Alex Smith-Petersen Comic Reviews

You can feel just how much she enjoys coming up with this. Marcus is putting out incredible art on this series, with powerful linework and bold images that emanate strength. Any panel we see Betsy in is a gift that I cherish, as her Captain Britain suit is nothing short of legendary. The colors compliment and raise the bar on the pencils at every juncture in Excalibur #5.

The dialogue is meaningful and purpose-driven, with plenty of moments for your favorite mutants to shine.

Tini balances humor with action and heartfelt moments between the cast, which makes this one of the can't-miss series of the current X-books. Nonetheless, Excalibur fills such a niche spot that often gets overlooked in X-men, with their close proximity to magic. Battling against Cullen is going to yield an epic, magical fight that I'm dying to see.

This is an art team that truly should not be trifled with, able to stand toe-to-toe with the most legendary and prolific artists to ever touch X-Men. This may sound like hyperbole, and I would understand that skepticism, but read this comic and you will understand. Anything that comes out with their names attached should be bought sight-unseen. This is the dynamic art duo of comics right now, and we are seeing history be made in these pages.

Guardians Of The Galaxy runs can be hit or miss, but usually missed for me despite my profound love of cosmic Marvel, based on the chemistry of the team members. Sidelining some of the core team members in favor of fan-favorites like Phyla and Moondragon was an inspired choice that will pay dividends over time, I have no doubt. These are the high times for Marvel #1's and it's only the beginning of the year even.

The stars aligned for this book to exist, at this time, with these creators, and it would be a mistake to not be reading every issue as it comes out. With only two issues, I can't urge you enough to get in on the ground floor of what could become one of the definitive Guardians Of The Galaxy runs. Join me next month when Gamora and Drax join the fun!

Truly, this is one of the best debuts in the Dawn Of X overall, and a feather in the cap of everyone who made this book happen. This is really something special to behold. It's fresh and exciting and delivers exactly what I would love to be seeing more of in the X-line. Plus, the last page is just to die for. I couldn't be more excited for what's to come and I hope you are too.

This creative team is making something special, that really stands out on the shelves.

Thirdly, while the art team changed a bit too much for my liking, they knocked it out of the park getting Caselli and Delgado here. They bring life to the characters that are impossibly gorgeous to look at and compliment each other very well. Knowing that they will return for the next issue has me gushing with excitement.

Some may be disappointed with the lack of Kate, but I have faith in Duggan to resolve the story with dignity and respect for her character. I have no doubt the Red Queen will live to fight again sooner rather than later. In the meantime, I'm very much looking forward to how the characters deal with her absence and the evolution of the conflict within the Hellfire Trading Company.

The fill-in artists have been doing wonderful work, but it simply feels like home with him back in. Delgado is a master and can bring out the best in anybody he works with, showcasing it yet again here. The whole creative team for this book is just absolutely dynamite and continues to impress. Join me again here next month, as Forge joins the team for Marauders #10!

Muller's contributions to the data pages are always refreshing, bringing a level of design work not seen in any other book from Marvel. Lanham pulls it all together on lettering, mastering the flow of the dialogue and executing beats excellently. Everyone comes together to form such an appealing package. It represents some of the very best comics Marvel is putting out.

Brisson's doing a decent job here with the characters' voices, minus Armor, but the plot is a little by-the-numbers. Flaviano and Lopez are in fine form here, however, as they elevate New Mutants #6 to new heights. Glob looks every bit like a soft monster, as he should, and the kids are creepy, yet tender. They're working within such limited space on the farm, but really make a meal out of it. The art team makes it worth the price of admission. Also Glob Herman.

New Mutants is going to be fairly different going forward at the very least. Ed Brisson is now the sole writer, and the two teams are being mashed together instead of being split. If nothing else, I'm interested to see the new direction coming out of this weird start. Hickman will continue writing the core X-Men series, as well as the Giant-Size one-shots, which function in their own unique way. Join me again next week as we enter Nova Roma!

It's the character work I find most astonishing, but this creative team is a gift on all fronts. As the road to the end starts, it's going to be tough coming to grips myself with the story of Jon and Suze coming to a close.

There's precious little action to be salvaged in a book like this, even drawing this close to the end, but their emotional beats are so strong and hit so hard, you can easily get by without such things. This book can't exist without Fraction and Zdarsky. Even missing only one of them, would not yield nearly the same product, of this I am ridiculously confident. It's a testament to their proficiency and unique styles that this could be considered their definitive creator-owned work, and resemble nothing else either has worked on. Only a few more issues to go, so join me in finishing this incredible series over the next several months!

