Geoffrey vs. The Punisher #2, New Warriors #1, Avengers World #3

Just a short thing here. As I have mentioned, I do my comics reading thanks to the Marvel unlimited service. I kiss the internets in gratitude every day for the four-coloured bounty that I reap from the digital soil of Marvel.com.

Never moreso than on a day in which I find not one or two but THREE comics that I seriously love. (4 technically, as Daredevil #36 was there too, but I covered Big Red in a dedicated series post just minutes ago).

The Punisher #2.

I have read and ejoyed a number of Punisher comics in my past. In two issues, though, Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads have delivered EXACTLY the kind of Punisher story I want to read. It cruises the exact line between silly bloodthirsty vigilante and low-level superheroics that I want Punny to cruise. This is a Marvel Universe Punisher story that is true to the Marvel Universe and the Punisher. Just. Freaking. Awesome.

This panel:

This caption:

That's the Punisher I want. I hope your run is long and glorious, Mr. Edmondson. (He's not too shabby on Black Widow, either!)

Moving on to New Warriors #1!

I know it's a little late to trumpet this. The series is cancelled with issue #12 even as I start out with #1 today. Alas and alack because this was really good. Marvel teen teams seem to have a rough time. I have barely begun and already I know I want to read about these guys and their adventures for as long as the original New Warriors ran. I hope they are kept together and brought out now and again. This was good stuff.

Also I love Speedball. Also Sungirl is awesome.

Finally we have little ol' unassuming Avengers World #3.

Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu versus one of Marvel's legit super-scary villains, The Gorgon. Jonathan Hickman and Nick Spencer, you wily sonuvaguns. You have written what was for my money the single best martial arts fight in comics. Ever. That was Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon on a digital page. Amazingly fun, brilliantly choreographed by artist Stefano Caselli. The Gorgon has been amazeballs since I first read him in Secret Warriors. Definitely an Avengers level threat, even moreso when he is riding on a dragon that wears an island for a hat.

MORE COMICS LIKE THIS PLEASE AND THANK YOU.

Read all these comics. I command it. And if we see these New Warriors again, give them some love. They deserve it.

Geoffrey vs. Mark Waid's Daredevil #1-36

I have to say, I have always kinda liked Daredevil but had never been able to love him.

I don't really remember my first exposure to Daredevil. It was one of two ways; either the X-Men crossover Inferno or in a large box of vintage back issues that a friend's dad had in the attic. Both were around the same time. I think it was probably Inferno cause those back issues had him in the ol' yellow and black in some issues, and I sort of recall that being after I had already established a knowledge of the character.

"And you're sure this costume looks ok, Foggy?"
Snicker.

The Inferno crossover was pretty good on the Daredevil end. A demon-infested New York City comes alive and tries to eat everyone. Spider-Man also had some good isues during that crossover. In fact, I think the Spidey and DD issues were better than the X-Men ones. NEITHER HERE NOR THERE!

That is DD versus a vacuum cleaner.
Nope, not kidding.

Those issues, by Ann Nocenti with art by John Romita Jr kind of coloured how I felt about the guy. A bit down on his luck and definitely involved in the world of the supernatural and superhuman. So I was kind of disappointed when, aside from those issues, it seemed like Daredevil mostly fought gangsters and ninjas on a wash rinse repeat cycle right through the Ought Zeroes and into the Tens. I hear Frank Miller's run was seminal. Maybes I will read it someday. I am sure it's worth reading. At the time I just liked my superheroes a bit more super. I still do.

