Top comics for 2/18/15

I feel bad that these keep coming out so late, but it’s just the way things are going right now. Either way, last week’s comics were quite enjoyable. Silk saw the launch of her own series and the first issue was…mixed. While I enjoyed the description of her life trying to fit back into society as well as protect it as a member of the superhero community, some story aspects just hit me the wrong way. Another book that caused me to scratch my head was Uncanny X-men. I did not expect Xavier’s will storyline to end so abruptly. On one page everyone is obliterated and the next Xavier just magically (i mean telepathically) saves the day in less than a page. Though the ending set up some interesting future developments, this issue didn’t really deliver a worthy ending to what was a fairly exciting arc.

Let me know what you guys think. As always, enjoy!

1. Avengers World #17

Just to show that I enjoy variety and am not averse to including new titles (because lately I’ve had a lot of the same series repeating on here) I wanted to include an issue that was heartfelt and wonderful despite not advancing the plot in a meaningful way. This chapter saw Smasher, or Izzy Kane, find out she was pregnant and forced to return to the Shi’ar homeworld. Who is the father? Why none other than the annoyingly energetic Cannonball. Like I said, this issue does nothing for the main plot (as far as I know anyway, I mean that kid could be the savior or something), but the excellent writing and the unexpectedly touching love story was actually a nice change of pace.

Past issues have seen battles and more battles, so seeing a chapter actually delve into the personal lives of some of our heroes is much appreciated. Not to mention I am a sucker for a good love story, and anything that can pull at the heartstrings gets a plus in my book. Other than that, it was a fairly straightforward chapter. I loved the art, the writing was good, though maybe cliche in some areas, but all-in-all it was nice to get something different this week.

2. All-New Captain America #4

Ah! Another repeat; that’s more like it. I included this chapter for one reason: this is the new Captain America’s first real big failure as the new star-spangled hero. This issue sets him up to have his first iconic save the world at the last second moment, and it actually does a pretty good job of making you think he might actually fail. My hope, however, is that Steve Rogers doesn’t show up to magically provide some method of victory. I want the Falcon to win on his own, to show us that he can do these things that are expected of him without help from the one he replaced.

One of the things this series has done very well is the narrative voice that the author uses to show the Captain’s thoughts. In this chapter especially, it is handled extremely well, showing the stress that he is feeling towards the whole situation. If I had to pick one thing that I didn’t like about the chapter, though, it would have to be the sudden change of hear that Armadillo had halfway through the book. It felt cliche and I saw it coming from a mile away. As soon as the Captain started trying to reason with Armadillo, I knew he was going to change sides. It’s a small nitpick, but noticeable to me.

3. Miles Morales – Ultimate Spider-man #10

I am a Miles Morales fan. I admit I wasn’t at first, and was actually pretty upset that Peter Parker was killed. There was a time I liked the Ultimate version of Peter more than the 616 iteration, so when he died and was replaced by this unknown kid, I immediately backed away and stopped reading the series. It wasn’t until about a year or two later that I decided to give him a shot, and I’m glad I did. Every chapter has some exciting new element to it, and us readers have been waiting for a few issues now to know what would happen between Miles and Katie’s hail hydra-ing parents.

While the outcome may not come as a surprise to most, it was still exciting to read. Bendis did a great job building the the tension in the last few pages. I wasn’t sure if they knew or if the were oblivious. I was so tense that I almost called out when Miles accepted the water from Katie’s father. I think I literally said, “Oh no…it’s poison isn’t it?” I can honestly say this issue stressed me out, which turns out is a plus in its favor. Unfortunately, with the new Secret Wars event coming upon us, this series is due to end soon. While I wish it would’t, I have no doubt that Miles is going to be a big part of Marvel’s future plans (which may include movies, but hopefully after Peter).