Things have escalated to an incredible degree at this stage in the book, and there are only several issues left before it wraps up, but it's clear that Fraction and Zdarsky have only saved their craziest and zaniest story beats for the end.

Working within a fixed timeline is hard. And because it's one of the most cherished properties in the world, it becomes only that much more complex. The daring creative team of Star Wars #1 is more than up to the task. I went into this with some pretty high expectations, because I'm a huge Star Wars fan myself, and it still managed to exceed them. Hopefully, the quality of Star Wars #1 is indicative of what the rest of this run is going to be like. This is only the beginning of the 40th celebration of Empire Strikes Back, and a very promising beginning it is. If you've been feeling burnt out with Star Wars lately, give this a shot and it will excite you again for the franchise.

I really can't say enough how much I love the art in both parts. Kubert is a master, plain and simple. Martin really kills it in a book with a darker tone like this, really fleshing out the mood with his muted palette. Gritty pencils and heavy inks from Bogdanovic works wonders with Wilson's colors. Following up on Kubert with Martin is a hell of a daunting task. But these two are more than up for the challenge. You can't ask for a more competent art team, much less two of them. Drawing Wolverine with a scowl is simple enough, but the range on display in his expression is top-notch. The only tragedy here is that not every issue is going to function like this.

With two issues in the can on the first solo of the Dawn Of X era, I can confidently say I'm a big fan of where this is going. Tying Wolverine into the other X-books helps reassure the bigger picture is staying intact, while letting Logan off the hinges to do what he does best on his own time, more or less. The action is gripping and the story is perfect for a nice new slice of lore, without being over-complicated or intricate. In short, this is thus far exactly what I would like to be seen in a Wolverine solo and I hope you guys dig it too.

Six issues deep now and X-Force is killing it. I myself am a huge fan of the whole line, as evidenced by my other work here, but even still I hold a special place for this series. There's so much potential here going forward and you can tell Percy has quite a bit up his sleeve. Even the little pieces of the book work so well, it's immensely satisfying to see it come together so well. I hope he gets to have this book for a long time to come and continue bringing on the incredible caliber of artists we've been lucky to have so far.

Percy works great in tandem with an array of artists, and Bazaldua and Guru make for an easy transition from series regular artist Joshua Cassara. X-Force maintains a consistent gritty style and tone that distinguishes it from the other current X-books. As long as the art team never loses sight of that, I'll continue to be largely pleased.

Artists change around here frequently, but Bazaldua and Guru do a solid job holding it down while Cassara knocks out his next issues. It's not my favorite system in the world for managing release schedules, but when it works, it works. I do look forward to moving the focus around to other members of the team, but these past couple issues focusing on Domino have been a nice change of pace. Join me again next month as Domino returns and a new mission begins!

There's so much to unpack with Domino alone, much less Black Tom and Wolverine as well. It's a thrilling ride that's playing the long game on every front, developing countries and opposing forces that could be troublesome for years to come. The mileage this book can generate is insane and if you aren't reading it, you are doing yourself a disservice.

I would be insulted if you didn't. Chip Zdarsky would be insulted if you didn't, probably. I'm not even going to spoil the big twist of the issue here for you because you should really just read the comic. The Dodsons on art is always worth the price of admission for me, and they're in fine form here. Some of my first X-Men floppies were Fraction's run where they did art as well, so this has a nostalgic tinge to it as well. The costume choices they make for some characters (*cough Magneto cough*) are unexpected at best, but delightful nonetheless. I'm only disappointed that this creative team only has four issues to flex on, just how well they work together and are clearly on the verge of something fantastic here already.

Whether you agree with the choices the Sue and Reed are making, or the conspiring that Xavier and Erik are up to, this story is breaking important ground. The relevancy that some feel about Franklin's situation, having also had parents who attempt to control or micromanage their lives, is significant, and you can just feel that Chip is trying to hit those emotional beats that resonate with readers on a deeper level. This is exactly the kind of nuanced storytelling that is making the X-books so exhilarating right now and I look forward to more of it. Join me again next month as we see how Doom's plans unfold!

I continue to marvel at just how well-executed this book is on Zdarsky's front. He's spinning an enthralling tale that could have ramifications for years down the road. It's an exciting adventure crafted with love by someone with a very solid grasp on the characters and the story-at-hand. That being said, the art is the weak part of X-Men/Fantastic Four #3. It looks like the pencils are fairly rough, letting the inkers do a bit of the heavy-lifting. The colors are solid, but can only do so much to salvage the work. The art team for this book is simply too big to yield a singular, cohesive vision. That may work for some, but for me it's the only downside in what is an otherwise engrossing tale.