Scouring out the weekly singles scene … in comics!
Phew! After a near summer-long absence, your friendly neighborhood Louis Fowler is back with another installment of his SERIOUS ISSUES. I didn’t even pick up comics for the past two months, so when I finally did a week or so ago, the bill came to $153.98! But I guess them’s the breaks in the funny book business! So the past few days have been filled with nothing but constant comic reading; I’ve had to lock the door, shun the affections of love ones and I may not have a job any more. Over the next three days, enjoy the savory fruits of my labors, starting with the good people at Marvel.
THE NEW AVENGERS/TRANSFORMERS #1 (Marvel/IDW) Obviously timed to coincide with the release of the TRANSFORMERS movie and the death of Captain America (oh, yeah – in case you haven’t heard, Captain America is dead. Sorry, spoiler alert!), this four-issue company crossover has the “New” Avengers – Cap, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Luke Cage, Falcon and Ms. Marvel – coming across a massive energy surge in Latveria.
Thinking it’s that wily Dr. Doom up to his typical, no-good shenanigans, they investigate, only to find that it’s the Autobots looking for some Energon and some Decepticons. It’s the usual setup issue to get things going, bolstered by art from Tyler Kirkman, who does a better job here than what’s really expected from him. A fun enough time.
WORLD WAR HULK (Marvel) So CIVIL WAR has come and gone, Cap is dead and Tony Stark is still a four-colored asshole. In a world that’s barely had time to recover from the effects of all those disasters, along comes the Hulk, ready to stomp and smash everyone and anyone who gets in his way. Quick recap: Before CIVIL WAR, Dr. Strange, Black Bolt, Iron Man and Reed Richards – aka the Illuminati – all got together and decided to blast the jade giant into space. He landed on a war-torn planet and ultimately became its hero. He even found himself a nice little wife, and baby in womb, decided to settle down.
But – oops – the rocket ship he was sent in explodes, killing everyone, including said wife and child. Now, more pissed than ever and with a team of other gladiators from the planet, they come to Earth looking for revenge. It’s a storyline called “World War Hulk,” by the way.
Most of the action is occurring in the WORLD WAR HULK limited series, with continuations and side-stories in THE INCREDIBLE HULK ongoing series. Here’s a basic breakdown: Hulk’s made his base of operations in New York City. He delivers the earth an ultimatum: Deliver to him the Illuminati in a said period of time, or else he’ll go totally Hulk-shit and destroy the entire world. And he could do it, too.
Of course, Tony Stark and crew pay no mind to this, and just decided to attack him with all their might, but the Hulk tears through the hero rosters like they were a Girl Scout troop. Meanwhile, an army of believers in the Hulk – led by smart-kid Amadeus Cho – has taken up Hulk’s cause and bands against the Illuminati with him. We’re left with a cliffhanger, featuring not only Gen. Thunderbolt Ross shooting adamantium bullets in the Hulk’s general direction, but Dr. Strange growing to 10 times his regular size and screaming, “Strange smash!” This is how you do an event series!
On a lesser note, for a nice companion piece from a journalistic point of view, pick up the WORLD WAR HULK: FRONT LINE limited series, featuring edge-of-your-seat reporter action from the likes of Ben Urich, as they try to start their own alt-weekly in the face of World War Hulk! I hope their coverage gets them AAN membership!
Also, the always-funny, always-fun She-Hulk continues the story, from having a fallout with Stark, which not only causes her to lose her Hulk powers, but also finds her putting Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. on trial. Guaranteed wackiness will ensue, I’m sure.
MARVEL HORROR (Marvel) Marvel is milking its MARVEL ZOMBIES franchise for all the pus it’s worth, crossing the alternate universe story over ad nauseam, even touting covers for stories with no zombies in them: THOR #1, I’m talking to you. But the stories that do feature the Marvel Zombies, well, those are still gold. Rotted, stinking gold.
The one-shot MARVEL ZOMBIES: DEAD DAYS tells the origin of the plague that turned our favorite heroes into flesh-eaters. Apparently, it has something to do with Magneto trying to kill off the pesky humans to make way for the Homo Superior. The heroes try to quell the menace, but then that dipshit Reed Richards gives up all hope and dooms us all.
But not all hope is lost, as the in- MARVEL-ZOMBIES -continuity tale of Ash – of ARMY OF DARKNESS fame – enters the dead world, mixing up Deadites with Marvel Zombies in the hilarious Marvel/Dynamite crossover MARVEL ZOMBIES VS. ARMY OF DARKNESS – quite possibly the smartest, most inventive crossover ever.
In the last few issues, we find Ash teaming with sexy disco queen Dazzler – kind of the most logical team-up, when you think about it – and heading to Latveria to obtain a copy of the Necronomicon, which is owned in this world by Dr. Doom. It’s a hilarious and, at times, quite white-knuckle read that is destined to be a classic. Even the ending is laugh-out-loud funny, and paves the way for what I hope is a sequel. At least pick this title up in trade paperback. C’mon, treat yourself for once in your worthless life.
Let’s not forget the series of LEGION OF MONSTERS one-shots that are simply fun and stunning. They’re funning! Morbius, the Living Vampire makes a return to the pages, terrorizing some clueless gutter punks, featuring beautiful art from Michael Gaydos, whose work resembles the gorgeous HELLRAISER and NIGHTBREED comics Marvel did in the ‘90s.
This is followed by a Dracula and Lillith tale that explores the creepy dynamics between the vampire father/daughter duo. But as sexy as Lillith is, she’s no match for the latest LEGION OF MONSTERS entry, Satana, the leather clad, red-haired daughter of Satan. Not only does she walk around in an outfit that gives Vampirella a run for her money, but also fights the Scorpion Queen, Mother of All Hell’s Vermin. Hey, that sounds like my ex-wife! (Ha-ha, I kid!) A backup story featuring The Living Mummy is beautiful to look at, and very stylized, but utterly unreadable and quite a waste.
And please, don’t forget to pick up this perennial SERIOUS ISSUES Marvel fave:
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL#7-9: Not only does The Punisher think he’s the new Captain America, so does a new, neo-Nazi Hate Monger who’s also made his own Cap uniform, complete with a swastika. To top it off, he and his cronies are setting fire to immigrant work camps. You know Big Pun ain’t down for that shit!
Tomorrow: The Dark Knight thrills! Superman disappoints! Leatherface learns a lesson! –Louis Fowler
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