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Mark Waid

The Pull List: Avengers, Death of Love, Detective Comics, The Flash, Paradiso, Sideways, & more!

February 16, 2018 by krisis

I’ve managed to one-up last week’s edition of The Pull List! This week, the list is a whopping 27 issues deep – one more than last week. However, its also a tick worse, with an aggregate rating of 3.055 compared to 3.17.

What did I pull this week? I caught up with Birds of Prey, Flash, and Titans to add to my DC pull list, sampled four new number ones, and dropped a pair of weak books. Here’s what I reviewed in brief:

  • DC Comics
    • Batgirl and The Birds of Prey (2016) #19
    • Detective Comics (2016) #974
    • The Flash (2016) #40
    • Sideways (2017) #1
    • Titans (2016) #20
    • Wonder Woman (2016) #40
  • Image Comics
    • Dark Fang (2017) #4
    • Death of Love (2018) #1
    • Paradiso (2017) #3
    • Port of Earth (2017) #4
    • Sleepless (2018) #3
    • Slots (2017) #5
    • Twisted Romance (2018) #2
  • Marvel Comics
    • Avengers (2017) #680
    • Cable (2017) #154
    • Captain America (2017) #698
    • Marvel Two-in-One (2018) #3
    • Old Man Logan (2016) #35
    • Weapon X (2017) #14
    • X-Men: Blue (2017) #21
  • Smaller Publishers: Aftershock, Boom! Studios, Dark Horse, Dynamite, & Zenescope
    • Babyteeth (2017) #8, Aftershock Comics
    • Barbarella (2017) #3, Dynamite Entertainment
    • Black Sable (2017) #4, Zenescope Entertainment
    • Cold War (2018) #1, Aftershock Comics
    • Giants (2018) #3, Dark Horse
    • Judas (2017) #3, Boom! Studios
    • Xena (2018) #1, Dynamite Entertainment

Pick of the Pull

Big Two (Marvel/DC) Issue of the Week: The Flash (2016) #40, DC Comics

I have never before been so viscerally scared of Grodd. He is utterly terrifying here, and I was really concerned that we could be seeing the end of Flash at multiple points – and, in a way, we did.

Joshua Williamson is proving that he is one of the best writers in the business with this constantly thrumming plot that has been building non-stop rising action for 40 straight issues. While you could easily jump right one with every arc, each of them builds off of everything that came before. That means this run has notched itself as the third or fourth best extended Flash run of all time in under two years, and it shows no immediate signs of stopping.

Carmine Di Giandomenico continues to stun on artwork with vivid coloring from
Ivan Plascencia. This issue includes some of the most inventive action paneling I can think of reading in recent memory. The paneling of Avery catching the lighting rod is breathtaking.

An A+ book through and through, with a thrilling final moment.

Best Small-Pub Issue of the Week: Giants (2018) #3, Dark Horse Comics

There’s no denying the craft, power, and charm of Giants. For a third issue in a row The Valderrama Brothers. turn in a beautiful, action-packed comic full of heart.

We begin our story with Zedo, the boy left for dead who is now making a cavalier power-play to control the gangs of the underworld. Only a child could see things as so black and white, yet both in the last issue and here he is making vicious choices that he can’t take back.

In stark contrast, Gogi has found a group of other children who are necessarily tough but still enduringly kind. Their acceptance and willingness to give without asking anything in return is alien to Gogi. At first he resists it, then he resents it, but finally he understand that’s it’s easier to live openly then be on guard and full of distrust.

Gogi’s journey from underground child to hero in the wider wider stands in stark contrast to Zedo’s dark turn at the end of this issue. Neither boy can entirely blame fate, nor can he say that the choices were all his own. That makes Giants a powerful allegory for the role of environment on our lot in life.

We might not all be fighting giant monsters, but we’re frequently either the child who ran away or the child that was left behind. [Read more…] about The Pull List: Avengers, Death of Love, Detective Comics, The Flash, Paradiso, Sideways, & more!

Filed Under: comic books, reviews Tagged With: Aftershock Comics, Alex de Campi, Allen Passalaqua, Avengers, Babyteeth, Batgirl and The Birds of Prey, Batwoman, Black Sable, Boom Studios, Cable, Captain America, Carmine Di Giandomenico, Chris Samnee, Christopher Sebela, Cold War, Cullen Bunn, Dan Abnett, Dan Brown, Dan DiDio, Dan Panosian, Dark Fang, DC Comics, Death of Love, Detective Comics, Donal Delay, Donny Cates, Dynamite Entertainment, Ed Brisson, Emanuela Lupacchino, Felipe Sobreiro, Gary Brown, Greg Pak, Ibraim Roberson, Image Comics, Ivan Plascencia, James Robinson, James Tynion, Jeff Loveness, Joshua Williamson, Judas, Justin Jordan, Kenneth Rocafort, Leila Del Duca, Mark Waid, Marvel Comics, Meredith Finch, Old Man Logan, Omar Estévez, Paradiso, Paul Pelletier, Phillipe Briones, Port of Earth, Saida Temofonte, Sarah Vaughn, Sideways, Sleepless, Slots, The Flash, The Pull List, Titans, Triona Tree Farrell, Twisted Romance, Valderrama Brothers, Venom, Vincente Cifuentes, Weapon X, Wonder Woman, X-Men, X-Men Blue, Xena, Yildiray Cinar, Zenescope

The Pull List: Avengers in No Surrender, Detective Comics, Mister Miracle, Paradiso, & more!

