Marvel Previews Picks: August 2013
So I did get out to see “Iron Man 3” a couple weeks back and was thoroughly impressed by what I saw. Though it didn’t quite capture the “shock of the new” that the first film had, it was still a big step up from the previous one in that it gave us an actual story. It was one that lifted the core concept and some characters from Warren Ellis and Adi Granov’s “Extremis” storyline to decent effect. Yes, there were a few plot holes here and there (just how did Killian think that he’d be able to get away with killing the president on live TV anyway), but it helped sustain the film along with the superb acting, great action scenes and sharp dialogue courtesy of writer/director Shane Black and co-writer Drew Pearce. Special mention has to go to their interpretation of the Mandarin and Ben Kingsley’s portrayal of him in the film. I think it’s still too early to talk about spoilers, but I think it was an AWESOME take on the character and I hope that when Kingsley starts getting lifetime achievement awards from the Academy, AFI and the like, that they use scenes from this movie along with “Ghandi” and “Sexy Beast.” (If nothing else, they’ll make for an interesting contrast as they show the breadth and range of his work.)
Speaking of which, given that Marvel has shown an inclination to make their comics more in line with their movies (Hello Nick Fury Jr.!), when will we see the comics version of the Mandarin line up with the one in this movie? I mean, how could the company not pass up a golden opportunity like this to bring their universe in line with what will likely be the year’s only $400 million dollar grossing movie!?
Infinity #1 (of 6): No sooner than “Age of Ultron” ends do we jump right into the next major crossover. However, this is coming to us courtesy of Jonathan Hickman so I’m already interested. There’s not a lot known about it right now, other than it’s going to be focused on Thanos and Marvel’s cosmic characters, but that just means I know at least one friend who will be dying to read this as soon as it hits hardcover. The only wildcard here is that Jim Cheung is providing the art and he isn’t the most timely of artists. Unless the man has been given a substantial lead time here (like Bryan Hitch had with “Age of Ultron”), don’t expect these six issues to ship in six months.
Hunger #2 (of 4): Of note mainly because it represents an awkward retro-solicitation as it was previously solicited as “Age of Ultron #10 UC” which, to me at least, made it sound like it came from a “Gundam” timeline. Anyway, this is fallout from “Age of Ultron” almost certainly centered around Galactus even though he’s not named. Though who else would you expect a miniseries called “Hunger” to be centered around anyway? We’re told that a rift is opened somewhere in the universe and to prepare for a hunger so strong that no universe is safe. We shall see.
Rocket Raccoon: Tales From Half-World: Collects the four-issue miniseries from the ‘80’s in one giant-sized issue. Of note because not only is it written by Bill “Rom: Spaceknight” Mantlo, but features some very early work from Mike Mignola. That alone should make it worth reading for his fans and it also makes you wonder why the title has been out of print for so long. If I happen to see it around somewhere, I’ll pick it up and find out.
Avengers: Endless Wartime HC: Tired of having their assess routinely handed to them in the end-of-the-year BookScan numbers, Marvel has decided to start putting out original graphic novels in the hope that these stand-alone stories will appeal to casual bookstore buyers. This story about the Avengers facing threats that were once thought long-buried is first up as the company no doubt hopes that fans of the “Avengers” movie will see this and pick it up. That it’s coming from Warren Ellis, with art from Mike McKone, at least guarantees that I’ll be picking it up when it comes out.
Age of Ultron HC: I learned my lesson with the “Avengers vs. X-Men” hardcover and will be waiting for a softcover edition with just the crossover itself. This hardcover collects the ten-issue event plus all of the tie-in issues, which didn’t really add much to things based on what I’ve heard. As for the crossover itself, it’s an alternate-universe scenario where Ultron takes over and has also been getting a lot of flack for its momentum and the fact that these kinds of stories “don’t matter” in the long run. That said, I’ll be getting it because it’s Bendis, it’s still part of the “ongoing narrative” of the Marvel Universe, and that it’s something the writer has been building towards since the start of his relaunched “Avengers” run. I’d like to think I’m not setting myself up for disappointment, but there you go.
Spider-Man/Wolverine by Zeb Wells and Joe Madureira: If I’d known this was coming, I’d probably have waited for it rather than pick up that “Avenging Spider-Man” collection a month back. As the title states, this collects the three issues the writer and artist did for “Avenging Spider-Man” and their recently concluded (as in, the final issue is also solicited for August) three-issue run on “Savage Wolverine.” As their Spider-Man story was a lot of fun, I don’t see why their Wolverine story wouldn’t be as entertaining. However, it wasn’t good enough to warrant re-buying for three more issues from them. Oh well. It’s my loss, not yours.
Young Avengers vol. 1: Style > Substance: It’s by Kieron Gillen with art from Jamie McKelvie — of course I’ll be picking this up! Granted, I’d have rather had the third volume of “Phonogram” that their work on this title is delaying. The problem with that is the second volume sold so poorly in single issues that McKelvie had to choose between not being able to eat or signing on with Marvel before he’d be able to do a third. A live McKelvie working for Marvel while he works on “Phonogram” vol. 3 in his spare time is infinitely preferable to one who did the third volume of that series and then died of starvation. So this really was the best course of action for everyone involved. I’m pretty sure “Young Avengers” will be worth reading too.
Fury: My War Gone By vol. 2: Garth Ennis’ history lesson concludes as the title character winds up in Vietnam with Frank Castle and then later in Nicaragua with Barracuda. Again, I’m fairly certain this will be the writer’s swan song for Marvel and I can’t imagine a more fitting wrap-up than with stories that focus on the two characters that best defined his tenure with the company. Sure, he could come back in the future but who would he write? Given his utter disdain for superheroes, who would you want to see him write?