Enter Mark Waid's Daredevil. After years of what I perceived as misery-porn, Daredevil decides to love life and his comic is one of pure joy married with intense, high end, superhero action. Gone are the Hand and the Kingpin's goons. Instead we have Mole Man, the Spot, Klaw, Dr. freakin' Doom, Silver Surfer:

The over-arching plot of the first 2/3 of the series was Daredevil trying to figure out who was messing with his business. Waid really stacked the deck story-wise, leading to a cool revelation that I will not spoil because of reasons. The last 3rd was DD vs. The Sons of the Serpent, a vaguely occult white power group that had infiltrated the entire legal system of New York. This story saw the end of the Daredevil/Matt Murdoch dichotomy, with the final public revelation that Murdoch was indeed Daredevil. This set of stories saw Daredevil fighting the Jester, stealing the Darkhold from Satana and other such crazy hijinx. Wonderful stuff

I'd heard about that ending and was kinda meh over the idea of it, as I liked the sort of "is-he ain't-he" set up he had in-universe, but Waid sold it so hard I bought the extended warranty and the rust-proofing. I loved how the run wrapped up and I more loved how it is going to lead into the next phase of Daredevil's adventures as he moves to San Francisco.

In the Marvel universe, San Fran is home to Utopia, the recent mutant island home of the X-Men. There's also part of the city that was turned Victorian by Mr. Sinister and last I recall there is also a Celestial standing in a park. Waid is up on his continuity and comic history so I am sure those and other elements may come into play and I hope the next 36 issues are as absolutely fun as the ones I just finished reading.

The art throughout the series has been really great. It's mostly been by Chris Samnee with some heavy lifting by Paolo Rivera and others. The covers are usually to die for. My favourite is probably issue 7:

 This cover sums up the whole series. I loved it. It was awesome. You should read it.

Geoffrey vs. Grant Morrison's Marvel Boy

The year 2000. Mankind's certain doom at the hands of Y2K was narrowly adverted and we as a species slowly crawled from the wreckage to reclaim the future that was to be ours.

At least that's how I remember the pre-9/11 world. A time of wonders.

One of these wonders from this storied, nigh-forgotten past is the 6 issue mini-series Marvel Boy, written by my absolute favourite comics writer, Grant Morrison with art by the phenomenal J.G.Jones. Colours by Avalon Studios and Matt Milla.

This comic is the story of Noh-Varr, an Ensign on an alternate dimensional Kree diplomatic vessel. After a cosmic accident sets the shift adrift through the superstructure of the mutliverse, it ends up above the 616 Marvel Earth and is promptly shot down by evil corporate mastermind Dr. Midas. Midas is a kind of ur-villain. He wear a modified  prototype Iron Man armour, bathes in gamma rays like the Hulk, and eventually gains cosmic versions of all the Fantastic Four's powers. He is like Dr. Doom squared.

He also had a daughter named Oubliette the Exterminatrix, who self describes as the Lara Croft of evil.

The series is kind of divided into halves. The first three issues are semi-one shots. #1 sets everything up. The origin. And its great. Just as Midas is a delicious melange of villainy, Noh-Varr is the fruit trifle of Marvel heroes. He's a last-of-his-kind, fallen to Earth Kree warrior with altered DNA combined with insects outfitted with fantastic weapons and training. So he's Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, Namor and Thor.

Issue 2 plays up the Namor angle with Noh-Varr ransacking Manhatten, literally carving "FUCK YOU" across its face, all while keeping anyone form losing a life. This is an angry and unstoppable young man.

Issue 3 is probably one of the best Marvel comics produced. Ever. I say this knowing I am biased towards items with a particularly Morrisonian flair.In this issue we are introduced to Hexus, the Living Corporation. A cosmic level predator that destroys worlds through branding. There is a dizzy delight that comes from merely typing those words.

The back half of the miniseries is really a 3 issue fight between Midas and Noh-Varr, with Oubliette performing a face turn to join the side of...I don't want to say angels, because Noh-Varr in this series never really comes round to being on the typical good guy side. She is no longer on Midas' side. You can tell Morrison had an affection for her because she gets all the best lines.

Even though I am pushing 40 there is still a delightful frisson that comes from youth disrespecting age. Now get off my lawn.

