THE BEST OF MARVEL
Quite possibly the best premise for a crossover event since Marvel vs. DC in 1995, AvX has managed to tear fan loyalties just as much as Civil War did, only with a world-destroying cosmic entity instead of politics. The title is a little inaccurate now, since it’s not so much Avengers vs. X-Men as it is everyone on Earth-616 against the catchily-titled Phoenix Five. The Avengers have managed to take out Namor, Colossus and Magik, but that’s only served to make Cyclops and Emma Frost stronger. What follows is an all-out war, with a climax that is just… wow.
Honourable mention here must go to Uncanny X-Men #18 (writer: Kieron Gillen; artist: Ron Garney) for its commentary on the proceedings- Colossus and Magik deal with the aftermath, but the ordeal isn’t over for poor Colossus yet; and Scott and Emma have the most psychotic dinner since Hannibal Lecter tried to find out what goes well with red wine. Creepy as all hell, but brilliant.
Still carrying on the Clone Saga from almost 20 years ago, Scarlet Spider gets major points for sticking with it rather than the old standard of having the clone die/go away and live a normal life never to be heard from again. Spider-Man clone Kaine is giving this whole hero-ing thing a try. And when I say “giving it a try” that’s exactly what I mean. He has no idea how to be a hero, he doesn’t particularly like it, he doesn’t like the other heroes he’s wound up working with in this arc, and he can’t see any sort of reward for it. But he keeps trying. He’s stoic and cynical where Spidey’s a chatty optimist, but they both share the drive to do good. I love the direction they’ve taken with Kaine, and I’ll be adding this comic to my list of new favourites.
It was a kind of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but during one of the AvX battles, Magik dragged Rogue into a portal and sent her away to an alien planet gripped by civil war. If you’ve read the last couple of issues, the conclusion of this arc won’t come as any surprise to you. Actually, if you’ve read any comics ever, you can pretty much figure out that she doesn’t just shrug and leave them to it. She manages to make them see they’re not so different, and should work together for a brighter future, in a plot conclusion directly lifted from the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic episode ‘Over a Barrel’. So, if this issue was predictable and unoriginal, why is it in my top picks list? Because it’s so well-written that it doesn’t matter. Because Rogue is so badass she takes time out of a war to go fight another war, and then goes right on back to her original war. And also because I like ponies.
If you’re interested in the whole alternate universe thing but can find them a little hard to follow, X-Treme X-Men is here for you. A group of familiar faces from unfamiliar dimensions team up with our Dazzler to kill all the evil Charles Xaviers. It’s kind of a whistle-stop tour through all the dimensions the creators can come up with (this month: steampunk Utopia!) and it is SO MUCH FUN. Highlights include Xavier’s head in a jar, a possibly gay Wolverine, and Dazzler singing a song in every issue. If you like your comics to be gritty and down-to-earth, you should give this one a miss, but if you like stuff that can be truthfully described as “zany” then go buy it. And then put Dazzler’s songs to music and stick them on YouTube, because I would totally watch that.
DON’T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON
Uncanny X-Force #31 (writer: Rick Remender; artist: Phil Noto)
It hurts me to say this, but Uncanny X-Force isn’t doing so great at the minute. I love it, I do, but they’ve taken seven issues deciding what to do with Evan, aka Genesis, aka Kid Apocalypse, and they still don’t have a clue. Psylocke is pretty adamant they should let him live, Deadpool is pretty adamant they should let him die, and everyone else is kinda shuffling their feet and shrugging. It’s times like this I wish I had the power to break the fourth wall in reverse, because I would stick my head in there and be like “What is WRONG with you?! You know treating him like a shaken-up bottle of fizzy evil is just going to make him more likely to be evil, right? You want him to be a good guy? How about busting in to the bad guy’s lair, breaking him out, and telling him how worried you were? Expressing some concern for the well-being of the child who’s been abducted by the Brotherhood? Taking him HOME?! JESUS, Logan, you run a SCHOOL! You’re a $@!#. You’re all $@!#s. Except for Betsy. Betsy’s cool.”
ALSO
Spidey meets Deadpool meets Inception in Avenging Spider-Man #12!
