Front Lines - Mini-Reviews (Week of April 13) - Avengers Standoff, Super-League, Spider-Women, and more

Batman/Superman #31 (Super-League) by Peter J. Tomasi and Doug Mahnke

Summary: Superman goes to see Batman in Gotham.  Superman tells Batman that he’s dying, and he needs Bruce’s help in finding Supergirl.  Superman and Batman are attacked by monsters representing the Chinese Zodiac.  The heroes defeat the monsters, though Superman’s wounds are not healing.  Batman has tracked Supergirl to National City.  We find out that she’s being held in some kind of machine there.

Meanwhile, the “fire Superman” we first saw in Superman #51 is saving lives in Metropolis.  But whenever he stops using his powers, he reverts back to his criminal self.

Mike Maillaro: Real curious about where this story is going, and what the final fate of New-52 Superman is.  This issue had some great moments, especially Alfred telling Superman how much he appreciated him.  I really want to know what’s up with Fire Superman.  This storyline so far has been a hell of a tease.  I really can’t wait to see where it’s all going!  

Agents of SHIELD #4 (Avengers Standoff) by Marc Guggenheim and German Peralta

Summary: Most of this issue is just a retelling of the Agents of SHIELD’s fight with New Avengers from New Avengers #8.  The New Avengers attacked a SHIELD helicarrier to rescue Rick Jones.  They succeeded, but Songbird was able to review to the Agents of SHIELD that  she is actually a deep undercover SHIELD agent who infiltrated the New Avengers.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Agents have gone to try and snatch the Axiom drive before it can be put up for auction.  It is being protected by Boomerang, Shocker, Ox, and Batroc, who the Agents easily take down.  But they find the container is empty.  The drive is auctioned off, and US Agent ends up winning the drive.  Coulson chases him down (disguised as Wolverine).  But, both Coulon and US Agent are taken down by the thief who has been using one of Iron Man’s armors in the first few issues of the series.

Mike: If you are going to have two comics tell two different sides of the same story, those books should come out in the same week, AND each book should have something new to tell you.  The whole beginning of this comic felt like a real waste as we didn’t get any new information.  I do appreciate the continuity here, because continuity has been a little bit of an issue throughout Avengers Standoff, but it did sort of feel tacked on here.  

The heart of this story is the team’s attempts to stop bad guys from getting Coulson’s plans to take down superheroes. We got some fun little espionage here. It was great to see US Agent again, though I thought it was ridiculous that Coulson decided that the best disguise he could come up with was Wolverine who has been dead for a while now.  

Matt Graham: I had been wondering about US Agent that week for unrelated reasons, so it was cool to see him again. I think the Wolverine disguise was some cruel taunt for fans.

Like a lot of Standoff, it felt like the mainline title was spinning its wheels to tie in while distracting from the creative team’s original intent. There’s some good SHIELD action here, but the first half of the issue was a delayed recap of what we already knew. Disappointing.

Mike: The sad part about Standoff is that when it’s good, it’s real good.  But these indifferent crossovers and strange timing issues are having a real negative impact on the story as a whole.  They really should have just kept this as one arc with Nick Spencer writing the entire thing.  There wasn’t anything real wrong with this issue, but it fell short as a tie-in and as a stand alone issue as it tried to do both at once. 

All-New All-Different Avengers #8 (Avengers Standoff) by Mark Waid and Adam Kubert

Summary: This issue starts by telling us that in fifteen minutes, the two Avengers teams are going to take a serious beatdown by a bunch of Pleasant Hill villains.

Earlier, the Avengers (thanks to Rogue) were waking up from the imaginary lives Kobik put them under.  Kobik was about to put them back under, but Quicksilver managed to use his speed to get everyone far away from her.  We find out that the two Maria Hills that were running around were former C-Grade villains named Mindblast and Bloodlust.  Kobik puts them back into the illusion.

At that point, the villains arrive, starting to take down the heroes by sheer numbers. Kobik is freaking out, but Deadpool of all people manages to reach out to her.  Kobik realized that the Avengers are heroes, and restores them to their full powers.  They start to rally back against the villains.  The Avengers are called to Assemble by Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes, and a fully restored Steve Rogers.

Mike: Maybe a little too much happened at once in this one, but I really enjoyed this comic.  And it was nice to see Cap’s faith in Deadpool come into play here.  I have griped a lot about All-New All-Different Avengers never quite feeling like an Avengers book, especially when you have someone with Mark Waid’s talents writing the book.  But this book really felt like a big ol’ Avengers story.  Avengers Standoff has been a little shaky at times, but I really did enjoy this issue beginning to end.

Matt: I share your feeling on All-New. This issue doesn’t change it, because it was the Uncanny Avengers that took the lead and solved the conflicts. As tie-ins go, like Uncanny, it fits the best and feels like an exploration of the core story without wasting your time. This is the most Avengers any of the so-called Avengers titles have attempted to be.