The whole series has a real millennial vibe, one that you can forget infected everything back then, before the real end of the world in September 2011. And wow was this series forward thinking. Everything in here, the writing, art, characters, story, they are not necessarily timeless (though that is an element), they are more permanently contemporary. This series could have come out last Wednesday and it would fit right in with any comic being released today. Grant Morrison is really a master.

One of the things I loved most about this series, which leads on the ONLY disappointment associated with it, is the unfulfilled promise of more. Here's how it ended (uh spoiler alert I guess):

Noh-Varr in captivity promising to change the world into a new Kree empire with a post script promising Marvel Boy 2:001. That shit never went down.

I suppose it's not too late. Grant's off DC Comics for a bit now it looks like, doing his own thing. Hey Joe Quesada, back up the dump truck full of that sweet Marvel Movie Money and get Morrison back!

Though if he does come back to Marvel, I kinda would want him to do something new honestly. He already changed the X-Men and introduced Noh-Varr.

Noh-Varr was embraced as time went on, eventually becoming a member of the Avengers. I enjoyed those stories very much as well, but they still were missing what I feel is an essential element of his character: the potent rage at the system and the burning need to change everything. Not just slowly, but to tear it down and feast on the ashes. No writer has embraced the promise of this.

I can see why not associating a main character with a "Cosmic Jihad" would be a prudent turn after 9/11, but surely enough time has past that we can have our Space Namor back, yeah? It's a way better take on the character than a Motown-loving himbo. (Not that the Young Avengers version was entirely unsuccessful either).

Anyway, here's to the Way That Was and to the end of it.

Seriously, get off my lawn.

Geoffrey vs. Ms. Marvel #1

Ms. Marvel, Ms. Marvel. What shall we ever do with you.

Read you every issue, that's what! Man, what a breath of fresh air. I love superheroes and all the regular old air that they come with just fine thanks but it is nice to breathe in something new every once in a while, no?

Not that everything here is new. It's a classic set up. Spider-Man level classic. Teenager gets fantastic powers. The awesome part is the teenager is a female, non-white person, instead of the typical Chuck Whitecheese that usually lucks into the awesome. But classic is classic for a reason, right?

You can read all over the net how successful this series has been. It deserves it. Kamala Khan deserves a long-standing place at the Marvel table. This comic was exciting. Funny, interesting characters (and non-super supporting cast! I love a non-super supporting cast!), gorgeous art...this comic is the real deal.

Writer G. Willow Wilson, keep it up. Artists Adrian Alphona and Ian Herring, you also keep it up. I can't wait to read more, to meet Kamala's rogues, and see her grow into an A-lister.

Given her sales, I think the latter will happen PDQ, IYKWIM.

READ MS. MARVEL!

Free in Marvel Unlimited. For sale elsewhere. Trades I am sure are imminent.

(Here's a free idea for you, Marvel: All-New Uncanny Young Avengers - Marvel Boy, Ms. Marvel, Miss America Chavez, Patriot, Prodigy, Hope, Speed, Kate Bishop Hawkeye, Troll. Aaaaaaaand go. Write it.)

(OK, maybe not Troll. BUT ALSO MAYBE!)

Geoffrey vs. Black Science: How To Fall Forever

Last and certainly not least on my docket of Image Comics collections I ordered and read is Black Science,  written by Rick Remender with art by Matteo Scalera and colours by Dean White.

Black Science is the tale of an anarchist scientist named Grant McKay who creates a device to travel through alternate dimensions for a questionably ethical corporation. During testing of the device, it is sabotaged and McKay, along with his two children, his two lab assistants, his chief of security, and two corporate reps are tossed into an alternate Earth's dimension with no way home and a timer before the machine randomly jumps again.

Kiiiinda like the 90s TV series Sliders.

But Remender has taken a similar premise as Sliders, slammed it into Lost in Space, poured liberal amounts of Venture Brothers all over the resulting mass and cooked it in a 2000AD oven to perfection. Yeah, PERFECTION. This comic was AWESOME.

