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| << February11, 2006 - [ComicBookNetwork E-Mag] CBEM 562.06 |
February11, 2006 - [ComicBookNetwork E-Mag] CBEM 562.11 >> |
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----------------------------------------------------------------- [9] ComiX-Fan Reviews Eric J. Moreels x-fan@bigpond.net.au http://www.comixfan.com/xfan [Editor's note: Some of the following reviews have spoilers to plot details. This is a TEXT ONLY newsletter so those spoilers are not hidden by HTML code as they are on the ComiX-fan site.] UNCANNY X-MEN #469 Reviewer: Kerry Birmingham, birmy@juno.com Story Title: "Wan'dring Star: Part 1 of 3" Video rental as an act of defiance. Writer: Chris Claremont Penciler: Billy Tan Inks: Jon Sibal Colors: Brian Haberlin & Avalon Lettering: VC's Joe Caramagna Asst. Editor: Sean Ryan Assoc. Editor: Nick Lowe Editor: Mike Marts Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada Publisher: Dan Buckley Published by: Marvel Comics Life kind of sucks if you're Rachel Grey. It's bad enough to come from an alternate future where you're enslaved and forced to hunt down your peers. But to finally make a return from character limbo and find your mother dead - again, be turned into a dinosaur, and then see every living relative you have systematically slaughtered by an alien race... that constitutes a particularly bad day. Needless to say, Rachel isn't particularly happy, nor should she be. The bulk of this issue is devoted to the grim reality of being X in a post-House of M world. The omnipresent Sentinels treat the mansion like a peepshow (like Psylocke several issues back, Claremont and Tan fetishize Rachel here, having her nude or near-nude at several points. Didn't Claremont used to only do stuff like that to Storm?). In a notably unsubtle topical twist, the "Office of National Emergency" raids Paige Guthrie's computer under suspicion that she is or is aiding a renegade journalist, "Bean," a somewhat silly cowboy-themed muckraker who breaks in on broadcasts with news on the plight of ex-mutants across the world. Tensions are high between the (essentially sequestered) mutants and the loitering government soldiers. Things look dark these days at Xavier's. When Storm and Bishop are having an argument while chopping vegetables, it's just as much a giveaway of the deteriorating morale of the X-Men as the barbed wire fences and giant robot guards. After the overlong arc in the Savage Land and a messy House of M tie-in, Claremont feels, if not like his old self, much more focused than he's been with his storytelling lately. Bringing Rachel to the forefront has clearly sparked something in him, and he does seem to have a reinvigorated affinity for the character. Claremont's never met a vulnerable but independent female character he didn't like, and the last four issues seem to have gotten his creative juices flowing (I'll refrain from comment on his other juices, as I'm still wondering about all the nude Rachel). This may be the opening salvo of the Rachel-centric "Wand'ring Star" arc, but the set-up, essentially resolving itself as "Rachel leaves the mansion without the Sentinels noticing," is presented "State of the X" style: this is where we are, this is where the characters' heads are at, and now it's time to get down to business. Claremont knows what he wants here, and it's structured for optimal screentime for the cast while getting Rachel out the door. The best scene, again with a fairly direct reference to Homeland Security, involves Rachel's psychiatric evaluation by Doc Samson, and the eavesdropping of the O*N*E. It's reminscent, though by no means of the same caliber, of Peter David's X-Factor #87, and having Val Cooper in the same issue reinforces the association. That classic had each member of that team break down in front of the psychiatrist; here, the tables are turned and Rachel had one over on Samson. She's shrewd, calculated, and in full control of her capabilities. It showcases the new Rachel Grey: smart, determined, and with the confidence to ditch Sentinels just to pick up some videos. Claremont deserves to some credit for eschewing most of his normal pitfalls in this issue. Speechifying is kept, mercifully, to a minimum, afforded to Bishop and Storm's pow-wow and a Kinda- Father/Kinda-Daughter moment between Rachel and Cyclops. If there's a flaw in the writing, it's that the dissembling nature of reestablishing the status quo takes away from Rachel's well- planned fugitive act at issue's end; it may have been a wiser storytelling move to keep the reader in Rachel's head throughout the issue, rather than at select points or diluting her power play by interspersing other scenes from across the mansion and grounds. With set-up issues like this one, it's always difficult to gauge the shape of the story to come and makes forming a judgment based on unresolved (and unreleased) issues a leap of narrative faith. Somewhat troubling, also, is the topical issue of security vs. privacy, as plainly manifested in Val Cooper and the O*N*E, which strikes me as a little clumsy and heavy-handed, an attempt at political critique that requires much more finesse than Claremont is using here. Based on Paige and Cannonball's actions here and the cover to next issue, this isn't likely to become handled with any more surety, and I'd personally prefer it was omitted, rather than handled in so blunt a manner. The natural themes of the X-Men have always been best with a strict allegorical sheen, sometimes wafer-thin, but the actions and attitudes of the O*N*E feel like particularly unsubtle commentary. I'm still not quite sold on Billy Tan as an artist. His art is pretty, in an early-'90s-Image sort of way, but there's an inexplicable quality to his art that doesn't quite connect. He's wisely downplaying the general cartooniness of his art - the difference from the cover to the interiors is noticeable- but he's still struggling with things like panel compositions and choosing