Illuminati #6 (Avengers Standoff) by Joshua Williamson and Mike Henderson

Summary: When Titania joined the Hood’s Illuminati, he promised her that he would break Absorbing Man out of prison.  Hood kept that promise, but Absorbing Man’s prison was Pleasant Hill, where he had been living a simple life as the owner of an ice cream shop who was falling in love with the town’s sheriff.  When Zemo “freed” Absorbing Man’s mind, the sheriff was revealed to be Elektra, another prisoner who had been mind-wiped.  Absorbing Man is having a difficult time reconciling his two lives, which ends up pushing Titania away from him.  In the end, he wants Hood to help him track down all the former prisoners of Pleasant Hill so they can destroy SHIELD once and for all.

Mike: Damn, this was just one messed up story.  Avengers Standoff hadn’t really dealt a lot with the impact these “false lives” had on the criminals.  Absorbing Man ended up in a pretty messed up situation that really ruined his life even once he was out of the false world Kubik had set up for him.  Illuminati has been a solid series, and this issue kicked it up to a higher level. This might have been my favorite comic I read this week.

Matt: Illuminati is another successful tie-in. It reminds me of the old Age of Apocalypse tie-ins, where I had an optional but fulfilling chance to explore the other characters in this scenario who aren’t central (yet) to the plot. Illuminati also gains points for still feeling like the standalone title and not compromising tone or momentum for the sake of carrying the crossover banner. Breaking fellow criminals free and organizing takedowns of SHIELD would be on this cast’s list of things to do with or without Standoff.

Mike: My only real concern here is that this book seems to be gone from future solicits.  It looks like it’s being replaced by Thunderbolts, another team of villains, but not by Joshua Williamson, so that bugs me some.  

Spider-Gwen #7 (Spider-Women) by Jason Latour and Bengal

Summary: Silk and Spider-Woman have been trapped on Spider-Gwen’s Earth because someone stole her dimension portal generator.  Cindy decides to slip away and go looking for this world’s version of her family.  Spider-Woman tells Gwen to go have a normal time with her friends and family while she works on a way home.  Jessica decides to track down this world’s Reed Richards, who happens to be a young black teenager, but still a genius.  Reed and Spider-Woman are attacked by this world’s SILK’s operatives.  Spider-Gwen arrives to help fight them off.  Later on, Silk calls them from inside SILK HQ to warn them that they are all in danger.

Matt: I don’t keep up with sales nor do I delight in what books are performing better than others. I do feel that this Spider-Women event was made to bring more awareness and support to Gwen. I’m not invested in Gwen’s world, so I don’t care what Cindy and Jessica are up to when they track down Gwenified dopplegangers on this Earth. I’m held into this event because I buy the other titles.

Mike: Yeah, I honestly have no idea why I don’t drop this series. It just has never been one of my favorites.  I feel a strange loyalty because I love Silk and Spider-Woman so much...which makes no real sense since they didn’t crossover until just this month. Silk and Spider-Woman did make me enjoy this more than the usual issue of Spider-Gwen, but there is a pretty good chance I will dropping this series once this crossover is done.

The Unbelieveable Gwenpool #1 by Christopher Hasting, Gurihiru, and Danilo Beyruth

Summary: This issue starts with Gwenpool stopping a bank robbery, by shooting up the thieves.  She is arrested with one of the crooks, a young tech genius named Cecil.  The cop has decided he has had enough of superheroes, so he takes the money recovered from the scene and runs off to start a new life, letting Gwenpool and Cecil go.  Cecil becomes her sidekick.

Later, Gwenpool is doing mercenary work.  She is hired by some X-types to take down some Sentinels, but creates such a mess that her broker considers her unhirable.  A real nasty job comes across the board, so her broker ends up passing it along to Gwen.  There are alien gun runners in a cloaked ship in New York.  Gwen goes to stop them.  She finds that someone already beat her here, Hydra.  A Hydra agents has already taken care of the aliens, and is stealing the weapons for himself.  Gwen kills the Hydra agent, and gets all the credit for saving the day.  But MODOK comes after her.  Gwen thinks he’s a joke, but he kills Cecil, and she reluctantly agrees to serve as MODOK’s henchman.

Mike: DAMN YOU, MATT!  When you recommended this one, I was ready to start sharpening my knives.  But I figured I would at least have some fun ripping in to have awful this book was.  But despite the fact Gwenpool is the most ridiculous concept for a comic character I’ve ever heard, I actually really enjoyed this one.  It was genuinely funny, and Gwenpool and Cecil actually made a great pair.  

By the end, I was thinking this book would be a lot like Patsy Walker AKA Hellcat, but then we get the twist of an actual dangerous MODOK in the end.  Typically the goofy character is able to get off scot-free, but Gwenpool’s actions had major consequences, and that definitely made me real curious about where this series will take us next.  

I did hate the $5 price tag on this one, but you do basically get two full stories here, so it’s hard to complain THAT much about it.

Matt: I had no expectation. I’m familiar with the character’s history and commercial build up, and I rolled my eyes when she was divorced from the Gwen Stacy resurgence parody that created her. I can’t fault the popularity - the costume is cool. As a 90s comic fan, I know that’s important.

