Happy Friday, geeks and geekettes, Yes, the big game is over, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t anything new to look forward to! We’ve got some great new comics to review for you, and we’re just going to dive right in and see which ones are worth you hard-earned dollars and eye muscles!
Woah, Old Man Quill is quite the trip! When I picked it up, I expected it to be a knock off of Old Man Logan and Old Man Hawkeye, which admittedly, it kind of is, but it is a blazing rollercoaster read, nonetheless. Writer Ethan Sacks (Old Man Hawkeye) has a knack for creating these “Old Man” versions of our favorite characters and turning them into badasses hungry for revenge. Quill is definitely and obviously more quirky than the previous Old Men, and Sacks appears more comfortable with this path of dialogue.
As for the art, Robert Gill’s (Iceman, Totally Awesome Hulk) heavily detailed, yet not too gritty style fits perfectly with the theme the story has created. From beginning to end I was hooked. Out for revenge, Old Man Quill is out to serve “The Church” a piping hot dish of payback; hey, that fits this site’s agenda too. While I went in OMQ a bit apprehensive, it turns out this might just be my favorite comic thus far in 2019. 5/5 Old Washed Up Galactic Protectors Agree.
-Tim Markham
@GeneSelassie
I’ve eaten a lot of crow in regards to Brian Michael Bendis writing Superman. I’ve always been disappointed whenever he eschewss small cast street level books to tackle stuff out of his wheelhouse. However, his Superman books, while a bit decompressed, have been enjoyable. My issue is that this book either tried to do too much, or the transition between subplots: Jimmy Olsen accidentally(?) stumbling into a Kobra recruitment meeting, Lois disclosing some very sensitive information to her military hard ass father and Superman flying through Atlanta and saving Amanda Waller from an unknown threat. Maybe if the pages were interspersed more, the transitions wouldn’t have felt as abrupt.
Also, one minor nitpick, but the issue right before Bendis started (one of the most heartfelt issues Dan Jurgens has ever written) had Clark finally build a bridge between Lois and her father. So for that to be undone this soon is a bit of a downer. While I’ve loved Ryan Sook’s work on the book, seeing a longtime Marvel artist crank out such beautiful pages on DC’s top icon was a treat. Colorist Brad Anderson’s color palette made the transition that much easier. I’m still on board for this run, however, if the pacing issues can finally get resolved and the work of creators who just exited the book not even a year ago, will stop being undone, Action Comics could be one of the best comics on shelves today. 3.5/5 Bibles.
-Gene Selassie
@mochaloca85
The one-shot starts with the strongest of all the stories, “A Show of Hart.” Penned and drawn by Headlocked’s Michael Kingston and Michel Mulipola, we see Bret Hart nervous before his first match while Jimmy Hart reassures him that he’s going to be the best (there is, was and ever will be). Mulipola’s art presents us with a montage of the Hitman’s (future) achievements while Kingston captures the voice of the Mouth of the South perfectly.
The next tale features the Million Dollar Man brawling with the “Bad Guy” in a jewelry store, to which Lan Pitts admirably captures both of the legends’ voices in this heated program to a tee. The scuffle is loosely connected to a later story involving DiBiase having IRS kidnapped so he can ask IRS to be his tag partner. That — and the rest of the backup stories aren’t booked as well. There’s a pretty mundane entry in which Heenan helps Race defeat Junkyard Dog and the latter gets revenge before dancing with the fans. The closer, “The Brain and the Bulldog”, sees Heenan dognapping the British Bulldogs’ mascot, Matilda. Hijinks ensue. These stories are all okay, with decent writing and art, but readers will at least mark out to first couple entries. 3.75/5 Sharpshooters.
-Destiny Edwards
@RobBex2
Imagine a world where Professor X’s dream came true: where mutants have no need to hide and the X-Men are free to be the heroes they’ve always been but without the fear of being killed in action. Now imagine that this world exists due to an outside force that is changing the world around out mutant heroes and not necessarily for the better. That is the reality we are witnessing in this reintroduction to the X-Men: Age of X-Men. Writers Zac Thompson and Lonnie Nadler do a great job of both creating an existing universe that is easy to access while also creating quick “go-to” moments that will be seen in the spin-off. There is a lot happening with this issue that I want answered: how did Colossus lose his arm? Where did Iceman send Bishop? How did Xavier and Cyclops and Wolverine all die? What is happening here??
Ramon Rosanas is an absolutely fantastic artist. His art is retro, simple yet intricate; clean and crisp and simply and utterly beautiful. The biggest issue with this new title is that I, as well I’m sure other fans, are tired of what will most likely be all the upcoming big events, and that could hurt this mini-series. It should be enough to tell a single, contained story. Here is hoping that this series matches past X-Men events.3.5/5 X-Bibles.
-Robert Bexar