The first dimension is a bizarre world of fish people riding land eels fighting frogmen with electric tongues all on the backs of giant turtles. The they go to a world where Steampunk Germany is being overrun by an expansionist, supertech Navajo Empire in World War 1. Then a mixed alien semi-Utopia. Then a world where white-haired ape-men possessed by sentient gas clouds are the dominant thing. Mad ideas. Just crazy mad. I loved every page of it.

People die. Horrible people become sympathetic. A Navajo shaman gets hijacked to come along. Awesome stuff. Just a joy to read from start to finish.

Also a joy to look at! Scalera's art reminds me a lot of Brit comic artist Ian Gibson. It feels very different from most American art and brings me back to my childhood roots as a fan of 2000AD. It's lush, dangerous and incredibly imaginative. Part of why this reminds me of Venture Brothers is McKay's design. He looks like he could be The Monarch's or Rusty Venture's brother, with his sharp nose. Ward also looks like Brock Samson's uncle.

Dean White also really comes through with the colours. The opening scene with the fishmen is a rainbow kaleidoscope that just charges up with eyes. Wonderful stuff.

The other part of this that reminds me of Venture Brothers is just the set up. A desperately flawed mad scientist with two kids and a bodyguard. Rusty Venture or Grant McKay? Both! McKay is more rounded and socially active and more dangerous, but I could easily see the world of Black Science living side by side with that of the Venture Brothers. A world informed by crazy sci-fi and pulp tropes, the kind that are the background of a lot of superhero stuff, without the superhero stuff.

I can't wait for the next trade. Being familiar with Remender's long-game thinking due to following his Marvel Comics work, I am very excited to see how far this series goes. I will be aboard for every moment of it.

(PS I wonder if one day Remender will be considered the comic-world George R. R. Martin. No character is safe, man, and it is nice not knowing what to expect beyond the unexpected.)

(PPS HBO, make this show.)

Geoffrey vs. Uncanny Avengers #16

I will one day go into the whole run of Rick Remender's Uncanny Avengers. Not today. Today I bring you one awesome page of badassery, courtesy the Mighty Thor.

I. Care. Not. is pretty awesome (and he said it a couple other times this ish regarding the bad guy's boastful claims). I might have said something like "Now you serve the will of getting your ASS KICKED!" but I am not a warrior poet like Thor.

Anyway, this series is awesome and this page is as incredible a Thor moment as his much lauded "Ultron! We would have words with thee!" from Kurt Busiek's run.

Hey. I was in the middle of reading that run a while ago...I should finish it up!

Art on the first panel: Steve McNiven, inks by John Dell and Jay Leisten, colours by Laura Martin.
Art of the second: George Perez, inks by Al Vey, colours by Tom Smith.

Geoffrey vs. The Infinity Gauntlet

The Infinity Gauntlet was a 1991 Marvel crossover event series that ran for 6 issues. It detailed pretty much one fight by Marvel's top heroes against Thanos, the Mad Titan and cosmic villain who made his big screen debut in the credits of the Avengers motion picture. I forget why I felt like revisiting the series, but I am glad I did cause it is kinda awesome.

It's an important series. While it was not Marvel's first crossover (that would be Secret Wars), it sort of became the model for the "Summer Event Crossover". The big series that once a year every comic touches on in some way. Some of these crossovers have been awesome, some less so, but they sell books so they have continued unabated for decades.

It's also a relevant series because somewhere in the series are the bones of what is likely the plot for Avengers 3. At least that is what is expected by comic fans. If they do go that route (and I am one of those fans that thinks they will) it will be but a very loose adaptation. Infinity Gauntlet's main protagonists are Adam Warlock, as yet un-introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Silver Surfer, rights for film use held by Fox Studios. The story also comes from an era when Iron Man was B-list at best and I can't really imagine a scene in Avengers 3 involving Robert Downy Jr. getting his head ripped off by a female Thanos Real Doll.

Note the blood! Stark's head is totes in the can!