-GG

Recommended anime for February 2015

As many of you are probably aware, the Super Bowl was a few weeks ago now, thus signaling the end of another exciting football season. Though football addicts like me are now forced to wait an excruciatingly long time for the next season to begin, there is one thing that you can watch that will help hold you over until August. What I’m referring to is an anime called Eyeshield 21. Among sports anime this may not be the most realistic, but it captures the fun and competitiveness of the actual sport enough to draw you in. Many times, the games come down to the last few plays and the show does a great job of building that tension as you wonder if Deimon High School (the main team the show focuses on) will win.

This series may focus on the Deimon football team as a whole, but the main character is a young boy named Sena who is just beginning his high school life. Picked on for being so small, he has developed into one of the fastest people in Japan (unknown to anyone, even himself). Hiruma, the captain of the football club recruits him to the team in an….unusual manner and the real story begins. The anime follows this team’s journey toward their ultimate goal — the Christmas Bowl.

This anime is easily one of my favorite sports shows of all time. While the anime never finishes the main plotline from the manga, it is still quite an enjoyable and fun experience. What really drew me to this particular anime was the interesting portrayal of the sport. It almost feels like a superhero anime, with each player having their own ‘power’ they use during the match. They aren’t really powers and are based on real football techniques, but the beautiful animation makes each skill visually unique in their presentation. A regular spin move is presented with a whirlwind around the player or a pass is enhanced when animated to look like it was shot out of a cannon; and the unique style is not specific to just the techniques but the players as well. Many times a player is animated as being up to three times the size of another player, despite how impossible that is. it gives the sense that our main team is going up against impossible odds and when they win, it feels that much more satisfying.

This brings me to my last point: Deimon is not invincible, and that’s a good thing! They will lose, and they will lose more often than you probably expect. That aspect actually makes them a more interesting team to watch. They know what losing is and they hate it, so seeing them fight and claw for every game endears them to the viewer and makes you really want to see them win. While the show may start off a bit slow, I highly suggest sticking around for a few episodes to give it a fair shot.

If you guys do watch it or have watched it already, let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!

P.S. Hiruma is the best character in the entire show. I mean look at that face –>

-GG

Top comics for 2/11/15

There were a lot of great comic issues this week, and the one I want to focus on this time is Thor #5. When the fourth issue came out, I mentioned that I was disappointed that the identity of the new Thor wasn’t revealed. I want to officially retract my statement! I for some reason didn’t even consider that her identity would play a large enough role to warrant its own story arc, but it is and it is off to an amazing start. I especially enjoyed the jab the beginning of this issue took at all the people that are upset at a woman becoming Thor. Personally I could care less as long as the quality is up to par, and so far each issue has been better than the last. I understand that one day the original Thor will reclaim his hammer, but until that day comes I want everyone to enjoy a great series.

I hope everyone enjoys the list, and let me know your thoughts on anything I may have missed.

1. The Amazing Spider-man #14

Did you seriously think it would be anything else? Spider-Verse has been better than it had any right to be and the finale was a nonstop train ride of excitement. The final battle lived up to the hype and delivered actions scenes and Spidey fan would die to see. Fifty different Spider-men fighting to defeat a multi-verse traveling genocidal family of monsters is a great tagline for an event, so in hindsight, this event was bound to be awesome.

I do admit that it seemed a tad rushed and some much needed background information should have been included in this issue. For one, the exiled Morlun brother being convinced to side with the Spiders should not have been relegated to a tie-in that many people probably didn’t read. Him just showing up out of nowhere felt jarring and out of place. And yet, that moment is easily forgiven when Leopardon shows up and starts beating the shit out of everyone. Seriously, how did I not know there was a Japanese version of Spider-man with a megazord?

In other news, besides finishing the main plot to Spider-Verse, SpOck may have just unknowingly set off a chain of events that could kick off a future arc of The Amazing Spider-man. I knew the guy got a little cocky and crazy at the end of his time as Spider-man, but this issue shows just how far he has fallen. Great issue, great event, and I look forward to what Dan Slott has for us next!

