All new X Men is one of the main titles I have been looking forward to in Marvel Now however it is getting unfortunately disappointing. The art has always been fantastic, the fourth page (the first splash of the issue) in this issue is one of my all time favourite images. The panelling is fresh and a little insane allowing Immonen to really play with the format and size of panels. The storyline however seems not to be progressing, after four issues I feel like I still only have the information that was released in teasers, it has been quite unimpressive. I think the reason for this may be that the JG School team and Scott's new team have been crammed into one comic, as we know Scott's team will eventually split into Uncanny X Men and I hope that when that happens the two comics get their own identities and improve. Despite my frustration with the series this issue itself wasn't bad, it was nice to see the two new mutants starting to interact a little but I am expecting them to grow more in the future. I am still really not enjoying the past x men, I was never going to... Another reason I am never particularly shocked b the issues may be that I read the previews stupidly early but im not going to stop, there should be more than one good scene per comic.
7.5/10
Avengers Arena #2
Hopless' Avengers Arena two titles have continued for a second week and Avengers Arena continued with its specific single character storytelling method with the character Deathlockette, a new character and daughter of the creator of Deathlock's. The second issue was just as good as the first with high drama, death and danger leading us to our first real group of characters. I get the feeling the majority of the characters in this are either really small, new or not likely to die. The art was still awesome so well done for that, I am looking forward to seeing the series progress and getting a look into the heads of all the other characters, Deathlockette and Hazmat were a great start.
Avengers #2
Issue One was epic and issue two has continued exactly where it left off, the villains continued to ramp up the pressure, the multi time storytelling began to bridge together and the real recruiting began. Opena continued to draw the Avengers how he wants to see them, it is refreshing to get a not so shiny image of the mighty heroes that brings them down the Earth (or Mars) whilst keeping them cool and stylish. Speaking of style the "Foundation" of members is an awesome new idea, I love the branching logo and trying to fit heroes into each one, a few are still blank so Im looking forward to seeing them filled in. For me as an Xfan it was cool to see Sunspot and Cannonball, in general I liked the section with SpiderWoman and Captain Marvel, in fact the whole recruiting section managed to stay short and concise whilst adding 12 to the roster! The villains seem a little bit too much like Apocolypse from Hickman's X force stuff, they seem to have very similar "life seed" "death seed" style views and weaponry but they serve the purpose of being a threat the Avengers need to regroup for. Yeah a really excellent second issue and one of my favourite now titles for sure!
9/10
Thunderbolts #2
There is a lot of crap flying around over this issue of Thunderbolts, most have hated it and one article talks about Elektra's nudity and some comments Way and Dillon have made about it, read that >>http://www.theouthousers.com/index.php/news/119749-thunderbolts-2-flaunts-gratuitious-boobage-for-no-reason.html
its interesting to say the least. Anyway what did I think, well I thought it was quite amusing, whilst tensions were unneceserily high in the issue it did have a few nice lines from Venom and was overall an easy read, it flew by in a generic whirr but I personally dont see what is wrong with a little bit of a cliche or stereotype, sometimes boundaries dont have to be pushed, its nice to read a comic and not think "what does all this mean(to be read in an overly dramatic voice.)" However it isn't nice and it is easy to see what is wrong with Dillon's art, I like the red and black theme but aside from that the panelling is boring and the images are unimaginative, dull and undynamic, not only that but the simple lines and shades make the book look more like a colour by numbers than a comic. So overall it was very mediocre but hey that ok... literally mediocre is ok...
6/10
X Factor #249
I am running out of things to say about X Factor, if you have read it you know what its like... thats what it was like, its always high quality, quick, quippy and action filled. Something specifically nice about this issue that highlights Peter David's knowledge and dedication to his characters was Monet's reaction to being trapped in her body. I have read all the stuff about her being Penance and it didnt even occur to me that it would effect her so well done to David for really getting into the heads of his characters and remembering their nuances. I am however a little unimpressed by how slowly X Factor moves and by how much pathetic drama goes on, I love the realism in the characters speech and the way they interact but it feels like it can get in the way of the storytelling and take over the comic. Anyway the next issue marks Peter David's 100th consecutive issue and the start of a new Hell war on earth saga or something, should be interesting!
7.8/10 (I know specific, I want it to be a 7.5 but it was better than All New 4)
Cable and the X Force #2
For a writer fairly new to the Marvel Universe and very new to this set of characters Hopless writes X Force like he has been writing it for years! The characters interactions feel natural and pure and the developments he is working on are interesting and hopefully unique. My favourite character of the issue was Domino who acts as kind of a mouth piece for the audience asking Cable why he is doing this AGAIN!!!. The time jusmping around is a little confusing but I think it is worth the trade off for the good mix of action and questions it brings. The return of Stryfe (who else is that shadow going to be) is a little disappointing as is Cables mystery illness, they are both character arcs I would like to have seen Cable move away from but other than that the series is going brilliantly. As I said last week Larroca's stuff is beautiful, his action is exciting his interiors are nice and detailed and I am really enjoying his work, more of the same is needed. It was nice to see Colossus' reappearance and it was well handled, of all the phoenix 5 power fluctuations his is my favourite. I do also dislike Cable's "visions" but until we see what they are actually all about I have no right to make my mind up. Overall a wicked second issue, another of my favourite Now series!
8.5/10
Hulk #2
I loved the development to Hulk that Waid created in issue one and this issue brilliantly built upon the ideas of the first with the ever cautious Iron Man (lol) questioning his allegiance to SHIELD and whether he can keep up working for them and control or at least aim the Hulk. I am not a big Hulk fan but I am loving the start of this series, Banner's character actually seems to have a character for a change and the Hulk vs Bannar arc has been left behind in the trash where it belongs. Yu's art was again brilliantly fitting, adding a darkness and a realism to Hulk and Banner. I dont have much more to say about this issue, it was wicked! End Of!
8.5/10
Captain America #2
I was terribly disappointed by issue 1 of Captain America but this second issue goes a long way towards making up for it. The unusual post apocolyptic style Z world is a little far fetched and I am sure there must be a time issue to fix as he can't have been there for a year, he would have vanished in other titles... but the issue itself is pretty good, cap's internal narration is nice and this is some of my favourite of Romita's art. Kick ass is pretty good but I am usually a little put off by him, in this issue it really fits, the scratchy shading makes Cap seem dirty and darker which works really well for the issue. I dont know what is going to come of the series, surely it must become more formulaic soon but I like the idea of exploring Steve's childhood through him bringing up and I hope it continues.
8/10
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