Infinity Gauntlet was written by Jim Starlin, the go to writer for cosmic action in the Mighty Marvel Manner. His affinity for these cosmic level characters shows and the work is a joy to read. A lot of these older comics, while still being very enjoyable, exhibit stark differences in tone and style when compared to modern comics. Infinity Gauntlet holds its own and even feels kind of ahead of its time, with a very decompressed tale told with lots of wide screen action.

This series is really just, as mentioned, ONE FIGHT. It is less than 24 hours of time. Thanos kills half the universe, everybody shows up and eventually curb stomps him (spoiler alert). That's it. But it is 6 issues, 42 pages apiece. That is a lot of story for one fight. It reads really well though. Some of the characterizations are a bit off for the era (Hulk, I am looking at you) and some characters (Gamora, Pip the Troll) seem to only be there to continue Starlin's very long form Cosmic tale of Adam Warlock and Thanos that started long before this series and continues TO THIS DAY.

The art in this series is delicious. The first three issues are by master artist George Perez. Issue 4 is by Perez and Ron Lim. 5 and 6 are just Lim. Inks on the whole series were done by Joe Rubenstein. Perez deserves every accolade he gets. He really knocks it out of the park and I don't really think anyone holds a candle to him when it comes to illustrating group fight scenes. I have to say as well that Ron Lim is maybe a bit of an underrated master himself. I've always liked him and seeing his work here with the hindsight of 23 years, side by side with Perez, it really holds its own. To me, Lim's depiction of Thanos is archetypal, based on this work and on his work in the Silver Surfer series from the same time period.

Man, I wish Marvel could do a Silver Surfer movie based on some of that stuff. It was AWESOME.

Can I talk about colouring for a second?

I was reading the first 12 issues of X-Force some time ago (note how commentary on that didn't end up here!) and had this thought. Lots of people complain about Rob Liefeld's art. I grant you, it is stylized and not to everyone's taste (personally, as I get older, I kinda enjoy it more). I reallllllly don't think the penciling was ever the biggest problem with that art. I think it was the colouring.

So much detail was lost due to the limitations of the colouring process of the era. Colours were just splatted on willy nilly. It was ugly! You can't even really wade through it to enjoy or appreciate some of the art due to the colouring. This is not a condemnation of the colourists of the time. I know there were limitations due to the process.

I'd show some examples but I do not want to get too negative or critical. Instead I will go back to Infinity Gauntlet. While it does not suffer as much from the colouring issues as X-Force seemed to, there are lots of points in the series where, compared to colouring today, it really is just basic and boring. The pencils are under-served. Lim and Perez's art deserves better. I don't know if it is possible but I would LOVE to see this series recoloured using modern techniques. Do it as a nice hardcover and put it out during the release of Avengers 3. Marvel, you know it should happen.

Anyway: here's a fun scene from issue 4 which serves as a nice contrast to modern comics where Captain America and Cyclops are not as friendly.

Get 'im, Cloak!

Spoiler alert: Cloak did not get 'im.

Also: Cyclops' X-Factor era costume was pretty nice.

Other awesome bits from the series: Dr. Doom's duplicity (shame he can't be in the film, but I bet his role could be filled by Tom Hiddleston's Loki!) Mephisto's secret attempts to undermine Thanos (Hiddleston in this role for the film too), the end with Thanos becoming a farmer (cooler than it sounds, yo), heroes like Cloak working with the big guns, Dr. Strange hanging with the Cosmic crowd, Celestials using planets as weapons, Drax the Destroyer in his purple cape (I do hope there is some kind of nod to this in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie...), Black Widow saving a baby from a fire, Eric Masterson's mullet....and so much more.

This was a really fun series. I really enjoyed re-reading it and seriously, if Marvel releases a recoloured version I will buy this sucker again.

I am going to reread Infinity War and Infinity Crusade. I don't recall those being quite as awesome as this one soooooo maybe you won't see them here. But maybe you will!