2. Darth Vader #1

The year of Star Wars strikes again! The second of many ongoing Star Wars titles to be released, the Darth Vader series follows, you guessed it, Darth Vader in between Episodes IV and V. This chapter is a good start for the series, and it shows promise that the authors know how to handle such a popular and important character to Star Wars canon. The most interesting tidbit taken from this issue is the fact that the Emperor seems to be keeping something from our helmet wearing villain. While shown in many of the now non canonical expanded universe stories, the movies never really got across that the Emperor may have not trusted Vader with everything.

Seeing Vader show distrust towards his master as well as plotting without seeking permission shows a different side to Vader that we never saw in the movies. At the end, he obviously turned against the Emperor, but to that point he had been pretty loyal. Another scene worthy of note is the panel where he stands among the burning remains of the Tatooine Sand People. This proves to be a powerful image as it shows that despite the many years that have passed, the passing of his mother is still very painful to him. Just a small little scene, but powerful nonetheless.

So far Marvel is hitting on all cylinders with these Star Wars comics, let’s hope they keep up the good work.

3. Guardians 3000 #5

For some strange reason I cannot get enough of this series. I love the art, the characters, the story is entertaining; there is nothing that I don’t enjoy about this book. If you aren’t reading this then I suggest you get on it immediately. For those that aren’t aware, this series takes place in the far future of the 616 Marvel universe. It follows the original Guardians of the Galaxy (yes, these guys came before the talking tree and raccoon) as they try to discover why time is falling apart at the seems. It centers around this girl who, for some strange reason, is able to remember whenever time lapses.

While Guardians 3000 may not have the recognizable character names of other Marvel works, it more than makes up for it by doing such a great job of world and character building. Just reading the first few issues can turn characters such as Charlie-27 and Starhawk into favorites because they are so well written. Not to mention the action scenes are so well complimented by the art. Legitimately, this is one of the best looking series out there and if you are a fan of great art, then on that alone this book deserves your attention. Seriously, read this.

Thank for reading! Follow me on Twitter @Gallivant_Gamer.

-GG

Miles Morales shouldn’t be in the MCU….yet

After the recent announcement that Spider-man would be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I have seen many people calling for Donald Glover to portray Spider-man on the big screen. Not as Peter Parker, mind you, but as Miles Morales; the alternate Spider-man from the Ultimate Universe. I am one hundred percent against this idea…for now.

The problem with using Morales is that it will confuse many non-comicbook readers. People who do not keep up with the comic world have no idea who Miles Morales is or why he is Sider-man instead of Peter Parker. Not only that, but in makes no sense story-wise and doesn’t fit with the MCU. Yes the MCU deviates from the comic universe, but to introduce Miles as the main Spider-man instead of Mr. Parker would be too big a change for many people. If you thought the backlash to the Mandarin being a fake was bad, then the reaction from using Miles as Spidey would be worse. If Marvel does, in fact, want to go this route, then they need to build up to it.

To me, the most logical thing to do would be to introduce Spider-man in Captain America: Civil War, with perhaps an end-credits sequence in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Peter Parker plays a major role in the Civil War story, so taking him out and replacing him with a Spider-man that nobody knows would be idiotic, so keeping Peter for this movie makes sense. Following his introduction, there is the solo Spider-man movie that is scheduled for 2017, which is where Marvel should use Venom (so we can finally have a good Venom movie instead of Spider-man 3) as the bad guy but also lay foundation for the Green Goblin. The reason for this is because the Ultimate Universe contains a story arc where Peter Parker dies at the hands of the Goblin. The MCU already greatly pulls from the Ultimate Universe, so using this storyline wouldn’t be that much of a stretch.

