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5 (15) 4 (75) 3 (105) 2 (67) 1 (6) 3.2 starsAverage score of 268 user reviews
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Philosophy Afloat 0
Staying in the Shi’ar Imperium, the narrative focus returns to the Avengers away team. Some brief time has passed, since the Avengers have finally been allowed to meet Lilandra, who is overseeing the departure of the tool designed to end the war: the nega-bomb, though she is telling everyone it’s just a portal. The question of morality is raised again throughout the issue: first, Corsair refuses to be a part of it. Lilandra’s response is reminiscent of Gladiator’s: is the safety of one planet mo...
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What Goes Around... 0
Half-way through the epic crossover, Quasar is given another transitional episode. His repeated failure at preventing the Shi’ar and Kree from using the stargates causes us to wonder why exactly he was left behind, since he isn’t doing much good – not that we blame him or doubt his efficacy as Protector of the Universe: one being against two interstellar fleets is a bit much to ask. With Her’s help, though, he does effectively defeat Starbolt and Neutron, though too late; using what is becoming ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
Full of Surprises 0
Meanwhile, back at the ranch (the “ranch” being Project Pegasus in New York and not either Avengers Headquarters) … U.S. Agent is still irate Hawkeye usurped his place and is taking it out on, of all people, She-Hulk. That tells you just about everything you need to know about John Walker, U.S. Agent (and why he’s not Steve Rogers, Captain America). Most of the homefront guard aren’t happy about being left behind, especially the active Avengers (East and West), all except for Gilgamesh, who is p...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Dissension in the Ranks 0
The Kree Avengers team arrives at Hala, the Kree homeworld – prisoners. The bickering between Cap and Iron Man hasn’t stopped, and Cap won’t concede Iron Man got them to their destination in one piece, since it wasn’t the way he wanted. Since it’s his issue, Cap’s internal monologue drives most of the narration. Almost immediately, Shatterax is forced to hand the Avengers over to Ronan the Accuser, equivalent to the chief of police for the entire empire, once Ronan is finished dressing him down ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
Can Two Rights Make a Wrong? 0
Occurring simultaneously with Iron Man 278, Thor 445 shows us the other away team to the Shi’ar Imperium: Thor (Eric Masterson), Wonder Man, Vision, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel (the female Monica Rambeau), Starfox, and the Living Lightning, young recent recruit of AWC – certainly an odd group for such an important mission; but as all recent issues have shown, the Avengers are currently experiencing as much stress and instability as the sun is. After a brief comical moment of the Scarlet Witch ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
"Now's when things really get interesting." 0
With the extended exposition complete and the instigating event of the teams splitting up for the Kree and Shi’ar galaxies recently occurring, the rising action begins. As Len Kaminski (writer of this issue) declares: “Now’s when things really get interesting.” With three main groups of characters to balance in mind, the planners of the series intelligently split up the teams to match the series in which the story occurs: in Iron Man 278, here, we focus on the Kree Empire away team of Iron Man, ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
The Long and Winding Slippery, Muddy Road 0
Some time passes: Rick Jones’s time on stage is complete (much to his relief), and Captain America returns him (behind the scenes) to the Hulk, presumably on his way back to Avengers Headquarters in New York (ahead of the West Coast Avengers who are still preparing to rally with the East Coasters). Additionally, enough time has passed for the Avengers to rendezvous with Quasar (leaving Starfox and the captive Kree tomb-raiding twosome at HQ) and send an away team to respond to the emergency broa...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
Shaka Boom 0
Picking up immediately where Quasar 32 left off, fortunately for Rick Jones, Captain Atlas begins his barrage against Simon Williams, demanding to know where he is. Wonder Man responds in kind, demanding to know where Rick Jones is. Neither is happy with the answers: Atlas is disgusted with being on “this backwater planet,” and Simon is disgusted with his immediate failure in his bodyguard role (as well as disgusted by the stupid Kree names).Again the smooth flowing nature of the crossover is de...
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Better than "The Revenge of the Ninja Nuns" 0
Continuing the impressive narrative concision of this crossover, Quasar quickly shifts from failing to stop the Shi’ar from departing to connecting with the Starcore crew, learning from them what the readers found out back in Avengers 344: the sun is suffering egregious deleterious effects from the warping of space, an example of which Quasar has just seen for himself. It is mildly bemusing Dr. Corbeau is not in this issue, but the information is transferred in any event.Like with most issues in...
