Manga and Comic Reviews
With this volume, Eiji Nizuma becomes the most interesting character in the series. The brilliant young manga creator has always been a striking presence, from his introduction as the poster child for the off-putting quirks that accompany genius to his current role as a potential catalyst for the greatness of protagonists Moritaka and Akito. He […]
The “Avengers vs. X-Men” steamroller continues through this month. There has also been some talk about how tie-ins to these events have been producing diminishing returns since the “Civil War” era. So even though not every book is featuring a tie-in to the event, the fact that every “Avengers” and “X-Men” related book is still […]
It was inevitable that the rematch between arch-rivals Shohoku and Ryonan would be a big deal, but to have it stretch out this long has tested even my patience. After kicking off back in vol. 17, I was fully expecting it to wrap up here, BUT THAT DOESN’T HAPPEN! So by the time this match […]
Knowing that Scott Snyder had a hand in creating the story here and that it’s supposed to tie into his current “Batman” run made picking this up a fairly easy decision. His hand isn’t the only one in the pot here, as this mini-series is co-plotted with Kyle Higgins, with Higgins dialoguing most of it […]
The first thing listed in the solicitations this month is “Earth Two” #1 from writer James Robinson and artist Nicola Scott. Coming off the heels of the “New 52” relaunch which was designed with making (almost) every title a clear jumping-on point for fans, it does seem a bit odd that they’re bringing back the […]
Vol. 2 of this series was just about everything you could ask for in a second volume, and that’s why I picked it as one of the best comics I read last year. It clarified the title’s direction and purpose, introduced compelling new characters and gave depth to the established ones, and set up a […]
Not a whole lot this month, but there’s one thing in here that makes it all worthwhile. No points for guessing what it is. B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth: The Transformation of J.H. O’Donnell: I didn’t realize this at first, but the title character is actually the crazy-ass ranting scientist from the series. You know, the […]
If it hasn’t quite worked its way back to being “The X-book for people who don’t like ‘X-Men,’” this latest volume of “X-Factor” at least delivers a more consistent standard of quality than most other superhero books out there. Peter David’s character-driven approach to the title has sustained it for over seventy issues now and […]
“Mild disappointment” seems to be the theme for the second volumes of Brian Michael Bendis’ two “Avengers” series. Where adjectiveless “Avengers” stumbled in trying to top itself, this second volume of “New Avengers” actually gets off to a great start by having its team decompress from the world-threatening assault of Agamotto in the previous volume. […]
The title of this volume proves to be particularly apt, as Mark Grayson starts to realize that he’s not really making a difference in the world just by stopping the bad guys. Like just about every superhero ever, he’s simply maintaining the status quo. That all changes here. It starts small, with him talking things […]