Book of the Week 4/2/08 Secret Invasion #1

Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils by Leinil Francis Yu
Inks by Mark Morales
Colors by Laura Martin
Letters by Chris Eliopoulos

WARNING! This review will contain some spoilers!




Ok, wow, I'm not even sure where to start. As corny as it sounds I think that I can admit that Marvel's Secret Invasion tagline is ringing true and I honestly do not know who I trust in the Marvel U right now.

Secret Invasion #1 hit stores today and Eric and I have been talking a lot about this book and whether it would deliver or not and I just thought it was excellent. I was actually excited to read this book and rushed home just to have to opportunity to tear it open and find out what the crap is happening to my beloved Marvel Universe, I haven't been this excited for a book since the final issue of Civil War.

The book starts off with a great sequence showing the desperation of the Skrull race following Annihilation and leads into an attack on earth, we're given a few small reveals which were very interesting and then all hell breaks loose.

Tony Stark being attacked by a skrull virus was the turning point in this book and through Stark the Skrulls systematically start taking down the entire United States in a sequence that was chilling and left me on the edge of my seat. It really shows how powerful on a man Tony Stark is and make you realize that maybe one man shouldn't be connected to so much power.

The big reveal was towards the end of the book when both Avengers teams are shocked to find copies of our heroes crash land on earth......and we don't know who's a skrull and who isn't. This was such a great move by Bendis, I was expecting a lot of reveals in this first issue and was looking forward to some great character interactions but we now have a situation where Hawkeye, Luke Cage and Wolverine are looking at copies of themselves who claim to be the real deal and this changes everything.

Leinil Yu has really outdone himself and the art in the book was simply amazing. His sharp and edgy pencils really came through in this story and lent to the overall feeling of desperation that Bendis set up. The expressions and emotions in the art when Tony was under attack was so intense and truly made me feel like I was right there watching it happen.

I've always been a huge fan of Bendis and I think he's at the top of the writers' stack but he's really outdone himself this time and I think we may be getting a great story, something on caliber with Geoff Johns' Sinestro Corps War.

I cannot wait for the next issue, to surf the net and see what other people's reactions are and record our show this weekend. This comic is a perfect example of why I love comics and just how exciting they can be.

Stay tuned for our podcast this weekend, I'm sure Eric and I will have a lot to discuss about this book!

Weekly Review Podcast Episode 33- Ultimate Spider-man #120

Eric chose Ultimate Spider-man #120 as the best book he read this week because of the great Bendis dialogue and humor. Secret Invasion is right around the corner and it showed this week as we discuss the skrull sightings in Ms Marvel #25 and New Avengers #39 and more. For our top 5 we give you our top picks for stories that we would give to non comic book readers and Eric tops off the show with his review of the new Killing Joke deluxe edition.


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Book of the Week 3/26/08 Ultimate Spiderman #120

Written by Brian Bendis
Pencils by Stuart Immomen
Inks by Wade Von Grawbadger
Colors by Justin Ponser


I'm not sure why all the good books come out in one week but that seems to be what happened this time. Faced with an onslaught of quality I had to pick Ultimate Spiderman as the book of the week for the simple fact that I really related to this story. Now I'm not talking about the superheroing and mutant abilities (that I'd tell anyone) but the simple bantering between friends, the caring for eachothers well being, all seemed very familiar to me.


This is the wrap-up to the 'amazing friends" story as Liz has discovered her new mutant abilities and the x-men and Magneto show up to recruit her into the mutant war. Alot of the first part of this story reeked a little too much of Empire with several rounds of "your father is...". However after the mutants go home Peter makes the decision to reveal his identity to Liz to let her know he can really help her. It was a wonderful moment between the two of them. My favorite part of the book was after Liz left for the xavier school, Peter and M.J. are left alone to which Peter says, "you wanna make out?" I laughed out loud (as I have used that wonderful line several times in my teenage days). Despite some of the heaviness of the story, these light hearted moments are why I love Spiderman, most notably Ultimate Spidey.


