AVENGERS PRIME #1 – Essential reading, if you’re passionate about staying abreast of the weekly Marvel status quo, or if you just take a peep at the cover and the creative team and have any idea. An interesting way to work out the lingering trinity tension before, one presumes, all the other #1s. It’s a strange inversion, we’ve gone from Hitch’s masterwork in photo-realism on the ULTIMATES run to his master breathing life into these first fleeting instants of 616 newborn Heroic Age. And, man, the short review is Great. Taking a cue from those three fellas on the cover, everything about this book is A-game all the way. Rewarding on every level, the rising supernova tide of pumped that I feel toward this next and surely greatest act of Bendis Avengers thunder is already almost too much to bear and the first Immonnen issue hasn’t even hit.
Take a step back. Marvel is looking very very good for the next few years here. We’ve got Bendis performing this magic trick with the Avengers franchise, Fraction swinging for the fences every month on Iron Man and Uncanny and about to rock Thor if he can ever wrest it from Kieron’s clammy fingers, Hickman on FF and Secret Warriors, Brubaker still In Charge of Cap, and guys like Jason Aaron and Rick Remender darting around all over the place. Oh, and Wacker making Spider-Man an event unto itself. As Larry David will tell you, looking pretty pretty good. Even though I could still do with 60 or 70 more issues of Ellis X-Men. In a row, for once.
BRIGHTEST DAY #3 – Johns and Tomasi keep it hopping with the usual suspects on art. I have to say, they’re sure sustaining the momentum and excitement thus far, quite a few great little moments packed in here. This is still the best I've felt about a weekly since a few months into 52. And still such early days, if they can make my good will actually increase with how great the story manages to continue being . . . In other news, I guess I’m really a much huger fan of David Finch than I realized, because I’m becoming increasingly livid at seeing all these covers and, I guess the Luthor ACTION COMICS promo, and thinking like, “Oh, that looks great, definitely pick that up,” but then, you know, that’s not the guy on the inside. No offense to Pete Woods. But, David Finch. Tired of getting teased. I want the sequentials.
ADVENTURE COMICS #515 – Man, I loved Levitz’s first LEGION issue, and then this one’s even better. To think that, before this day, I have had the nerve to complain about this new situation, the fact that DC’s just plunging ahead with the double-shot of Levitz Legion, did we really NEED a new reboot right away without letting ADVENTURE accrue momentum on its own out of the gate, etc, but it’s just foolish to complain about such goodness getting released into the world. The chops Levitz shows. Just ridiculous. Had to cheer for the return to the checklist that Johns laid down in the first arc, too too great. I’m feeling a little crazed, though, am at the moment (moment defined here as “last few weeks”) engrossed in most significant portions of Legion continuity simultaneously, everything except the great'n'gritty Giffen reboot with the Bierbaums, but old Levitz/Giffen, making my way through Waid/Kitson for the first time, and rereading the Johns/Perez nonsense just because you have to, reeling through all of that, and then this thing’s like Robin Hood’s arrow flying out from the shadows in the wood and piercing you in the heart. Recommended.
DV8 #2 – This came out a couple weeks ago, but my shop ran out of it so I went down to Dragon’s Lair today and finally made it happen. Good people, there. And Daleks. Exterminate! Quite a fortuitous convergence for me, teaming this up with DEMO for this evening's finish. Though the experience really did make me feel like more of a fool for tradewaiting NORTHLANDERS and falling behind on DMZ, the sustained Wood brilliance is an intoxicating good time. This issue keeps up the fractured timeline structure that of course I’m still so close can’t help but identify with L O S T. Huge fan of the art, Isaacs and Strachan lay down some gorgeous images. With LOCAL and DEMO being my favorite Wood works, it’s a joy to see him frame something with parameters loosely similar to those initial launch pads, young kids with powers, into an eight-part serial as opposed to self-contained 22-pgrs that punch you in the gut.
BEST OF WEEK: DEMO 2 #5 – Again, maybe the best DEMO issue. Wood just packs so much into these, always does just an incredible job of creating almost fully realized characters in so few pages. And usually even resolving their situation. There's a lot going on between the lines in this one, and I dig how Wood throws out just enough that we can connect the dots, but he doesn't belabor anything. Cloonan is a treasure, as always. Sorry that this one's already winding up, I feel like it's just approaching escape velocity. Maybe they won't make us wait so long for Volume 3.
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