After setting up the Green Goblin in the solo movie, you have Avengers: Infinity Wars take place as scheduled, basically signaling the end of the MCU’s first arc. Everything so far has built towards Thanos, but I doubt Marvel stops making movies after his defeat and will instead start a second story arc, possibly revolving around Secret Wars or maybe even Galactus should they acquire the rights. This allows them to start an all-new slate of movies and create a sequel to the earlier Spider-man film. At this point, Marvel will most likely want to introduce many new characters since many of the previous actors will be too old or have expiring contracts. It would be right here, during the Spider-Man sequel that I would kill off Peter at the hands of the Green Goblin and introduce Miles Morales as the new Ultimate Spider-man.

This is the best compromise as it allows for both Peter and Miles to have their time in the spotlight. Will it happen? Who knows, but all these people out there suggesting Miles Morales should be Spider-man need to understand that it just doesn’t make sense right now. Peter Parker is finally back where he belongs (sort of, the deal isn’t exactly what I was hoping for) and with the quality of Marvel movies lately, Spidey fans want to see what Marvel can do with Peter Parker. Would I like for Morales to get a shot? Sure, but not quite yet.

-GG

Marvel just saved Spider-man

As many of my readers may know, I am a huge fan of Spider-man. He is easily my favorite superhero as I go out of my way to watch/read/play anything that includes our webbed wall crawler in it. We have been lucky enough to live in a time where superhero movies are at the peak of their popularity and their quality has been astonishingly good (for the most part — I’m looking at you Green Lantern). Unfortunately, Spider-man has not been able to enjoy that success since Spider-man 2 in 2004. We have now had three mediocre to terrible Spider-man movies in a row, each performing worse and worse at the box office and being met with general disdain — and the future looked just as bleak as recently as two days ago.

The decline in popularity for Spidey (movie-wise) started with Spider-man 3 back in 2007, when the movie was released to financial success, but was bombarded with average reviews and scorned by the public. Plans for the fourth installment ended up being put on hold indefinitely and eventually disappeared completely, and it wasn’t until a few years later that Sony was forced to reboot their franchise. Facing a decision where they would have to let the rights revert back to Marvel and lose one of their biggest money makers or fast-track a new Spider-man movie, Sony obviously decided to make a new film and launch a new trilogy.

The newly christened The Amazing Spider-man movies would star a new Peter Parker and retell the iconic origin story, much to the chagrin of many fans. What we received was a passable superhero flick that stuck to what worked and did little to innovate or change the formula. It was successful enough that it justified a sequel that hit theaters just last year. The sequel was again met with middling reviews, but audience interest dwindled and it thus brought in the least amount of money of any Spider-man film to that point. Sony’s financial struggles are well documented, so having Spider-man flounder was not an option. Looking for ways to expand their universe, new movies were announced that would come out before the third installment of The Amazing Spider-man franchise.

And now we reach today, the day Marvel just might have saved Spider-man from becoming insignificant in the cinematic world. Sony’s ideas for future films set in Spider-man’s universe have been talked about for months: a Venom movie, a Sinister Six film, a rumor that a movie focusing on Aunt May would be created, as well as a film dedicated to the women in the Spidey universe were just some of the ideas that were thrown around. Most of these ideas, in my opinion, are absolutely terrible. For one, how do you even market an Aunt May centric movie? Can you imagine seeing a trailer where they tell you to come see Spider-man’s aunt fight bad guys, but Spider-man won’t actually be in the film? The Sinister Six movie was another awful idea as what would the central plot be? The Sinister Six would plot to take down Spider-man and fail…wouldn’t that just be The Amazing Spider-man 3?

The problem that Sony faced is that they had no idea how to revitalize the Spider-man franchise and just started throwing anything they could think of at it. They only had access to Spider-man and his villains, and in a world where people want to see hero team-ups like The Avengers, they couldn’t deliver that type of experience. At this point, Sony had one of two options: make those movies and risk financial disaster or go to Marvel and try to work a deal that was beneficial for both companies that allowed Spider-man to appear in the MCU. I was fearful for a while that Sony would actually go through with their movie ideas, but after the recent email leaks, it looks like the higher-ups among the Sony executives thought otherwise.

