020806 HEADS UP

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BO'S WEDNESDAY HEADS UP: 020806

"Since there has been a few weeks since you have gotten reviews due to a combination of things (none of the books sent were interesting or were in the middle or near the ends of storylines, the books not getting here and nothing that came in really interested me) this week I thought I'd catch up on some new/ongoing and ending storylines. And don't forget to check the bottom of the page (after you read my reviews) for a link to some SNEAKY PEEKIES of future titles"


DAREDEVIL: Brian Bendis and Alex Maleev ended their tenure on the book with the conclusion of ‘The Murdock Papers’ which had the Kingpin making a deal with the feds to win his freedom. The deal was that he would reveal these papers and their contents would allow the feds to put the screws to Matt. The arc contained guest-stars from the Marvel Universe and wrapped up a lot of loose ends only to end with Matt going to jail. (I’m not telling you anything that hasn’t been shown in Marvel’s solicits) This conclusion puts the next team of Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark in a wonderful box that they will have a hard time getting out of but since Brubaker himself offered up the ending he only has himself to blame. The Bendis/Maleev run was exciting and left us always wondering what would happen next. The duo leaves a big void but the Brubaker/Lark team should be up to the challenge. My favorite parts of the arc were the Kingpin segments. He knew he was making things up and in doing so making Ben Urich extremely uncomfortable having to turn on a friend. That and the reintroduction of Bullseye in a hyper dynamic way made this a high note to go out on. INFINITE CRISIS: As is the policy for both companies big events are seldom part of the Sneak Peaks so I get to read them the same time that you do (well, when I am in the store) so the universe changing events of Crisis are as much as a surprise to me that they are to anyone else. As we have wandered into #4 many things have changed and been set up for the jump ahead One Year Later (OYL) with each issue loaded with details that make you have to read the book twice to get all of them. So far we have learned who the new Blue Beetle is, who the new Spectre is (and who is chosen does make perfect sense) and why things in the DCU have been slightly screwed up (as well as who). The art by Phil Jiminez has been a perfect compliment to the Geoff Johns story. The conclusion of #4 marked the return of Earth 2 which fuels speculation that when everything is said and done that Earth will be one that OYL takes place in but we still are hearing the rumor that Grant Morrison’s Seven Soldiers tales are happening after the OYL timeline so who knows. I will make a bet that this will not turn out to be a happy ending. PLANET HULK: The mega-Hulk event officially begins with this week’s #92 but things began four issues ago with ‘Peace in Our Time’. In that arc Bruce Banner was living happily in the woods when he got a video message from Nick Fury (and for those who are wondering I have no idea if this happens before or after Secret Wars) asking for help with a space project gone haywire. We learn that this ‘mission’ was a scam to send Bruce and his alter ego off into space permanently so that he wouldn’t rain destruction and such on Marvel Earth but this first issue shows that even geniuses can screw up. When the issue begins the Hulk is listening to the message left by Reed Richards that this is for his own good and the place we are sending you to is filled with candy fountains and marshmallow clouds then as these things always do something bad happens. It seems that there is a malfunction and the ship lands on a barbaric world where gladiatorial battles happen all the time for the amusement of the ruler. In other words, a place where the Hulk can kick the crap out of things any time he wants. Greg Pak and Carlo Pagulayan have a wonderful time with this first issue that ends with Hulk on a ship heading towards a monster and certain death exclaiming to his seat companion “This is going to be fun”. Yes, I think this arc will be and it also ties into the upcoming Civil War. THE EXTERMINATORS: One of many new Vertigo titles launched before the end of the year this is one that may have a hard time lasting more than 6 issues. The main problem with the book is that it deals with bugs and honestly there isn’t much interest in a book that in its initial issue has one of the protagonists eating a cockroach. It’s not that the title has nothing to say just that there isn’t anyone out there looking to hear their message. I will say that the art by Tony (Battle Pope) Moore is damn good but he is drawing bugs folks. SPIDERMAN THE OTHER: The three month arc that took over the Spider-Man titles marked an interesting advancement of the character. Things began months ago when Peter Parker started having dizzy spells and losing his powers at inopportune times but when the arc began things were much worse and he had to go to a doctor who told him that he was going to die. When the writers coupled this with the return of Morlun things looked pretty bleak for our boy but as the arc progressed we drifted into philosophical mode with Pete having a conversation with a giant spider who asked him whether he was a man who became a spider or a spider that became a man. We witnessed a death, a rebirth and a birth when it was all said and done. I enjoyed the arc but questioned the method used to tell it. The writing was solid but the art changes took some getting used to due to the variation of styles. Pat Lee is good with some books but Spider-Man is not one of them. Since he tends to color his own work his issues had a washed out feeling that were a distraction to the story being told.

*"See, I told you I'd be down here. We've got a bunch of SNEAKY PEEKIES of future MARVEL, DC and IMAGE titles right HERE"*

All Books/Characters pictured herein are © Copyright 2006 by their respective owners. No rights given or implied by Alternate Reality, Incorporated. Reviews © 2006 Alternate Reality, Inc.