Death of Doctor Strange

Death of Doctor Strange 1-5

I realized after this series ended that I needed to recalibrate for Jed MacKay’s writing; He shot up in my estimation with Black Cat.  Taskmaster was entertaining.  Moon Knight was carried by the art, not the writing, and I quit that after four issues.  

Death of Doctor Strange is at the same Nice level.  It’s more likely than not that Black Cat is the outlier - MacKay’s an entirely entertaining writer who managed one great title.  

On the art side, Lee Garbett is good.  But this is far from his best work.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Sandman Mystery Theatre, New comics

New comics!

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow 7

One of the weaker issues in the run.  Still good, though.

Nightwing 88

Super fun issue where the Titans show up to protect Dick from a number of assassination attempts.  Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo nail the humor here.

Death of Doctor Strange 5

Past Dr Strange resurrects present Dr Strange, they save the day together, and both die again, leaving Clea as the new Sorcerer Supreme.  Not a bad mini, but squarely in the Nice category.  I won’t be buying the forthcoming Strange title, but if I hear good things, I’ll pick up the trade.

Human Target 4

By the end of the issue, the only thought in my mind was, “Damn, this is a sexy, sexy comic.”  For all the scantily clad women in comics (reduced as it has been since the 90s), there’s a definite lack of legitimate hotness.  This bucks that trend.  Ice is hot, and the sexual tension between her and Chance is unbelievable through the entire issue.  Tom King and Greg Smallwood are perfect in their execution of their growing attraction as they wordlessly get closer and closer to each other.  Amazing body language.  I love this issue.

Sandman Mystery Theatre 17-28

Writers Matt Wagner and Steven Seagle do this interesting thing throughout SMT where they often introduce the identity of the killer quite early in each arc, usually in the first or second act.  But they don’t overtly confirm that the villain is the same as the ancillary character in question, leaving me to ask, “Wait, it’s not really that person, is it?  It’s just too obvious…”  And yet it almost always is.  It’s an odd way to write a story, not one that I see very often.

The Scorpion: The Scorpion kills the oil barons responsible for the death of his father.  Dian starts to suspect that Wesley is the Sandman.

Dr Death: A doctor poisons poor people.  Dian discovers the truth.

The Night of the Butcher: A random person living in the sewers slaughters random people for no discernable reason.  One of the few times we learn almost nothing about the killer.  Dian struggles to reconcile her feelings for Wesley with his secret identity.  

Note how everything is from Dian’s POV.  This comic is really more about her than Wesley.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good.  Good for The Scorpion

Aaron Thor, New comics

New comics!

Death of Doctor Strange 4

Chugging along, perfectly acceptable.  Not worth a buy-again, though.

Human Target 3

Man, what is it with Tom King and Booster Gold?  Please stoooooopppppp.

Additional narrator: This one isn't.

I could do without his Guy Gardner as well.  What a prick.

The rest of this is still good.

Thors 1-4

Hill Street Blues, but with Thors from all over the multiverse.  A pretty neat concept, but it feels like Jason Aaron takes it as far as it’ll go, and it turns out to be not that far.  The tie-it-in-to-the-overarching-Secret-Wars-plot at the end is super forced and abrupt, and also renders the entire arc moot - Who cares who’s murdering Jane Fosters when everything gets interrupted by a big end-of-the-world fight in the last couple of pages?

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Runaways, New comics

New comics

Death of Doctor Strange 3

A perfectly acceptable miniseries so far.  Pot committed, going to finish it out.

Runaways 32-38

The series ends on rather muted terms, even though the team is completely shaken up - Karolina flies back to her alien kingdom, Chase gets kidnapped by future Gert, Nico ditches her staff.  (Though I’m pretty sure they established in the past that it automatically gets sucked back into her after a certain amount of time.)  And Alex shows back up.  (Sigh.)  Overall, Rainbow Rowell did an excellent job with this beloved group of characters.  Kudos to Kris Anka and Andres Genolet for the perfect art to match.

Of course Doombot drapes his coat over his shoulders.

Great visual storytelling by Genolet.  Poor Wolverine.

Poor Old Lace.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Marvel Action: Chillers, New comics

Tons of new comics, I hadn’t been to the shop in like a month.

Batman/Catwoman 8

I’m really not digging the Liam Sharp art.  It’s just not the same as Clay Mann.  Storywise, this has felt like filler for a couple of issues now.  But with four issues to go, I can’t really quit at this point.  Sigh.  

Death of Doctor Strange 2

Nothing spectacular.  It may be that Jed MacKay isn’t worth following from title to title the way Tom King and Tom Taylor are.  But this is still good enough that I’ll stick around, especially with Lee Garbett on art.  

Strange Adventures 12

As with all Tom King stories, this definitely requires a re-read.  I wonder if this will lose its mystique now that the twists have been revealed.  Certainly the craft and art are great.  I’m just not so sure about the story itself.

Moon Knight 4

Is there any comic character who has a larger discrepancy between how cool they look and how interesting their stories are?  I love Moon Knight’s look, but I’ve never been able stick around for any of his runs.  (Warren Ellis only went six issues with him.)  The fact that this is volume 9 suggests that the rest of the general public feels the same.  Anyway, this is my last issue for this comic.  Thanks for trying, Jed MacKay.

