough to get me intrigued about the issue, but the “why” is left out; here, DC let the “who” of IC #5’s big reveals be known ahead of time, and the “who” is all that matters here. Without that surprise element, it wasn’t as shocking and emotional as, say, Barry Allen showing up in the last issue. Imagine how the impact of that would’ve been dulled had they put him on the cover, reading out of the Speed Force to help Wally West and Bart Allen.
The art is brilliant as expected and the story is capable enough, but the frenetic pace of last issue is lost. Plus, I was expecting this issue to lead into the One-Year-Later jump, and it doesn’t. If it does, then it wasn’t memorable or clear enough for me to go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” This issue is the weakest of all the ones done so far because it only serves to set up the events in the next issue; there is little here that can stand on its own. As mentioned before, there is some symbolism that functions on a literary level, but it adds to little.
Ex Machina #18 (7/10)
I like that Brian K. Vaughan writes several different titles with different focuses, much like Robert Kirkman. Runaways is good old teenage fun, Y: The Last Man is a great take on gender roles and such, Ultimate X-Men was a standard, well-done superhero comic, and Ex Machina is his political thriller. There’s a bit too much of the politics in this issue though, and most of the issue is told through borderline-preachy dialogue. Yes, the feds messed up with 9/11, we get it! I don’t think Vaughan is doing it to make a political point (unlike Mark Millar would, perhaps), but the politics slow down the far more compelling story that is only revealed in the last few pages. Tony Harris’ art is best used for action scenes, and the few there are in this issue are told with energy and grittiness that convey racial tensions in New York City and Mitchell Hundred’s superhero past with ease. At the same time, he is also skilled at showing the emotion to be had when Hundred realizes that his former intern Journal Moore was involved in the attack on the protestors. Oh yeah, that scene is shown here, and it’s sad.
Vaughan’s dialogue is typically sharp, and the next issue looks to be excellent. A better jumping on point for this title would be the upcoming Ex Machina Special in a month or two that will showcase Mitchell Hundred’s exploits as the Great Machine. A couple of religious allusions are played up here, but the most exciting part is wondering what will happen next; kind of like with Infinite Crisis, but I’m at least expecting the slow pace here.
I’m not sure
JSA #83 (Setup/10)
This issue was hard to review because it wasn’t exactly bad, but it wasn’t exactly good, either. The plot goes as such: some ghosts are terrorizing the members of the JSA, and no one knows what’s causing them until the end of the issue (featuring the long-awaited return of a villain who hasn’t been seen since the last issue and the month before that). Seriously. Every member of the JSA is shown reacting to the ghosts, mostly with similar results (“It’s a ghost of someone I used to know who’s now dead! Oh no!”) with some vague references to the One-Year-Later jump (“Boy, things sure were wacky in that one year.”) The art by Rags Morales is less-detailed than his previous efforts, but still good, while the flashback pencils of Luke Ross are spectacular. The script by Paul Levitz is fine, with some groan-worthy lines (“Thunderbolt, teach these fools a lesson ‘bout respect!” – I suspect Levitz’s exposure to urban youth comes solely from movies like Hardball) and stiflingly old-school conventions (Alan Scott says his thoughts out loud in his one scene in an almost laughable fashion). I have no idea where the hell this story is going, and I’m a little intrigued, but this isn’t a BRAND NEW DIRECTION ™ for the JSA like the rest of the One-Year-Later titles supposedly feature, just more of the good old JSA we all know. It’s the equivalent of last week’s JLA Classified, except with far better art. You could try this or one of the other OYL titles (I believe Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis, Blood of the Demon, Detective Comics, and Outsiders are all out today), or you could get something more accessible and better, like Nextwave!
A final note is that I am glad that Levitz is doing a typical JSA story rather than trying to shake everything up like some of the other OYL titles are. At the same time, this typical story is far too typical and I hope it picks up, because JSA has been sorely lacking for a while.
E-mail me at thegreatmachine@gmail.com for further comments or review requests.
The Ultimates 2 #10
Infinite Crisis #5
Ex Machina #18
JSA #83
Nextwave #2
Best of the week: The Ultimates 2 #10 (10/10)
Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s The Ultimates 2 is the best title being published right now by Marvel, despite Astonishing X-Men, Runaways and whatever Ed Brubaker is working on. It’s the best title being published even when you throw in the titles from DC, Vertigo, and Wildstorm, like 100 Bullets, Fables, and All-Star Superman. When counting indie books, it’s hard to put it over The Goon and The Walking Dead – for about a second, that is. Millar’s brilliant superheroics coupled with a relevant take on global politics and Hitch’s gorgeous, ultra-detailed art have created the new standard for superhero comics, and this volume of The Ultimates has improved leaps and bounds over the last one.