the right angles (admittedly difficult with a large cast in small spaces). And I'm not saying that solely because of the lousy redesign of Cannonball's costume. There's a marked improvement even from his work on last year's X-23 mini-series, but I get the sense he's a breakthrough or two away from being a genuinely good storyteller, flash on his way to substance. Life sucks for Rachel Grey, but it at least makes for decent reading. It's good to see Claremont not let an issue degenerate into self-indulgence, as happens too often with his work these days. It's not clear where he's going with "Wand'ring Star," but despite a few misgivings, it looks like it might be worth seeing where it winds up. This issue can cautiously be recommended on the basis of being a "good start." Claremont's time on this title is limited (again), and while I can't say I'm sad to see him go, it would be nice if, for these last few issues, he displayed some of the virtuosity that earned him his considerable reputation (and following) to begin with. Have Rachel give 'em hell, wouldja, Chris? ART: 3.5 STORY: 3.5 OVERALL: 3.5 X-MEN: THE END - MEN & X-MEN #2 Reviewer: Brian Wilkinson, bewilkinson@yahoo.ca Story Title: X-Men: The End - Men & X-Men More death, more battles, more characters... but will it all tie together as well as fans hope? Writer: Chris Claremont Artist: Sean Chen Cover Artist: Greg Land Inker: Sandu Florea Colorist: Avalon's Ian Hannin Letterer: Dave Sharpe Assistant Editors: Andy Schmidt & Stephanie Moore Editor: Tom Breevort Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada Published by: Marvel Comics In past reviews I've expressed my feelings that this book feels as though it's lacking the epic quality that an event of this magnitude calls for. Perhaps it feels this way because there are still a half doxen or more regular X-Men series playing themselves out at the moment, or perhaps it's because this story of The End is so perfectly suited for the events of the X-Men universe as it stood nearly two years ago. Doing a review of this book to criticize it for the events within almost feels like going back in time to talk about the original Phoenix storyline or 'Days of Future Past' in a present context. Anything I say about this book now, including the Excalbiur-ish relationship between Xavier and Magneto, or the fact that Magneto and Polaris have powers, is almost completely irrelevant. Fans always knew that this wasn't going to be the actual end of the X-Men, so we must all, myself included take a step back and judge it for the story it was meant to be and not for the other events going on in comics now which affect our view of the material. Still, I have to give Claremont credit for being incredibly gracious to the other creative teams that have contributed to the X-Men mythos. Whatever negatives you could put on the man's creative ability, you can't challenge his graciousness. While all artists have ego, Claremont proves he's willing to put his aside for the greater good of delivering a story that was meant to end the X-Men of the time this story was created and I think he's done that quite well. This whole issue could have perhaps been sidestepped had writer Chris Claremont and artist Sean Chen chosen to take a unique trajectory and essentially ignore the events and continuity of the time. Jean's return was handled in Grant Morrison's run, but here it seems a fitting way to bring the X-Men back together. It's 14 issues in, however, and still no reunion has taken place. I love slow-burn stories in comics. I think they best serve the nature of comics by teasing, developing, and brewing old stories. The Twelve is a great example as was Onslaught. Eventually things come to a head. Speaking of the Twelve, had it not already been poorly handled in the past, taking a pivotal event from X-Men lore and using that as your focal point to end all that was is what many fans are expecting. In this series, Claremont has quite deftly pulled in almost ever x-character from the whole canon and used them in quite creative ways. Though the Phoenix could be seen as a core concept of the X-Men themselves and their life and death struggle, by removing it and including the Shi'ar, it seems to have distanced this story from being about the X-Men to being about the Shi'ar's grudge. Claremont counterbalances this with Kitty running for mayor. It may not seem like a lofty political position, but should she win, it would be a decisive victory in a way the X-Men have never had before. This is the real focal point of the story and the most intriguing vision of the future that's being presented. Claremont and Chen needed a vast foe for the team to come up against, but I'm more interested in the personal and political ramifications of what's going on back on Earth than what's happening in space. After all, the X-Men have been all about finding equality and showing 'normal' humans that mutants shouldn't be hated or feared. All of that said, I think the story is actually quite good. The stakes are high, the death toll is impressive and well-told. It's a great comic book story that's just sagging under the weight of its title. There are a lot of expectations here which I think Claremont has met or exceeded, but fans want The Lord of the Rings and are expecting it to be even better than hyped. That's a lot of pressure and expectation to put on a project, and I think Claremont and Chen are delivering quite well. Are there things I don't like? Well, sure. I'm not sure how I feel about the Gambit/Sinister connection other than I'm curious to see how it plays out, and I'm jazzed to see a Summers family reunion looks to be in the cards with Scott, Nathan, Rachel, and Jean all in the same place. But it's not Marvel's job to give us what we want, but what we need. If the story is doing it's job and the art is complimenting it well, then I have no issues with not getting every single thing I want. I would, however, like to see Jean and Cyclops together again. I'd also like