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"Are we in for a Kree/Shi'ar war this time?" 0
Picking up directly after part 1, AWC 80 is an incredibly packed issue a decade before 24 made the time-conscious narrative popular (but over a decade after the M*A*S*H episode "Life Time"). Rick Jones's assumption the Kree are kidnapping him is understandable, considering they are inquiring after the Kree Captain Mar-Vell and he just had the dream about the Kree's homeworld. The rapid backstory review might be confusing to readers who weren't around to read comics in the late '60s and '70s like...
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Storm Winds Gathering 0
The mighty crossover begins with a dire premonition of disaster in the Kree Empire. The recipient of the portent is Rick Jones, one-time professional sidekick and former friend of Captain America. The slow-developing nature of the story is apropos for a 19-part story, though those addicted to mindless action might prefer something more intense - but not much is more intense than a vision of an empire wiped out and Captain America transforming into the Supreme Intelligence. After the dream, the n...
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Interludes upon Interludes 0
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this issue is its position in the Avengers history and future, augmented by its own self-awareness of its position in that spectrum. The old Swordsman is back, apparently, though he is unstable and antagonistic to his former team, just as old friends are back: Crystal has joined recently, Sersi is back, and Thor has recently been born anew in Eric Masterson, soon to be Thunderstrike, bridging the past and the future. As Dane is confronted with part of his pa...
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Still Going Strong (in its Way) 0
The story and time keep rolling in this third deluxe collection, containing many small stories and ending with a stand-alone narrator focus issue. The collection begins and ends with disappointing notes, primarily in Yorick's and another character's vituperation against God and/or His (non)existence. The pervasive obscenity and occasional nudity is bad enough, but these brief vocal tidbits definitely add nothing (though the guest character's expression/frustration at the end is more sincere and ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
No Mean Story 0
Willingham does a fine job of economy with the main story of this collection. Once again Cinderella's one-shot spy story with Ichabod Crane is presented outside of its original chronology, which doesn't matter to the history of the series or enjoyment of any collection it is in. The two-part Bigby in WW2 story is overly graphic, though many no doubt laud its "authenticity" for a WW2 story. The mixture of gritty combat and Universal Picture horror tribute is interesting (though I could have done ...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
More Like It 0
With one extended story plus one stand-alone issue (anachronistically placed first, though it is actually an improvement), this deluxe collection is the best so far. This is partly because of the familiarity we have now with the characters, especially Willingham's twist on them, and the fact it is mostly one extended story. As nice as the shorter, discrete tales and "where are they now?" issues are in Book 2 (and they are good in their way), this is more enjoyable for its focused, intense story....
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Zero Story: Crisis in Interest 0
Admittedly I'm more of a Marvel fan than DC fan (before the ubiquitous events of the late '90s and '00s), but I do enjoy it once in awhile when it makes sense and tells a good story. Zero Hour, though, doesn't do either of them. There is no characterization until the last three pages of the series, and even that is a little forced considering everything else that had gone on in the DC universe lately (death of Superman, breaking of Batman, insanity of Hal Jordan and destruction of the Green Lant...
0 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Moving Right Along 0
Though this collection continue to suffer from Vaughan's ubiquitous obscenities, the stories are getting a bit better. One of the main challenges with a series based on this premise is that all the villains need to be female - not to say females don't make good villains, but the one-sidedness of the conflicts sometimes border on the redundant. The great cliffhanger at the end of the "Cycles" storyline does not, sadly, get a quality payoff in "One Small Step" - Vaughan takes the easy way out and ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Dreams and Nightmares 0
Neil Gaiman's series definitely gets better as it goes along. Once he tells his initial stories, Gaiman starts to get the hang of the character and this universe - primarily by freeing virtually any boundary of storytelling, akin to The Twilight Zone and other anthology series. The initial storyline of Dream's capture and subsequent mini-quest to regain his missing tools of power is a pretty good start to the series, and an unusual way to introduce the main character, by showing him at his most ...
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Forward Progress 0
Though at times these early New Mutants issues tend to dwell too much on the fact these new students are young teenagers, Claremont rarely delves too often or deeply into typical youthful shenanigans that would destroy anyone's desire to read about them in a comic book. He does a good job of balancing their youth with their desires to grow as mutants and as young adults, especially with the thoroughly tragic character Illyana Rasputin/Magik. Her story is one of the darkest in the X-Universe (at ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Let the Retconning Begin 0
Roy Thomas's career as writer for the X-Men does not begin too auspiciously: in the previous issue, we were supposed to be invigorated by the prospect of not one, not two, but three whole villains returning from older issue - much in the same way that Mom always made dinner so appealing by declaring "it's leftovers night!" As nice as it might be that Thomas is trying to impress us (and Stan Lee, no doubt) with his knowledge of the X-Men, all of that evaporates almost immediately with two nearly...