January 13, 2018 by krisis

Welcome to the second week of “The Pull List,” where I give a quick rundown of all of the non-X comics I read this week.

My pulls this week came from a wide spread of publishers – Marvel, DC, Image, Aftershock, and Valiant! It was also a week where the minutia of the craft really took me out of enjoying the storytelling. I had a lot of bones to pick with letterers, and many comments about pace and continuity.

This week’s Pull List included:

  • Avengers (2017) #675
  • Detective Comics (1937/2016) #972
  • Judas (2017) #2
  • Mister Miracle (2017) #6
  • Monstro Mechanica (2017) #2
  • Ninjak vs. The Valiant Universe (2018) #1
  • Paradiso (2017) #2
  • Port of Earth (2017) #3
  • Rise of the Black Panther (2018)
  • Runaways (2017) #5
  • Sleepless (2017) #2
  • Witchblade (2017) #2
  • Wonder Woman (2016) #38.

You might be surprised at which of these books I loved and which left me in a seething rage. There’s at least one where I disagree with seemingly 99% of the folks who I’ve seen react to the book in the past few days. [Read more…] about The Pull List: Avengers in No Surrender, Detective Comics, Mister Miracle, Paradiso, & more!

Filed Under: comic books, reviews Tagged With: Aftershock Comics, Al Ewing, Avengers, Caitlin Kittredge, David Curiel, DC Comics, Detective Comics, Emanuela Lupacchino, Image Comics, James Robinson, James Tynion, Jim Zub, Joe Caramanga, Judas, Kris Anka, Leila de Luca, Mark Waid, Marvel Comics, Matt Wilson, Miguel Mendonco, Mister Miracle, Mitch Gerads, Monstro Mechanica, Paradiso, Pepe Larraz, Port of Earth, Rainbow Rowell, Rise of the Black Panther, Roberta Ingranata, Romulo Fajardo Jr., Runaways, Saida Temofonte, Sarah Vaughn, Sleepless, The Pull List, Tom King, Top Cow, Witchblade, Wonder Woman

The Pull List: Babyteeth, Black Bolt, Captain America, Crosswind, Giant Days, and more!

January 6, 2018 by krisis

What did I read this week that was newly released and wasn’t X-Men?

I’m still a long way off from being caught up to all of present-day Marvel, so I have to choose my battles – reading series that are in the early stages of their Legacy numbering or have few enough issues that I can catch up all the way. A handful of indie series I follow (one only begrudgingly) also dropped this week.

This post covers:

  • Babyteeth (2017) #7
  • Batman (2016) #38
  • Blackbolt (2017) #9
  • Captain America (2017) #697
  • Crosswind (2017) #6
  • Giant Days (2015) #34
  • Guardians of the Galaxy (2017) #150
  • Paper Girls (2015) #19
  • Spider-Man (2016) #236
  • Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles (2018) #1 [Read more…] about The Pull List: Babyteeth, Black Bolt, Captain America, Crosswind, Giant Days, and more!

Filed Under: comic books, reviews Tagged With: Aaron Kuder, Aftershock Comics, Babyteeth, Batman, Boom Studios, Brian Bendis, Brian K. Vaughan, Captain America, Cat Saggs, Chris Samnee, Cliff Chiang, Crosswind, DC Comics, Donny Cates, Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, Gail Simone, Gary Brown, Gerry Duggan, Giant Days, Giula Brusco, Guardians of the Galaxy, Ian Hering, Image Comcis, John Allison, Mark Englert, Mark Waid, Matt Wilson, Paper Girls, Spider-Man, The Pull List, Tom King, Travis Moore

Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day Omnibus, Vol. 1 – The #51 Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus of 2017

May 14, 2017 by krisis

Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day Omnibus, Vol. 1 is the #51 Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus of 2017 on Tigereyes’s Secret Ballot. 

Amazing_Spider_Man_1963_0549See the Guide to Spider-Man for how you can collect this run today. Visit the Marvel Masterworks Message Board to view the original posting of results by Tigereyes.

What Is It? In January 2008 Marvel collapsed their line of several Spider-Man titles down to just Amazing Spider-Man, which accelerated to releasing three issues a month from a rotating cast of writers starting with #546. This coincided with a minor reset of some details of Spider-Man’s continuity – more on that below.