to see more Wolverine (and for those of you who think he's overexposed, I'd normally agree, but this is the END of the X-Men and he's the most popular character they have), and I'm looking forward to an emotional conclusion. Claremont's strengths are in his use of virtually all the characters from the past and present, his ability to dole out panel time to each of them, and his unflinching willingness to sacrifice his own creations. Chen has been producing some great art to work with all of these characters to give each his or her due. This has been an impressive and epic series. Unlike the typical six issue arc concept fans get now, this has been 14 solid issues of comic book soap opera storytelling and I hope we get to see more of it in the future. Claremont was and continues to be one of my favorite creators in comics. I'm not pleased to hear he's being removed from Uncanny, but as long as he continues to have irons in the fire there should be a lot more to expect from him. Personally, I can't wait to see what he has planned next. ART: 3.5 STORY: 3.5 OVERALL: 3.5 NEW EXCALIBUR #4 Reviewer: Phil Hunn, philiphunn@hotmail.com Story Title: Old Times Are Not Forgotten! Can't stop the hurt inside, when Captain Britains collide! Writer: Chris Claremont Penciler: Steven Cummings Inker: Rick Ketchum Colorist: Chris Sotomayor Letterer: Tom Orzechowski Cover by: Michael Ryan Assistant Editor: Sean Ryan Associate Editor: Nick Lowe Editor: Mike Marts Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada Publisher: Dan Buckley Published by: Marvel Comics Ah, now this is more like it. While the first three issues of New Excalibur seemed decidedly wobbly, like new-born foals trying to stand up for the first time, #4 reads much more like a book with a solid footing, a book that could actually go somewhere other than the 10-cent bargain bins alongside dog-eared copies of NFL Superpro #1 (the full horror of which cannot be described unless you too have seen it with your own eyes). We open with the trial of Juggernaut (Cain must be getting a feeling of d???j??¦ vu when it comes to standing in the dock) after last issue's destructive antics, and from there we are witness to the various activities of the New Excalibur squad-to-be. It seemed to me that after last issue's conclusion, we were nowhere near close enough to the formation of Excalibur version 2.0 for the halfway point of the book's opening six issues, but this issue goes some way to rectifying that, which is nice to see. However, this does come with the sort of boil-in-the-bag characterisation that I'd hoped was a thing of the past -- Nocturne and Dazzler's little escapade does seem rather forced, and a bit too easily-plotted for its own good (not to mention reliant on something that shouldn't have been possible. But I digress). Still, it's good that this little misfire is made up for by the interaction between Sage and Pete Wisdom. Mark my words -- if these two aren't at least working side-by-side in the future, I'll be most displeased. Their exchanges fizz with cracking dialogue and bubbling tension, with Sage's cool, dispassionate nature forming an ideal foil for Wisdom's dutiful scamp. Meanwhile, Courtney Ross' continued attempts to worm her way back into Captain Britain's affections are continuing apace, and this provides some of the other great characterisation -- Courtney is unashamedly speaking with forked tongue, and it's a joy to see her getting her come-uppance in more ways than one. The only disappointment in these scenes is the re-emergence of the new Captain Britain (Kelsey Leigh, now rechristened Lionheart). Far from being the typically daft Austen Woman she was introduced as, she's now a vengeful super-powered nutter, and her brief punch-up with Courtney and Brian yields neither her nor the reader very much. The cliff-hanger ending to this sequence is mildly compelling, but since Kelsey has been made out to be inferior to the original Captain in every way, there's really only one way it can go (of course, we knew that anyway, but an element of doubt is always nice to see). Art-wise, we seem to have taken a step down from Michael Ryan this month, which is a shame -- at least once we see a character appearing to wear mittens over their hands because the fingers aren't defined enough, and a few of the panels seem to suffer from the same malaise that has afflicted John Byrne in his recent years -- that is, backgrounds sometimes consist of single- coloured panels with only the characters involved having any detail. Still, the story is well-told when it is detailed, and we get some lovely little touches during certain conversations (for instance, TJ phones Nightcrawler to check if he's okay following the Shi'Ar attack on the mansion and accidentally blurts out "Daddy", and we see Kurt brushing away a tear. It's things like that which more than make up for some of the fudged panel-work). New Excalibur seems, slowly, to be hitting its stride. This can only be a good thing. ART: 2.5 STORY: 4.0 OVERALL: 3.5 Thanks for subscribing to the Comic Book Network Electronic Magazine (CBEM) --------------------------->Disclaimer<--------------------------- This is an ANNOUNCE only mailing list, only the Editor can send messages to the list. No one else has access to the subscriber list. Replies to these messages will be received by the Editor ONLY, so you must CC: individual contributors if you want them to get your E-Mail. The E-mail to the E-mag MAY be used in future issues at the Editor's discretion UNLESS you specifically request that they not be. It is our policy to withhold names and/or Addresses, by request only, from letters of comment. All contributors are required to use their real name and have a valid Email address for their columns to be published. 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| << February11, 2006 - [ComicBookNetwork E-Mag] CBEM 562.06 |
February11, 2006 - [ComicBookNetwork E-Mag] CBEM 562.11 >> |
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