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The House of Ideas 0
God Loves, Man Kills is a rare, remarkable treasure from the Bronze Age of comics, a time seemingly unfettered by creative restraints and ubiquitous events. Claremont delivers a powerful story regardless of whatever metaphorical layers audiences and critics want to lay on it - it transcends them all, primarily because it is such a good X-Men story utilizing the characters so well. Part of the success of the story is Claremont's fairness to religion in general: Stryker does not represent all re...
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Origin Story: Third Time's a Bore 0
As innovative a creator and enthusiastic a personality Stan Lee is, it is quite clear by issue 19 of the X-Men that he had pretty much run out of ideas. The Mimic is innovative, sure, but his origin story is fundamentally no different from Xavier's origin and Beast's origin: atomic or chemical explosion/accident followed by dominance at everything in school coupled with loss of social acceptance. Not only does Calvin Rankin copy the powers around him, but his story is a re-hash of most stories...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Bobby Saves the Day...Sort Of 0
The previous issue saw the older X-Men demonstrate a healing power far superior to Wolverine's recuperative abilities (no doubt this is dropped soon). Bobby Drake, unfortunately, does not seem to have such good health ... until Dr. Thomas injects him with the miraculous, experimental sulfa. Bobby does a fairly decent job standing up against Magneto, even though not too many people seem to take this issue (including the creative team and characters within it). Magneto, fresh from his bitternes...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
"The way it ought to be!" 0
Incorporating haunted house suspense into fine character moments, Lee and Co. deliver a pretty impressive issue with only a few flaws. Hank betrays some brief sexism when he jokes that Jean needs to her constant chatter just like a woman, but Jean possibly indicates she knows he is joking; it would be a relief to know the smartest X-Man is not gender-biased. The only other glaring flaw in this issue is that Jean "forgets" she can levitate herself with her TK ability. After all their practice,...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Back on Track (Again) 0
This issue is much better than the middle section of the story, and one of the better issues in quite some time, despite the continual deus-ex-machina-like resolutions. It's nice that Stan Lee is a fan of classical theater, but their overuse has become trite, along with the "this is our most dangerous foe yet" dialogue that still hampers the story at times (especially Xavier's opening recap-lines, though, fortunately, it is not as prevalent as in the earlier issues). As nice as it was to have ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Discontinuity 0
Again the Marvel Comics Group proves it has difficulties with multiple-part storylines. There are some good moments in this issue, as with most of them, but the lack of planning/thinking-through who/what the Sentinels are becomes even more apparent than it was in their inaugural issue. The Sentinels are supposed to be connected and aware of what is going on, but some of them do not know the X-Men are mutants or that they are even under attack, despite the fact the automatic defenses are blarin...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Sentient Sentinels 0
This issue has a lot of things going for it in terms of developing and expanding the X-Universe, making it the multifaceted dangerous place (especially for mutants) that we know it to be today (at least before M-Day). Though it does still utilize the tired "this...no, this...no, this is the most dangerous foe we've ever encountered!" structure (even Professor Xavier, as smart as he is, should be tired of saying that each time they encounter someone knew), at least the foe this time is not the l...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Delivery: Failure 0
Here is another example of the problem with the early Marvel Age: incredible villains, too powerful to be beaten realistically. After a pretty intense build-up/introduction in the previous issue, with Xavier proclaiming how unstoppable he was all the time, we probably should have been prepared for a let down with how the X-Men were going to defeat a supposedly unconquerable foe. The brief cameo by Daredevil is a nice touch; the lengthier appearance of Johnny Storm was also a nice aspect of the...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Behind the Scenes 0
From a rational perspective, the main premise of this issue is a bit cheesy: Xavier is fearful that the worst menace ever to attack the X-Men is pounding its inexorable way to the mansion, so he takes this opportunity to tell them the story of his childhood. Either Juggernaut is terribly slow, or Charles's storytelling pace is quite rapid. Perhaps the most groan-worthy aspect of the issue is the sudden remembering "oh, wait, we have a gigantic metal inner wall of protection - I just remembered...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
The Stranger Appears 0
Though this issue relies on the too-familiar structure of most X-Men issues to date, it breaks the mold (finally) by the end for an actual satisfying deus-ex-machina ending. The cover sets the tone for something different: finally Stan and Jack did not clutter the cover with the juvenile slogans and graphic art that have distracted most of the Marvel covers up to this point. By this point, the reader base had to have been big enough that they didn't need to draw childish attention to themselve...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Transitions 0