The book benefits from bucking expectations, just like Gwen Pool did.

I have heard Internet critics complain that it’s too dark and that Gwen being an anti-hero may turn readers off. I think that was the point. We already have Patsy Walker and Spider-Gwen. Why not try a new take with a new character? It worked for me.

The writing was funny and self-aware in a way that She-Hulk and Deadpool aren’t, which helps differentiate it and peel it away from being another Me-Too with the gimmick. The art was beautiful. Gwen Pool is holds her own as a unique character and the violent anti-hero swerve ensures that Marvel’s latest heroine hits a niche that hasn’t been reached yet.

The threatening tone and consequences showed me this book wants real stakes, and that earns it a pass for five more issues from me.

Moon Knight #1 by Jeff Lemire and Greg Smallwoord

Summary: Marc Spector is in a psych ward.  The administrators are trying to convince him that he’s been there for most of his life, and that he’s not Moon Knight.  That’s just a delusion he’s created for himself to deal with his dissociative identity disorder.   But he keeps hearing the voice of Khonshu convincing him otherwise.  He makes himself a Moon Knight mask out of bedsheets, and tries to escape.  He believes this mask allows him to see the true faces of the orderlies (who seem to be dogs) When he gets outside the psych ward, it looks like Egyptian mythology has taken over the city of New York.  The voice of Khonshu tells him this was a full-blown invasion by Seth.  The orderlies manage to catch up to him.  When they remove his “mask,” everything goes back to normal.  He’s brought back to his room, not sure what’s real.

Mike: Even though I have pretty much enjoyed every Moon Knight comic and story I’ve read, I am always amazed when Marvel gives the character another shot.  Moon Knight is on a short list of characters who have had this many failed series.  But the thing is, creators always seem to find something new to say with the character.  I loved Ellis’s far too short run a few years ago, and Lemire creates a real intriguing first issue here.  I don’t have a lot of expectations for longevity here, but I will definitely be along for the ride.

Matt: The cover is the coolest cover of the year. Moon Knight is one of my favourite Marvel characters, too, and I always go along with him. As you say, Moon Knight has somehow become one of those infinitely rebootable and flexible concepts like Batman or Superman. The stories and staples can change, but the core of the character is always worth investing in to see what crazy thing the new creators can pull with the mythos.

House of Penance #1 by Peter J. Tomasi and Ian Bertham

Summary: In 1908, Mrs Winchester has had her dead husband and child’s bodies taken from New Haven, Connecticut to San Jose California where she’s having a new house build.  Anyone who is looking for room and board can come and do work, but she has a bunch of strict rules.  Everyone has to leave their guns at the door.  No violence. No lying. And everyone must follow the specific work schedule she has laid out for them.  Mrs Winchester seems to be losing her mind, afraid that something is stalking her from the shadows.  The work must be done in a specific way or these shadows will get her.

Meanwhile, a man is shooting indians at the nearby San Joaquin River.  One of the Indians manages to stab him in the chest.  He manages to get on his horse and ride his way to the Winchester house.  He is looking for a place to stay, and this is the crazy place  he has ended up.  He is pretty certain he will die here.

Mike: First off, I am glad that Dark Horse finally puts their comics up on Comixology.  I really hated the Dark Horse app, and there were a lot of Dark Horse books I have passed up on over the years just because it was such a hassle to try and read them.  This is a much easier and satisfying way to read my digital comics.

Peter J. Tomasi is a terrific writer.  I didn’t know what to expect from this one, but I really enjoyed the mystery and horror.  I also liked the use of the Winchester family (the gun manufacturers).  It really helped give this story a sense of belonging.

Matt: Have not read, but your summary has enticed me.

Mike: Yeah, I am real glad Grey suggested this one.  It had completely slipped under my radar (I don’t usually read a lot of Dark Horse), but I really enjoyed it.  

Jackpot #1 by Ray Fawkes and Marco Failla

Summary: A team of crooks are running a scam on a wealthy criminal on a yacht.  One of the crooks distracts the rich guy with a poker game while the others try to rob his safe full of counterfeit bearer bonds and diamonds.  During the robbery, a bomb appears, seemingly out of thin air.  It almost kills one of the team, but they all manage to escape with the loot.

Meanwhile, a shadowy group watches them and plans to recruit one of the team for something called “The Trial Majestic.”

Mike: I did think this issue felt very rushed, and the end result was that it fell short of my expectations. It never seemed to be able to focus on giving the reader enough details about the characters or the con they were trying to run.  I went in here kind of expecting Leverage meets Percy Jackson, but it didn’t have the charm of either.  

I do think this series does still have a tag line (“The world’s greatest con artists on the eve of the greatest scam in human history - ripping off the gods themselves.”), but so far, they didn’t show me enough to make me care about the actual comic as much as I liked the tag line.

But, I will say that I do love that this first issue only cost $2.  Drug dealer business model.  Give the reader the first hit for cheap, and get them coming back.  Though this wasn’t quite as addictive as I was hoping for...