Now that Marvel is able to include Spidey in their movies, they have a chance to save Spder-man and make him cool again (especially after that awful dancing scene in Spider-man 3). What they plan to do with the web-head is extremely important. Do they rehash an origin story that has been beaten to death? It might not be an option liked by fans, but Marvel needs to establish Spider-man quickly in the MCU in order to include him in a future Avengers film. They have to be careful not to alienate fans with another boring origin story but at the same time make it accessible to new viewers who are seeing Spider-man for the first time. It is going to be a tough balance but if anyone is up to the task, it’s Marvel’s Kevin Feige.

Personally, I believe Civil War is the likeliest film to include our webbed hero since he played such an important role in the original comic series. Another possibility is an end credits sequence in Avengers: Age of Ultron that leads into Civil War. The biggest obstacle the heads at Marvel are going to face is the standalone movie they have set for 2017. As mentioned earlier, it needs to be handled carefully. More information will probably be released later this year after the release of the second Avengers movie; until then I’ll be excitedly waiting for more news about Spidey’s move to the MCU.

Talk to you guys later, follow me on Twitter @Gallivant_Gamer.

-GG

Top comics for 2/4/15

So I was going to write about some of the awesome comics that came out this week that I couldn’t include on my list, but literally as I write this, news broke that Spider-man is officially joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now I could care less about anything else. Spider-man joining the MCU is a huge deal, not only for Marvel but for Sony as well. From what I can gather, Sony made this deal for the good of their company, as it will most likely be a highly profitable partnership. Sony has been struggling financially recently, so it makes sense that they are using every option open to them in order to re-stabilize their company. In Marvel’s case, this does nothing but help them draw in every Spidey fans around the world that may not know anything else about the Marvel universe. I am excited to say the least, and I cannot wait to see what Marvel has planned for their most popular character. I CANNOT WAIT!

Enjoy the list, follow me on Twitter @Gallivant_Gamer…I kind of had a breakdown on there after the Spider-man news broke.

1. Ms. Marvel #11

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Ms. Marvel is the best new comic out there. I never thought in a million years that this comic series would be as good as it is or that Kamala would reach this kind of popularity. Too many times there are new comics released and met with a yawn and turn out to be ‘just ok’ or awful wastes of time. I guess it was just a matter of time before there was a hit, but I doubt anyone else expected Ms. Marvel to grow this big this fast. And while I didn’t expect it, it feels nice to be genuinely surprised.

As far as this week’s issue goes, we hit a big milestone in the Ms. Marvel era as we wrap up Kamala’s first big arc. Kamala has at last defeated her very first super villain — The Inventor; all while learning some very important superhero lessons! As a new hero, she has no idea how to go about certain things; should she go in guns blazing or perhaps sneak in and try to alert the least amount of people possible? The lesson learned here is that sometimes you have to rely on others to help you and doing everything yourself could get you or someone else killed. It is a valuable lesson our heroine learns, and is another step toward the upper echelon of heroes.

This development is particularly important because, to this point, Kamala has been presented as a hard-headed, strong-willed individual. This type of growth as a character (learning to rely on others) is a big step for her in her journey. She wants to do things her way and protect those important to her without getting anyone else involved (mostly for fear that they could wind up injured). I’ve mentioned this before, but as a new hero, she needs to experience these things for herself. Having someone else tell her what to do would undermine Kamala as a character and would actually stunt her growth as a hero. Doing things this way actually causes her to evolve by leaps and bounds instead of baby steps. The next issue is going to include Loki and I can’t wait to see Kamala’s first run in with an A-list villain.

2. Avengers #41

I am not sorry for once again including one of the Avengers titles on my list. This latest story arc that is setting up Secret Wars is the most I’ve enjoyed an Avengers comic in months. Each issue builds upon the last, and after such an intense last chapter, I was sort of expecting a down week. Let me just tell you now that I was totally wrong. This chapter blew Avengers #40 out of the water.