Issue 10 sees some progress in the main structure of the series, though some common elements present from the beginning are still around (some good, some bad). Instead of the next "go find the latest mutant" story, we know from the beginning Ka-Zar is not a mutant - but the X-Men are so bored of just training/post-graduate practice, they beg to seek him out anyway (even though Washington apparently knows nothing needs to be done, despite the news coverage). This is an issue that could have use...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
2 Steps Forward, 1 Step Back 0
This issue was my first experience of the X-Men, from the 1983 collection Mighty Marvel Team-Up Thrillers. Back then I couldn't understand why the X-Men were supposedly teenagers, since they looked a lot older than the teenagers I knew around the neighborhood and school. Additionally, there is very little of the teenage hijinks/dialogue that detract from some of the other recent issues (not that I had read them back then), so the X-Men do not seem like teenagers, especially now that Hank's di...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Hasty Decisions 0
After facing Magneto five times in their first seven encounters, the X-Men finally get a break against Unus the Untouchable. We have been waiting for sensible strategies from both the X-Men and the Brotherhood, and strangely enough Magneto is the one to provide it: sending Mastermind as a scout to persuade Unus to join them, instead of attacking full force like with Namor and the Blob. Fortunately there is no scene of Magneto's inexplicable mental powers; having seen him explore the spaceways ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Scott Summers's Man Pants: Fully On 0
Though the villains are making little progress, the X-Men are finally developing both as individual characters and as a team. For two issues in a row now, in far better style than their "final exam" on Asteroid M, the X-Men operate as a team. True, there are still some flaws in their strategies (like flying a metallic helicopter to meet Magneto) and they do sometimes focus more on their own safety than securing the mission, they are finally more fluidly attacking their enemies with concerted e...
1 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Scott Summers finally puts on his man pants 0
At least one leg - he still has some work to do. He finally smiles and cracks some wise with his co-students (who, despite having "graduated" last issue still have student routines and relationships) during dinner. Hank, having read up on his calculus, has for some reason retrograded to Advanced Math. Despite the plot summary above, no mention is given about Jean having redesigned their uniforms (at least not that I could see), so why she has changed into a Scarlet Witch/Batgirl pastiche is a...
1 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
By "Strongest" we mean "Weakest" 0
Professor X is purportedly the strongest mind on the planet. Sue Storm has the strongest diversity of powers in the Fantastic Four. Jean Grey is the strongest telekinetic on the planet. Maybe I am reading too much later character development into these statements, but after a year of training with Xavier and over a year of defeating villains with her teammates, Marvel and Invisible Girl should be a whole lot more impressive than they are in here. Susan just lets herself get put into a locke...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
The Grand Parade of Deus Ex Machinas 0
Stride: broken. This supposed year of training did not really prepare them for this extra-terrestrial adventure, despite what Xavier says at the end. Once again the X-Men prove they are not yet a fighting team - they care more for each other's well-being than for accomplishing their mission. I'm not saying these young heroes should not care for each other, but most of their battles against their doppelgangers (the inaccurately-named "Brotherhood" of Evil Mutants) consist of getting initially ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
"You have made your choice - forever we are mortal foes!" 0
Meanwhile, one year later...(have the X-Men really been training for a year since Jean arrived in issue 1?) With this issue, X-Men begins to hit its initial stride. Lee and Kirby finally deliver an issue with layers of conflict, genuine motivation, and a satisfactory payoff. The House of Ideas was big on beginning their new series with origin stories, but the X-Men did not really get one, nor do the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Though Xavier told us a bit of his origin in issue 1 (being born...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Everybody Loves Jeannie 0
But few of them will admit it. As byzantine's thorough review has already indicated, Xavier's reticence to announce his love for Jean is based on his physical shortcomings, not any relational transgressions between student and teacher. Now-Scott Summer's reticence is based on his fear of losing control over his optic blast, finally adding a sympathetic aspect to his character. Unfortunately this sympathy is short-lived once he attacks the Blob (from behind!) with no real provocation, making t...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful. -
Intriguing Beginning 1
This would be a much better series without the proliferation of (to the point of being ubiquitous) vulgar language. Not everyone talks like this, nor would a mass gendercide turn everyone into sailor mouths. Hopefully it will get better as the series progresses - it would be a shame for such an interesting concept to be marred throughout by its commitment to being coarse. The many subplots and layers are fairly intriguing: Agent 355's original quest with this mysterious amulet/necklace is mor...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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