With the exception of his own characters, Bendis has more of a handle on Peter Parker than almost any other character he writes and he writes some damn good characterizations. The fact that he can balance the heavy and light scenes so naturally speaks to his incredible talent which we are all aware of. Immomen is awesome in this comic! I have absolutely no complaints or nit-picks about the looks of any of the characters.

Bottom line, this is pure comicy goodness and I can't get my fill!

Weekly Review Podcast Episode 32- Superman/Batman Annual #2

It was a pretty light week for books but Eric was surprised by how good the Superman/Batman Annual #2 was and it made its way to the top as the book of the week. This week we also discuss Countdown #6, Captain America #36, Robin #172 and more. We've both been contemplating dropping some of our books so we decided to vent our frustrations with our top 5 titles that need to be rebooted.

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Book of the Week 3/19/08 Superman/Batman Annual #2

Written by Joe Kelly
Art by Scott Kolins
Colors by Jorge Molina
Letters by Rob Leigh


It's always fun to truly be inspired by the characters we all read every month. All too often these characters can become bogged down in boring, slow, or meaningless stories that do nothing to remind us why we like them (Flash anyone?). Superman routinely falls within this category. However when teamed together Superman and Batman prove to be a pitch perfect combination...like peanut butter and chocolate. The two ends of the spectrum that each occupies serves not only to provide insight into how different each is (and also how alike) but also potentially how they need eachother. Without one, the other would eventually fall into an abyss whether it be Supermans willingness to forgo living among the people that keep him grounded and becoming a tool for the government (Dark Knight Returns) or Batman forgoing his Bruce Wayne persona and giving into his psychosis fully (Kingdom Come). For this reason, I'm glad that we have this book which showcases the inspiration not only other heroes look to but also any superhero comic fan.

This annual does not belong in continuity so if people are strong fanatics for that, they may be frustrated trying to figure out when this happens. This is a story that takes place after Superman and Batman figure who eachother are but before they are friends. This annual is a re-imagining of the forging of that friendship. A villain (Socrates) who can basically maim and rob victims by psychologically altering their perspective as well as fulfilling their wishes and fears robs Superman of his powers. A powerless Superman asking himself if he really is still "super" is not an incredibly new concept but that doesn't discount that this story provides a fun and insightful look into Bruce and Clark both learning to respect eachother and how eachother operates. Bruce with the help of Dick Grayson help Clark cast off his mental shackles and defeat the villain.

Joe Kelly is no stranger to the "inspirational" story. Kelly wrote "The Last Will and Testament of Hal Jordan". That tale is still one of my favorite Hal stories which looked at both the good and bad within the character of Hal (before Johns made the excuse that he was just possessed). He seems to have a great handle on the DC icons and their relationships with eachother.

Kolins art is good in this issue with the exception of one thing. Batmans cowl looks too much like a bucket and therefore gives Batman a robocop type of look. Other than that I really enjoyed the look of the characters, especially Robin. Molinas colors seemed a bit dark in this book. Even though alot of this book takes place in the batcave, this book seemed to ring a little close to Ultimates 3.

All in all I really enjoyed this book for what it is, a re-imagining of the early days of the Man of Steel and the Dark Knight. I wouldn't want to live in a world without either of them.

Weekly Review Podcast Episode 31- Mighty Avengers #10

I picked Mighty Avengers #10 as the best book this week because of the great "old school" presentation and the foreshadowing of things to come. We also discuss Avengers:the initiative, Fantastic Four, Booster Gold and more. Eric embraces his Nintendo pride as he gives you his review of Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Nintendo Wii and we finish off the show with speculation on the new Hulk trailer. Will it be good or another bust?


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New Hulk Trailer

There is a lot of controversy surrounding the film but the first Hulk trailer has finally hit the net and I don't know, I think it looks OK but I can't say that I'm excited about this movie. Check out the trailer and see for yourself