Now, onto the issue. Previously in #9, there was a surprise attack on the U.S.A, with most of the Ultimates taken out of action thanks to the efforts of Black Widow, who was revealed to be the team’s traitor. That left Nick Fury, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, and the still-green Ultimate reserves to fend off a myriad of super soldiers and super villains assembled by a cabal of foreign countries eager to see the U.S fall. As expected, it didn’t go so well. This issue is all about the fallout of that attack with focus on the assembly of this supervillain team as well as a look at some of the Ultimates who were out-of-commission when the attack hit New York City.
Oh yes. It would be spoiling to talk about who gets a big moment in this issue, but think about anyone who’s been wronged in the last nine issues of The Ultimates 2. Think about what their perfect revenge would be. What happens here is better than that. Even though Millar’s allusion to current global politics is well-done and seamlessly blends with the story, he knows that the comic fan loves to see their superheroes kick ass. Some ass gets kicked, and quite well at that. There is an boundless energy flowing through every page, and it builds up to an explosive last page, in which anyone who enjoys this title should yell, “Yes!”
Bryan Hitch is the most detail-oriented artist in the business not Gene Ha, and he is proficient at not only putting those awe-inspiring splash panels on paper, but showing the sadness, arrogance, and sheer rage on the face of every character in this issue. The two months it takes for every issue to come out is evidently well-spent, as the effort poured into every page truly conveys the larger-than-life aspects of the story.
There is some confirmed Ultimization of a few 616 villains as well, but that is just a minor note in this next-to-penultimate chapter of The Ultimates 2. This is the best title being published today, and it would be a crime not to pick it up in the midst of all the big crossovers that are taking place in both Marvel and DC. Millar and Hitch prove once again that they are the premier creative team working in comics, and whatever they decide to take on next after issue #12, I will instantly buy.
Best of the rest:
Nextwave #2 (8/10)
Wacky story! Wild art! Giant dragons wearing purple pants! Androids! Ex-Avengers! Ex-New Mutants! An amusing Nick Fury rip-off! These are the things that make up Nextwave, and it is a fresh breath of indescribable fun that makes no sense but is still a great read. Editor Nick Lowe said that this series was dedicated to all of the crazy things you saw in cartoons as a kid that made no sense, but still made you smile for some reason. With one-to-two issue arcs, how can anyone resist Nextwave? I certainly couldn’t, and it is infused with Warren Ellis’ typical brand of random yet morbid humor that makes me feel slightly guilty for laughing. It’s just so silly. The cover of the book reads, “Nextwave gets their lovin’ from your mama!” for Chrissakes.
In this issue, the superheroes fight the giant dragon. It’s a typical set-up (because giant dragons need their beatings), but Ellis fills it with enough funny to make it a worthwhile read. Nextwave is one of the better titles to premiere recently, and I like that Marvel is giving it time to establish its identity instead of thrusting it into the middle of Civil War. This review is a little short, but what more can be said? Some people get beat up. I laugh a lot. The end!
Infinite Crisis #5 (of 7) (7/10)
Warren Ellis wrote once that no one reads crossovers for character moments; they read them to see the heroes get together and fight something or someone. At this point, people are reading Infinite Crisis to see what the hell exactly is DC doing, and also to see their favorite characters fight some vague threat (Alexander Luthor? The OMACs? Max Lord? Superboy Prime? The Spectre? Lex Luthor? WHAT?). Nightwing and Superboy! Batman and Kal-L! Kal-L and Kal-El! Wonder Woman and Superman! Blue Beetle and Booster Gold! It goes on and on. The original Crisis on Infinite Earths mini-series was twelve issues and every issue was used to its fullest potential; here, the relevant parts come and go. DC is trying to cram a little too much into these seven issues, and the result is a little uneven. The first purpose of this mini (what the hell is going on) is a bit neglected (not much the hell goes on), but there are some fairly obvious character interactions and spot-on characterizations that lend a lot to the symbolic weight of the title.
Infinite Crisis is all about bridging the old continuity with the new, and in the process, tying the Golden, Silver, and Modern Age characters together. Kal-L and Kal-El share a moment (looking at the George Perez cover, what do you think happens in that moment) as well as Wonder Woman and *EDITED FOR SPOILERS* (look at the Jim Lee cover for the obvious answer). There is conflict over which set of heroes was better, the ones of Earth-1 or Earth-2, but the torch is passed to the previous generation of sidekicks who are all grown up now. A heartbreaking loss and revelation for Kal-L is the emotional center of this issue, which somewhat makes up for the lack of happenings. The ending was a little obvious because of some solicitations released by DC, so it didn’t really have any emotional impact for me.