While the story arc “Brand New Day” ran from #546 to 564, the title is commonly used to refer to the entire period of accelerated schedule with multiple writers, which ran through #647 in December 2010 – three entire years comprised of 102 issues of Amazing Spider-Man!

Past Ranking: This year is the book’s debut placement in the ballot results.

Creators: Many!

The rotating writers considered to be Spider-Man’s steering brain-trust consistently including Dan Slott, Marc Guggenheim, Bob Gale, and Zeb Wells – though others like Mark Waid and Joe Kelly also contributed arcs in this period.

This initial chunk of Brand New Day included runs of pencil art from Steve McNiven, Salvador Larroca, Phil Jimenez, Chris Bachalo, Barry Kitson, Marcos Martin, Mike McKone, and John Romita Jr..

Probable Contents: Collects The Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #546-577, The Amazing Spider-Man: Swing Shift Director’s Cut (2008), Venom Super Special (1995) #1, Secret Invasion: Spider-Man #1-3, and material from The Amazing Spider-Man Extra! (2008) #1.

For a full map of how the Brand New Day period could fit into omnibus volumes, see the end of this post.

Can you read it right now? Yes! Marvel has begun to recollect Big Time in a series of Complete Collections. A first omnibus probably wouldn’t cover all three collections. See the Guide to Spider-Man for full physical collecting info.

Plus, every one of these issues is available on Marvel Unlimited!

The Details:

To talk about this run, we have to first talk about the story that immediately precedes it – “One More Day.”

“One More Day” is one of the most-hated Spider-Man stories of all time, neck-and-neck with its later sequel “One Moment In Time.”

Fans tend to dislike any revisions to their favorite elements of continuity, but this one was particularly egregious – not only breaking up Spider-Man and Mary Jane, but retroactively causing their marriage to cease to exist due to a very out-of-character deal with a literal devil. Their relationship and all of their stories continued to exist – just not their marriage.

The story did come with a few fringe benefits. The world would forget Spider-Man’s secret identity (recently revealed in Civil War), but that meant he was now in hiding due to the Superhuman Registration Act. It revived Harry Osborn from the dead. And, it resulted in the cancellation of all of Marvel’s other Spider-Man titles, which allowed them to accelerate Amazing Spider-Man to be released three times a month. [Read more…] about Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day Omnibus, Vol. 1 – The #51 Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus of 2017

Filed Under: comic books Tagged With: Barry Kitson, Bob Gale, Brand New Day, Chris Bachalo, Dan Slott, Harry Osborn, Joe Kelly, John Romita Jr., Marc Guggenheim, Marcos Martin, Mark Waid, Mike McKone, Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus, One More Day, Phil Jimenez, Salvador Larroca, Spider-Man, Steve McNiven, Thunderbolts, Zeb Wells

10 Marvel runs from the 90s you might have missed (and that ought to be omnibuses) – 1990 to 1997

May 3, 2017 by krisis

It’s our third installment of backwards time travel through Marvel runs that could easily fit into an omnibus volume to help inspire your votes on the Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Secret Ballot.

Today I’m taking a slightly different perspective than I did for 1998 to 2008 and 2008 to present. For those installments, I focused on runs I knew well or at least could recommend from context. However, when it comes to runs I’ve read, the 90s are pretty thoroughly covered over both by existing omnibuses and the current votes of the poll. Add to that how much of this period are covered by the end of runs from the 80s, that I’ve already mapped X-Men, and my temporary avoidance of exhaustively mapping Fantastic Four and Spider-Man, and the pickings wind up being pretty slim!

Thus, this list comes with a caveat – I’m not necessarily suggesting you run out and buy and read all of these runs right now. I mean, I own nearly all of them, and even having not read them cover to cover I can tell you that most of them are very 90s comic books.

However, they also represent under-collected material that’s relatively unknown to modern readers. While it might be more reasonable to see all of it covered with Epic Collections, I think it would be more expedient to see them collected in this format than to wait around for trade paperbacks.

Ready to dig deep into the extreme 1990s? [Read more…] about 10 Marvel runs from the 90s you might have missed (and that ought to be omnibuses) – 1990 to 1997

Filed Under: comic books Tagged With: Alpha Flight, Big Hero 6, Blade, Bob Budiansky, Christopher Priest, Collected Edition Mapping, Collected Editions, Conan, Danny Fingeroth, Darkhawk, Deathlok, Dwayne McDuffie, George Perez, Gregory Wright, Heroes For Hire, Iron Fist, J.M. DeMatteis, Ka-Zar, Luke Cage, Mark Waid, Marvel Comics, Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus, Ron Lim, Ron Marz, Silver Surfer, Sleepwalker, Steven Seagle, Venom

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