Marvel Penguin Picks: September 2022
Above-the-Board Recommendation:
Star Wars: Visions #1
This is an odd round of solicitations because a lot of comics from the previous batch wound up getting delayed and are re-solicited here. Among the actually-new comics being solicited here is this one-shot based on the “Star Wars: Visions” animation anthology. Surprisingly, this story based on “The Duel” isn’t coming from American creators. It’s coming from the man behind the short, Takashi Okazaki. To have someone who was integral to the original short actually put out a comic based on it is cool, no matter which way you look at it.
That said, I’m giving the recommendation to this comic based on what it represents rather than the fact that I actually expect it to be good. The initial run of “Visions” shorts were long on style and generally short on substance. Okazaki’s short was definitely one of the better ones, but that’s because it was a stylishly executed fight scene. I’m not expecting more than that given that this is only a one-shot. I’m all for seeing creators who were actually involved in “Visions” produce more comics based on their shorts, but I’m just hoping for more than just good-looking fight scenes. It could be that Okazaki will make me eat my words once I read this on Marvel Unlimited, but we’ll see.
A.X.E.: Judgment Day #’s 4&5 (of 6): From the solicitation text for #4, “The clock is ticking and midnight looms. It’s not too late.” From the solicitation text for #5, “It’s too late.” WHAT YOU DID THERE, MR. GILLEN: I SEE IT!
A.X.E.: Avengers #1: The solicitation text makes it sound like a solo “Iron Man” story as Tony Stark has to get in another suit of armor. This time the issue is that doing so might kill us all. Kieron Gillen writes this one-shot, which sees him return to a character he wrote for a couple years and made some significant changes to his backstory while also introducing his brother, Arno, to modern continuity. Despite these things, Gillen’s run on the character was something of a misfire as his changes aren’t referenced a whole lot today, and Arno was eventually written out as a villain. Maybe Gillen will get some redemption here with the help of artist Federico Vicentini. Oh, and while we’re on the subject of Arno…
Fantastic Four #47: I know I talked about this last month, but it turns out that Dan Slott is leaving this series with “Fantastic Four” #46. This is right after he’s introduced a brand new character: Reed Richards’ long-lost sister. I’m sure that whoever picks up the series after Slott has a plan for addressing her that doesn’t involve sending her back to her home planet. I mean, she could be resentful of Reed and the life he got to lead, letting it turn her down a path of villainy. Just like how Slott turned Arno into the bad guy when he wrote “Iron Man.” What, me bitter? No, why would you even ask that?
Midnight Suns #1 (of 5): In case you haven’t heard, Firaxis Games (specifically, the team behind the recent “X-Com” games) is doing a turn-based strategy game based off of the “Midnight Sons” storyline from the 90’s. Which is why we’re getting a miniseries featuring some of the key characters from that arc (Wolverine, Blade) and some who are being featured in the game (Magic, Nico Minoru) in a spin-off miniseries of its own. Ethan Sacks, who has some experience doing this kind of work in his “Star Wars” comics (with decent-to-bad results) writes while Luigi Zagaria provides the art.
Amazing Spider-Man: Beyond Omnibus HC: In the wake of Nick Spencer’s run, Marvel decided to let a bunch of different writers have a crack at the Wall-Crawler’s regular adventures. Or rather, the adventures of Spectacular Spider-Clone Ben Reilly after he started working for the Beyond Corporation who now own the Spider-Man trademark. These writers included Zeb Wells, Kelly Thompson, Patrick Gleason, Jed MacKay, Cody Ziglar, Saladin Ahmed and Geoffrey Thorne with Wells going on to be the new solo writer on “Amazing.” Considering what came before this run, “Beyond” was an improvement simply because it didn’t push drama as hard as Spencer did, to the point where it squeezed out all the fun in the process. I’ve also been content to simply read this title on Marvel Unlimited where the price of “Basically Free” creates a low enough barrier of entry to keep me coming back each week. That is to say that this hardcover isn’t worth the $100 they’re asking for it, but it’s a diverting enough Spider-tale for me to recommend it if you can find it on the cheap.
Miracleman by Gaiman and Buckingham Book 1: The Golden Age: This originally came out in hardcover quite a while back. I thought it was pretty good, especially considering what came before. It’s being reissued now in advance of Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham finally completing their second arc, “The Silver Age,” decades after original publisher Eclipse folded in the 80’s. So if you haven’t read this yet… go pick up the first three volumes from Alan Moore – I mean, The Original Writer – and then go read this.
Star Wars: Han Solo & Chewbacca vol. 1: The Crystal Run: When Marvel got the “Star Wars” license again, it wasn’t surprising that they published miniseries spotlighting the adventures of Han Solo and Chewbacca. What was surprising was that they showed enough restraint and kept Solo in the ongoing “Star Wars” series and didn’t give him his own ongoing title. It took a few years, but the publisher has thrown caution to the wind and is now featuring Han and Chewbacca in their own ongoing series that takes place a little before the events of “A New Hope.” Marc Guggenhim writes about the time the two pulled a job for Jabba the Hutt while working alongside a Rodian named Greedo. We’re also promised the surprise return of someone from Han’s past and a shocker of a reveal about what’s inside the safe they’re after. David Messina provides the art for this volume, which also includes the “Life Day” one-shot because why the heck not.