Here's a preview from Marvel for New Warriors and New Exiles.
I have a hard time getting around to actually reading New Warriors. Partially because someone else usually updates the volume here before I get a chance. I really want to like it but for some reason it's just not pulling me in. I'm still buying it in the hopes that one day I'll be able to sit down and read them.
New Exiles...things have been a little weird lately (since the re-launch). Doesn't seem the same without Blink.
New Warriors #15
A “SECRET INVASION” Tie-In that brings you New Warrior against New Warrior!
To discover the true fate of his deceased brother, Night Thrasher will need to survive a melee between his current teammates and his former teammates, infiltrate a heavily-guarded S.H.I.E.L.D. station, and brave an army of Skrulls armed with the abilities of every superhuman he’s ever known. Piece of cake, right?
There seems to be something keeping the New Warriors down. Something just doesn't work with me. Their involvement in the Secret Invasion brings some interesting questions. In the preview Night Thrasher is seen to finally reveal himself as Dwayne's younger brother to his teammates. It's about time I guess. He is still keeping secrets from them. That makes it hard to be an effective leader.
The question that arises from this tie-in is, could the New Warriors at Stamford have been Skrulls? That's actually a really good question. I did find the New Warriors mini-series with the team running a reality show just a bit out of character. These are the things that Donyell brings to everyone's attention. Amidst the war, they make their way to discover the answer to that question. Will they find out right away? Seems like something Marvel wouldn't want to reveal right away. I will say that an answer is given but is it the true answer? It still seems that there are those that still can't be trusted.
It's always great seeing these characters together. I did find myself being more interested in the Counter Force team instead. Hopefully we'll see more of them. I do have to say that the art fell a little flat with me. Because of that I have to knock it down half a star. Overall a decent issue. It was cool to see the SHIELD helicarrier after the run-in with the Jarvis Skrull and Maria Hill.
3.5 out of 5
New Exiles #10
The British and French empires are at each other’s throats, and the Exiles are barely able to catch their breath. Perhaps the help of certain wheelchair-bound mutant teacher’s student body would come in handy? Meanwhile in Chinese occupied Japan, Betsy struggles to deal with Lady Mandarin and Ogun. Double your dose of alternate-reality adventure as two issues fly your way, wrapping up the third arc of New Exiles!
Review
Where do I begin? The Exiles has always been a really cool concept. It's always reminded me of the old "What If...?" comics back in their prime. What made it even better was seeing a core group of heroes interact with each new world they came across. It was also cool in that no team member was truly safe. Anyone could die or move on at any point.
"New" Exiles just feels different. It could be partially because Blink is gone. She was always the backbone of the team. Chris Claremont did write the last eleven issues of the first Exiles series. With the re-boot, it hasn't been the same. It's felt like there's been a new writer. Yes we still have Sabretooth and Morph. The addition of Psylocke is major plus and Sage is an asset to any team she's on. I've also been a huge fan of Tom Grummett for a while so it's nice seeing his work.
All that just doesn't seem to be enough to make it what it used to be. The characters feel different. The worlds are too. It used to be we'd get slight variations of the characters. Lately we've been getting strange new incarnations or amalgamations, if you will, of the characters. That doesn't seem normal. I know there isn't much that is normal when we're talking parallel universes and such. Maybe all the variations have been done in the first one hundred issues and What If's. I am glad this story on the current world is finished.
At least with this issue we're getting more seeds planted to arouse our interest in the mysterious Rogue and Mystiq. Those two are clearly hiding something. I'm hoping the next issue will be better.
3 out of 5