The debut of Loki’s fire-breathing war-dog Thori in Journey into Mystery #643! Plus, Loki and Thor playing classic childhood game ‘The Floor is Lava’… with real lava!
Emma Frost gets smacked down like the bitch she is in New Avengers #30!
THE BEST OF DC
Less an origin story and more a slice-of-life for Bruce and Alfred, the Gordons, Tim, Dick, and Jason, mere weeks before Bruce dons the cowl. Whilst the inevitable similarities to Batman Begins made me yawn, and Alfred didn’t have the deadpan humour I’ve come to love, Bruce’s exploits pre-Bat were entertaining enough. Where this issue really shines is in the Robins’ stories: genius hacktivist Tim is shown to be arrogant and cocky when dispensing his own special brand of justice, much like his nemesis Damien (whose story is covered in Batman & Robin #0); Jason’s outrage at a murder reminds us why he’s a good guy at heart; and Dick is… well, he’s a cocky motormouth, but we love him. The thing about these backstories is they’re not just straight-up origins, or the backstory of a side character, or an adventure they had before the comic started. Each little snippet actually makes you go, “Oooooh, that explains a lot…” which I like. Gold star, Snyder.
Fun fact: I totally sat behind Paul Cornell at Kapow! last year, in the DC New 52 panel. Good times. Anyway, this issue delves into exactly how Jason of Norwich (who would later change his name to the much-sexier Jason Blood) managed to get bonded for all eternity to the demon Etrigan. It’s a tale of the inescapability of fate, the darkness present in the human mind, and why Merlin is such a dick. Despite going into some pretty dark places -Hell, for one- it never feels like it’s taking itself too seriously; just like a real fairy tale, it lets you enjoy the story without trying to coerce you into a dialogue about good and evil. Sometimes demons are heroes. Deal with it.
Taking a different stance on the Issue 0 concept, this issue takes place after #12, but with an extended flashback to the birth of Resurrection Man which manages to not only explain his origin, but also solve all Mitch’s problems and thus round off the recently-cancelled series. Not that it’s definitely over for good- a demonic hint at “plans” for Mitch, plus his newly-revealed connection to Team 7, an elite squad which un-coincidentally has its debut released this week, and I suspect we’ll be seeing more of Mitch. The loss of such a well-written and original series hurts, but you can’t kill Resurrection Man.
I’ve been incredibly fond of The Shade ever since his brief but charming appearance in Blackest Night, and I was disappointed when the ‘Shade’ we were promised in Justice League Dark turned out to be Shade, the Changing Man, and not The Shade. And then I found his 12-issue miniseries, and all was right with the world again. The miniseries has tackled gods, satanic/illuminati/masonic-style cults, Dickens, opium dens, the highs and lows of immortality, and evil old men. True to this month’s theme, the final issue is an origin story, written as a retrospective from Dickie from the safety of his home, after all his adventures are over. It’s more than an origin issue, however, it seems as though he’s managed to find answers from his encounter with the gods, and can now come to terms with everything and enjoy his life with Hope. It’s a surprisingly touching end to a beautiful series.
DON’T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON
The other DC comics
If calling Uncanny X-Men #31 a waste of money hurt me, this is killing me. But sadly, Zero Month isn’t really doing it for me. Some of the issues have been brilliant, most weren’t. I think this is probably a personal thing for me, since I despise origin stories (especially ones that have been repeated more often than the word “baby” in a pop song- looking right at you, Batman) and a whole month of origin stories is making me want to gently massage my eyeballs with sand. None of the issues -with the exception of Resurrection Man- have improved upon those that came before, and I think this whole exercise has not been a great move on DC’s part. That said, there are some good offerings- Gail Simone writes an innocent and idealistic story for Batgirl, with just the right amount of menace beneath the surface, and Grifter has some gorgeous artwork courtesy of Scott Clark. On the whole, however, disappointingly sub-par.
(My fun-filled ‘ALSO’ section will now sound tinged with hollow desperation, for which I apologise)
ALSO
Guy Gardner- Sexiest Man of the Year, every year! Find out why in Green Lantern Corps #0!
Motherhood tips from Talia al’Ghul in Batman & Robin #0!
A vast improvement since its first issue: Before Watchmen : Comedian #3!