To me, DC is marketing their giant event incredibly poorly. The two big emotional and physical reveals of this issue were made known to the public weeks ago, and nothing happens with them when they finally happen. The first surprise appearance just kind of fizzles away, and the second surprise appearance is a cliffhanger for the next issue. Rather than spoiling the external events leading up to the core of the story, DC is showing its cards too quickly. A comparison would be Marvel and Civil War; a solicitation released for May reveals the cover of Fantastic Four to show Dr. Doom’s hand holding Thor’s hammer. WHAT!? That is enough to get me intrigued about the issue, but the “why” is left out; here, DC let the “who” of IC #5’s big reveals be known ahead of time, and the “who” is all that matters here. Without that surprise element, it wasn’t as shocking and emotional as, say, Barry Allen showing up in the last issue. Imagine how the impact of that would’ve been dulled had they put him on the cover, reading out of the Speed Force to help Wally West and Bart Allen.
The art is brilliant as expected and the story is capable enough, but the frenetic pace of last issue is lost. Plus, I was expecting this issue to lead into the One-Year-Later jump, and it doesn’t. If it does, then it wasn’t memorable or clear enough for me to go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” This issue is the weakest of all the ones done so far because it only serves to set up the events in the next issue; there is little here that can stand on its own. As mentioned before, there is some symbolism that functions on a literary level, but it adds to little.
Ex Machina #18 (7/10)
I like that Brian K. Vaughan writes several different titles with different focuses, much like Robert Kirkman. Runaways is good old teenage fun, Y: The Last Man is a great take on gender roles and such, Ultimate X-Men was a standard, well-done superhero comic, and Ex Machina is his political thriller. There’s a bit too much of the politics in this issue though, and most of the issue is told through borderline-preachy dialogue. Yes, the feds messed up with 9/11, we get it! I don’t think Vaughan is doing it to make a political point (unlike Mark Millar would, perhaps), but the politics slow down the far more compelling story that is only revealed in the last few pages. Tony Harris’ art is best used for action scenes, and the few there are in this issue are told with energy and grittiness that convey racial tensions in New York City and Mitchell Hundred’s superhero past with ease. At the same time, he is also skilled at showing the emotion to be had when Hundred realizes that his former intern Journal Moore was involved in the attack on the protestors. Oh yeah, that scene is shown here, and it’s sad.
Vaughan’s dialogue is typically sharp, and the next issue looks to be excellent. A better jumping on point for this title would be the upcoming Ex Machina Special in a month or two that will showcase Mitchell Hundred’s exploits as the Great Machine. A couple of religious allusions are played up here, but the most exciting part is wondering what will happen next; kind of like with Infinite Crisis, but I’m at least expecting the slow pace here.
I’m not sure
JSA #83 (Setup/10)
This issue was hard to review because it wasn’t exactly bad, but it wasn’t exactly good, either. The plot goes as such: some ghosts are terrorizing the members of the JSA, and no one knows what’s causing them until the end of the issue (featuring the long-awaited return of a villain who hasn’t been seen since the last issue and the month before that). Seriously. Every member of the JSA is shown reacting to the ghosts, mostly with similar results (“It’s a ghost of someone I used to know who’s now dead! Oh no!”) with some vague references to the One-Year-Later jump (“Boy, things sure were wacky in that one year.”) The art by Rags Morales is less-detailed than his previous efforts, but still good, while the flashback pencils of Luke Ross are spectacular. The script by Paul Levitz is fine, with some groan-worthy lines (“Thunderbolt, teach these fools a lesson ‘bout respect!” – I suspect Levitz’s exposure to urban youth comes solely from movies like Hardball) and stiflingly old-school conventions (Alan Scott says his thoughts out loud in his one scene in an almost laughable fashion). I have no idea where the hell this story is going, and I’m a little intrigued, but this isn’t a BRAND NEW DIRECTION ™ for the JSA like the rest of the One-Year-Later titles supposedly feature, just more of the good old JSA we all know. It’s the equivalent of last week’s JLA Classified, except with far better art. You could try this or one of the other OYL titles (I believe Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis, Blood of the Demon, Detective Comics, and Outsiders are all out today), or you could get something more accessible and better, like Nextwave!
A final note is that I am glad that Levitz is doing a typical JSA story rather than trying to shake everything up like some of the other OYL titles are. At the same time, this typical story is far too typical and I hope it picks up, because JSA has been sorely lacking for a while.
E-mail me at thegreatmachine@gmail.com for further comments or review requests.
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