Hopefully by now you know that Black Panther killed Namor in the last issue in order to take revenge for his destroying Wakanda. At the time, I knew there was no way that Namor (or Thanos for that matter) died, but I had no idea how they would have survived. That brings us to this past week’s issue where a majority of it takes place in the Ultimate Universe. Here we see Nick Fury telling the reformed (?) bad guy Reed Richards (yea, crazy shit…read the Ultimate comics, they’re an amazing set of comics…seriously) that S.H.E.I.L.D. needs to be rebuilt and Reed needs to help him.

We find out that Reed has secretly been protecting the world from the incursions that had been going on, something I had ben wondering about myself for a while now. It actually makes complete sense that this version of Reed Richards is perfectly alright with killing planets and possibly murdering billions of people to save his own and it really makes me wonder what the two Reeds are going to think about each other once they meet. I want to say that this coming week won’t include one of the Avengers titles for variety’s sake, but the latest chapters have been so enjoyable I can’t make such a guarantee.

3. Injustice: Gods Among Us – Year 3 – #19

This week’s chapter was the culmination of quite a few story threads throughout Year 3. For one, we finally know who The Spectre really is, and it seems like the final battle is fast approaching. I actually have very little to say about this chapter, I just felt that it was one of the better chapters this week and deserved a spot on the list. The implications of the ending panel are enormous, and I look forward to the next chapter.

I apologize that the third entry is so short, however, after hearing the news about Spider-man, I find it hard to think about anything else. Talk to you guys soon!

-GG

Netflix’s Daredevil Trailer is here

The new Daredevil trailer has been released and I am a tad confused, but pleasantly surprised. Ever since Marvel has been making movies, they have tried to blend comedy and action, usually very successfully. Despite this, the past two Marvel trailers, Ant-man and now Daredevil, have been among the more serious, darker side. Ant-man is said to be funnier than the trailer implied, but I’m not so sure about this series. In all honesty, I think it might be better if there was no comedy present in this show.

Daredevil is a darker comic, usually dealing with the seedier and deadlier parts of New York. The hero is constantly dealing with gangsters and mobsters, and the Kingpin is one of the most powerful and deadly villains in the Marvel universe. I think keeping a darker tone for the show would actually make it better. It would be different from the rest of the stuff Marvel has put out so far, with it’s own characteristics and personality. I’m not saying every film/show in the MCU is without it’s more serious scenes or topics, but I think a Daredevil in the vein of The Dark Knight could potentially be a great series.

From what I can gather from the trailer, this will be the origin of Daredevil. His costume is an early stage of the final design, and it looks like the Kingpin is going to be introduced and set up as the main villain of the series. Marvel has been putting out quality products up to this point and I have no doubt that this will add to their portfolio whichever direction they decide to take the character.

-GG

Top comics for 1/28/15

Whew. What a busy week. That aside, here is my late list of top comics. Quickly I wanted to let everyone know that I have finally gotten ahold of most of the main Batman series and will be reading it from now on. I mentioned before that I was trying to read more DC Comics in order to expand my catalog, but I didn’t know quite where to start. What helped me decide was that over the past week a bunch of people started talking about the new Joker plotline that is taking place in the Batman series right now. Everyone seemed rather excited so I went and got all 38 issues and plan to catch up as fast as possible. I am enjoying the series so far, and the Court of Owls is quite the group of adversaries and are proving to be very interesting. One comic series I would like to highlight here real quick is Inhuman. I am loving the series so far, but I just can’t seem to get that issue that sends me over the top. The momentum it carried for a while there died out with the Axis event, so I’m hoping now that it is out of the way it will pick up once again.

Enjoy the list, even if it is a week late. Let me know you thoughts on this past weeks comics! Follow me on Twitter @Gallivant_Gamer as I talk about things that annoy me…like the Kingdom Hearts Final Mix bosses. Man they suck. Talk to you guys soon!

