Marvel Now: A Roundabout Review

Marvel

 Now:

A 

Roundabout 

Review

I have made it known before and I'll make it known now, I dislike the whole posturing for a new number one comic book companies seem to thrive on. I enjoyed the (*) notation and would look in the lower portion of the panel to figure out what I had to read to understand more. DC started their New 52 a little over a year ago and I planned to try numerous different titles. I started with four and am currently at two. 

When Marvel decided to do the same I silently lowered and shook my head. I wasn't going to write them telling them they would lose my business. I enjoy the hobby too much. What I did decide was to limit what I would collect because as much as a number one is a good jumping on point; it’s also good to jump off. I planned to give each Marvel title the first story arc; then again the plan to give DC a try on sixteen titles didn't work either.

I gave Iron Man a try, along with All New X-Men, Captain America, Avengers, Cable and X-Force, New Avengers, and Uncanny Avengers. I skipped entirely Avengers Academy, Indestructible Hulk, X-Men Legacy, and Uncanny X-Force. I dropped Captain America along with Cable and X-Force, but I picked up Indestructible Hulk to replace it. Then of course there is Superior Spider-Man and as much as I've enjoyed Dan Slots current story, issue two just seemed full of redundancies. I get it. As much as I enjoyed the secret reveal at the end of #1, I felt dissatisfied after the second. I still think this series has the greatest potential.

In Avengers #1 they got straight to the action, it's a new world and the Avengers have to get bigger. What I don't get is how all the titles fit together. How is Iron Man going off in space in his title, the Hulk works for one of the agencies that chased him for decades, and there are a bunch of characters now ranked as the “greatest”. In the eighties the continuity was easier to follow. Now that I'm an adult I feel like I just turned on General Hospital and it has the cast of Days of our Lives, Dallas, and Fantasy Island. As many questions as this number one gave me I stuck around for number two, the hopes that Cannonball would finally be a contender had me part with my $3.99, again. I was even OK with the buildup of a possible six issue story arc.

I was disappointed at the end of issue three, what could have been a battle to destroy the heavens only reminded me off the fireworks in San Diego on July 4th, 2012 when the night long celebration erupted prematurely  in fifteen seconds. Issue four lost more momentum still. I was unimpressed with the J.J. Abrams flashback storytelling quality that Jonathan Hickman did not pull off as well as he did in the previous issues.

Cable and X-Force didn't get past issue #1. I stopped Captain America after issue #2, the Fantastic Four and FF were not worth picking up, and I was scared to try Uncanny X-Force for fear they would destroy the image of Puck I retain in my head. The New Avengers feels like it has the chance to really propel itself along but will issue three be a silent fizzle. So far the one that has surprised me was the Indestructible Hulk. After issue three I'm looking forward to the next one. Then of course you have the one title that is not a Marvel Now and probably more of a Marvel Then is Daredevil by Mark Waid. Month after Month I look forward to this title, maybe that's why I decided to follow the exploits of Bruce Banner and S.H.I.E.L.D.



To be fair, I will continue a little longer on some of these titles while others I might wait for a convention and purchase them at a dollar. I did give DC a bit longer before I opted to go from four titles to only two. The thing that Marvel has over DC with me is history. I have always enjoyed the Marvel Universe more. I'll continue with Avengers, New Avengers, All-New X-Men, Indestructible Hulk, Uncanny Avengers and Superior Spider-Man but at the moment I'm really looking forward to "Age of Ultron" that Michael Brian Bendis hinted at before the whole Marvel Now exploitation. And then is it right for a company to start in a new direction and still use storylines from its previous incarnations?

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Cable and X-Force #1: A Roundabout Review

Cable and X-force #1: A Roundabout Review

I am pretty sure with my first X-Force book I was sitting down eating my Lucky Charms while debating which book should stay bagged and which one should be opened. When the team first emerged from the pages of The New Mutants I didn't know what to expect, but I did know my favorite book was cancelled and I wasn't happy about it.  Since then there have been different variations of the team, most recently one led by Wolverine.  

Liefeld created the first mutant assault team, their primary goal then was to destroy the M.L F., led by Stryfe.  I’m not sure if they succeeded, I was forced to stop collecting certain titles, and X-Force was one of them.  Marvel is continuing their "Marvel Now" campaign wanting their readers to “Join the Revolution”. Titles such as Iron Man, Indestructible Hulk, and All-New X-Men are now joined by Dennis Hopeless' version in what could be titled "the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants”.

Let’s get the format out of the way. For the cover price of $3.99 I am glad it has only two ads, both on the back cover.  This does not include the eight in house ads mentioning their upcoming releases. However, if bringing back more ads would cut the price of the book by a dollar I would be for it.  Since a price reduction looks to be a huge improbability I would like to see the bar code be realigned slightly, you now somewhere on the rear cover. There is a full twenty pages of artwork including a two page spread on pages two and three.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Those same two pages have four of the team side by side after a pointless four panel first page. Colossus tears through a wall, Domino carries a smoking pistol, and the fourth has Dr. Nemesis kneeling over a body. All are better than the third panel wasting space with Cable's feet.

We skip ahead to a “few days earlier” via a “Wayne’s World” flashback on page seven. Hope talks to a therapist while Cable ease drops outside whatever mysterious building she is in.  And, with all the hoopla that Captain America had in taking her someplace safe before the Phoenix Force arrived you find out he enrolled her in High School.

Forge makes an appearance being the weapon's maker he is. How he didn't build a company to rival Stark Enterprises I don't know.  Other than being there to play Doctor for Nate’s prosthesis, what is their history together? How did they join each other and why are they hiding out in an airplane grave yard? Note the whole comic book looks like if takes place at night. The team’s lighter colored clothing looks symbolic of the good guys wear white. Domino's outfit, normally a black on black ensemble looks gray. Was this intentional? Is this the art style of Salvadore Larroca and Frank O'armata or did the printer mess up? As I’m reading the book, more and more questions come to mind.

How did Colossus join the team? The last we saw him he wanted his little Snowflake killed. Now, he is a member of a team wanted for um, well, I really have no idea. How did Domino change right in front of an elevator with no one noticing? Once again I'm thrown into #1 with no idea what's going on. After reading the Avengers I am eager to read #2 even with the plot holes. With X-Force, after it’s over the story doesn't even catch up to the beginning. Domino takes on A.I.M. And somehow Hope Summers knows exactly where she is. Cable recruits Dr. Nemesis, who has no problem joining Cable after having a gun pointed at him. And do you know how Colossus gets recruited? Well, I don’t either.

I don't mind the tearful reunion between Hope and Cable, nor Nathan's "every damn day" comment, which actually works for the character, but the team doesn't feel like a team. Why are they together? It took thirteen issues for Cable to form X-Force the first time in the pages of The New Mutants. It was a slow build up with action along the way. The future members had to be groomed or recruited. I'd rather the book continue forward rather than be setup with answers later. The question this time isn't about getting this book graded by CGC or if I plan to read the book over but, will I really wait around for issue two? 

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