He looks so good!

Alessandro Cappuccio is spectacular

Superman: Son of Kal-El 4

I was skeptical after last issue, this one cemented it for me.  This title doesn’t have the spark, the fun, the crazy ideas of Tom Taylor’s better work.  Which is sad, because I’m a fan of Jon’s impending coming out in the next issue.  (Loving how it’s pissing off all the right people online.)  But this was almost a full issue of Jon saving his grandparents from an explosion in slow motion, then standing around a crater and talking about it.  I can totally see a world where that can be done well, but it isn’t here.  Combined with my lack of enthusiasm for the previous two issues, that means the end of line for me.

Captain Marvel 33

It’s just a string of mediocre comics for me this month.  Kelly Thompson’s newest Captain Marvel arc falls flat, but the strength of the rest of the title means I’ll push through this and at least try out the next one. 

Dark Ages 2

Phew, Tom Taylor hasn’t completely lost it.  He can at least still bring it on his alternate reality comics.  Iban Coello’s art is a little too sloppy for this to be top tier, though.  There’s a Mark Bagley vibe to it, and not in the good way.  (Bagley can be great, but only on the right projects.)

Marvel Action Chillers 1-4

Yeah, this is way more for kids than Jeremy Whitley’s work on Wasp.  Not that I don’t enjoy a good comic for the young ‘uns, but this isn’t anything special even taking that into account.  I’d cut it, but I’d still read this with my daughter someday.

Heh.  That's probably true.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: No

Rating: Fine

Ultimates, New comics

New comics!  I was literally passing out while reading these, but I don’t think that affected my feelings for these issues...

Moon Knight 3

I’m not feeling this so much anymore.  After the intriguing first issue, things have been remarkably uninteresting.  This is nothing more than an extended fight scene.  I might get it one more issue, I might actually cancel now.  Not sure.

Death of Doctor Strange 1

I’ll give this another issue to see where it goes.  Lee Garbett on art certainly merits at least one more month.  

Jupiter’s Legacy: Requiem 4

This isn’t bad, but I don’t know that I need to read this ever again.  Another candidate for immediate cut.  I may have to read the first couple of miniseries to see if that makes me care more for the characters than the zero that I do right now.  

Old Guard: Tales Through Time 6

I got too caught up in the rush of the movie.  This anthology series is seriously not worth the purchase.  It’s not bad, but I certainly wouldn’t buy it again in hindsight.

Batman: The Detective 5

A rare misfire from Tom Taylor.  This is entirely replacement level, nothing that makes it stand out as a Taylor title.  Another “wouldn’t buy again.”

Ultimates 1-13

This was amazing when it first came out - Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch bringing the widescreen blockbuster action of Stormwatch over to the Ultimate universe.  Crazy fun action, quippy heroes saying clever things, the whole package.  

This comic is literally how Sam Jackson got the MCU role.

This was just before Pirates came out.  Thank goodness they went with RDJ...

Buscemi would have been interesting...

I would totally read a Butler Club teamup comic.

Total Matrix ripoff, but the ensuing action scene is pretty sweet.

The classic, defining moment for this comic.

Hitch really can draw a splash page.

But reading it this time around, I’m mostly struck by how cynical and bitter Millar’s take on the premier Marvel team really is.  There are almost no truly likeable characters (Thor is the only one), and most of them have at least one trait that makes them at least annoying, if not worse - Captain America’s stuck with his out-of-date 1940s morals, Hank Pym’s a weak-willed wife beater, Bruce Banner’s a weak-willed suck up, Quicksilver and Wanda have their incestuous relationship going on, Natasha ends up being a traitor, Tony Stark is a drunken fool, Betty Ross is a cruel, calculating phony, and even Jarvis is an unpleasant asshole.  

Takes the original and cranks it up to "way worse."

This is just mean spirited of Millar.

Really?  Still going with gay jokes?

Sure, the action scenes are spectacular, but underneath it all, there’s an unpleasantness to it all that really tainted the experience for me.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Ultimates 2 1-13

Ultimates Annual 1

About halfway through volume 2, I realized that The Ultimates is really just Garth Ennis’ The Boys a few years early.  You’ve got your government/corporate-sponsored team of superheroes sent off to do the whims of their master.  Everyone’s despicable to some extent, no one’s really friends with each other, and it’s all vaguely depressing.

I don't mind with Sam Jackson, but Patrick Stewart's likeness completely takes me out of it here.

Such a phony, cynical moment.

Agree with Nat, I actually cheered when he got shot.

I don't get Millar's affections for "[Name], [begging]" moments.

Is it supposed to make the hero more badass?

Because it makes the final blow more pathetic for me.

The team’s so dysfunctional that I stopped caring after a while whether or not this team succeeded or failed.  It stopped being fun. 

And yet, it still gets a much better rating than you’d imagine from the tone of this review.  It’s too ambitious and well drawn to deserve anything less, and I’d still read it again.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Ultimates Annual 2

A piece of crap about Captain America, Falcon, race, and Arnim Zola.  Incoherently written by Charlie Huston, I had zero patience for this.  

Regret buying: Yes

Would buy again: No

Would read again: No

Rating: Disliked (Cutting)