1. Spider-man and the X-men #2

Turns out just putting Spider-man in anything does not automatically make it good. Who knew? As you might be able to guess then, I was not a fan of the first issue of Spider-man and the X-men, otherwise known as ‘Spider-man gets stuck teaching a bunch of brats that have superpowers…the series.’ Last issue was actually pretty boring, and I found the writing to be lackluster. Thank goodness for this issue though! It was funny, fast-paced, and sees our heroes swept from one danger to the next in the blink of an eye; a far cry from the slowness of the first issue. What really brought this issue to life was the comedic aspect. To me, most of the jokes in the first issue fell flat and went without a laugh, but this second chapter got the complete opposite reaction. Jokes were spot on, Spidey was actually funny and witty, and the X-kids played off of his wittiness pretty well themselves.

While the book tries to set up a detective type of storyline, with Spider-man trying to find a mole among the children, this book is best suited for showing what Spidey can teach these kids. Helping these kids get along and actually work together — while at the same time building their confidence and helping them get over any problems — should be Spider-man’s top priority. This issue is better than the first, in my opinion, because of this. This issue planted a focus on Shark-girl and at the end of the issue Spidey really does a great job building this kid’s confidence in herself. If the series sticks closer to this teaching aspect, then I will probably continue to read (and enjoy) this title.

2. New Avengers #29

This was a hard decision because I was mulling over whether I should have included this issue of New Avengers or Thor #4. The new Thor chapter was another masterfully crafted issue in the series, but what ultimately held it back was the non-reveal of who the new Thor is. I’m all for a slow burn, but it felt like everything was building up towards a reveal and instead she just flew away. In contrast, we actually get some answers in this issue as to what Reed might have been planning to stop the destruction of everything. We get some much needed back information that also explains why exactly the universe is ending in four months, as well as what Hank Pym has been up to.

Overall, this story arc is a strong one. I don’t know if I’ve ever been this engrossed or invested in a storyline before (Spider-Verse is close). I care about what is happening because I know that it is going to change the Marvel universe as we know it. Thinking about it, I’m not sure I’d be this invested if I didn’t know the outcome already. I would probably think that they’d save the day again with no real damage done, but instead we’re getting a second Secret Wars event because they technically fail to prevent the destruction of the universe (though I guess they sort of do…but they don’t…it’s all very confusing). It is going to be an interesting couple of months as we see how plans unfold and ultimately fail (succeed?).

3. Uncanny X-men #30

I can’t figure out if I want this story arc to end already or for it to just keep going. This arc has seemingly gone on forever with no end in sight because even when they finish dealing with this new mutant, they’ll have to finish reading Xavier’s will. The storyline has had it’s ups and downs, but it seems to be on an upswing at the moment. Some exciting things are going on, though you know most of it will return to normal by the end of this arc. For example, there is no way Cyclops dying in the last issue stays canon. I have to imagine that Marvel would make a big event out of something like that considering he is the leader of the mutant revolution right now. If the leader died because S.H.I.E.L.D. destroyed him then there is a good chance war would break out between mutants and humans.

This issue picks up right where the last one left off with our new Omega level mutant discovering that he can pretty much do whatever he wants. Despite the few surprises that revolve around that portion of the story, it is Eva Bell that offers the greater enjoyment. As we saw last chapter, she used her time travel powers to go back to Xavier and get him to come to the future and fix everything. Seeing how the Professor deals with this new information is actually quite surprising. You would expect him to keep a cool head and think through everything logically, but what we get is more akin to someone who would rather stay oblivious to the world. He even threatens Eva if she didn’t return to her own time! I understand that messing with the time stream is a major risk, but with this type of threat, I think it can be overlooked this time. Either way, the arc has really cranked it up and I am looking forward to what Xavier does now. A tiny note to make: this issue ended with the best line ever. I don’t want to spoil it, but it sent chills down my spine.

-GG