About the artwork, only Valentinos was solidly formed and well composed. To think that these guys were once considered the top of the cream in terms of comic book art. Looking at their stuff is like looking at an old boxer who think he still has in him but doesnt realize that world has moved pass him.

This series need an editor. I know the guys at Image Comics think that editors are there to make their lives miserable, but a strong editor would send the badly drawn pages back for retouching and make sure all the characters had proper anatomy and scales that matched one another when two artists share the same page and panel. Here, there is nothing but a mess and complete waste of raw talent.

Again Dick Grayson, the old buddy, the buddy thats better than Roy Harper in every way comes to save the day and show why hes the smart one and acting as Batman these days and why Roy is nothing more than a red hair clone of Green Arrow who uses drugs. I dont mind that the character has to fall before getting up again, but does the writer have to put him through so much stupid misery until the reader cant take anymore and just wants to never see the character ever again? Im not one of those fans who argues that writers destroy characters all the time. But in this case, theres nothing left. Roy Harper reminds me of a tramp whos had too many overdoses getting pushed all over the place by her pimp while walking on stilettos with a big white fur coat on. Did I mention how he was clutching a dead cat he found in some garbage dump with flies hovering over the carcass, because Harper had gone into a hallucination and thought he was talking and protecting his daughter? A dead cat with hovering

It is ironic that a comic book about the end of being features the main characters of the Fantastic Four. They too are about to cease being. The one redeeming value of this comic is the beautiful art by Esad Ribic. Hes good. But everything else in this comic book is not. As a casual comic book reader, I found the comic complex and vague. As a long time Marvel Comics fan, Im disappointed and bored. Save your money. Dont buy this comic.

As for the artwork, it was as bad. All the bad guys looked the same, making knowing who was saying what more difficult. Then the action and the posing of the character was bunch of clich action scenes that didnt help me as reader figure out what was supposed to be happening within the panel. It was really bad and a very weak attempt at a Green Hornet comic book. I supported this line before because I really like the characters, but material like this makes me seriously question future purchases. This comic book should not have been printed and sold to readers without major revisions.

This is the worst Green Hornet series published by Dynamite. Its just bad. Lets start with the artwork. I cant stand Desjardins' work. Its smudgy and a bunch of lines trying to pastiche Jim Lee who unlike Desjardins, knew exactly how many lines of cross hatching to put on a page and where he had to stop before the whole thing became convoluted. Desjardins' characters all look the same and have the same expression. The inking i is weak and instead of reinforcing the best aspect of his work, only highlight the bad. The bad composition, the odd facial expressions, the weird storytelling are all put under the spotlight with the chicken scratches that pass for inking. What Desjardins needs is a solid line. Not crosshatching. You look at the page and there is no anchor to help the readers eyes latch on to some element because everything is a weak chicken scratch. There is no play of line width and thickness where foreground elements stand out and help guide the readers eyes within a panel. E

Chaykin is not even trying to do the character justice. Hawkgirl is a babe for God sake. Here she looks pudgy and fat. That villainess looks even more ludicrous as she is built like a man yet wear those little bras to cover her boobs. Shes so manly, no one would have cared a second if they had drawn her nipples. Really, if you were a seven foot giantess with the body of a football player, would you even bother to cover your boobs? Just to keep fans reading, Chaykin shows us the nice lingerie that Hawkgirl wears to fight crime. Perhaps he never heard that female soldiers have bras designed for action. Who the hell cares, right. Lets just put some bras on the women built like Miss Muscle USA and put fine lingerie of the fat girl.

Red Hood is this guy that thinks hes good at what he does. He thinks hes cool and laid back and the middle child of Batmans Robins. This story read like a stupid comic book from the 1990s with action forced in the first few pages and then some silly break on beach while some of the characters have sex. I do like the pairing of the three characters. Roy Harper has never really interacted much with the Red Hood. The Red Hood has certainly not interacted with Starfire. Starfire and Roy Harper have been on the same team many times, but I dont recall anything particular in their friendship. So the premise of paring the three is a good one. But the execution and the actual story are meaningless. Theres no story to read. Well, its a buddy comic book, but where is it leading next? I think I know which comic book I can eliminate from my 52 pull list.

While the art is beautiful the storytelling ispoor. It helps a reader a lot when he knows whats going on in a panel. So notonly are the stories poor, now the artwork is just as irrelevant. The colouringreally gives an anim look to the comic book. Theres a lot of action in thiscomic book. However, the artist is not very good at fight choreography, whichis a prerequisite for a comic book highlighting martial arts.

The artwork was uneven. The proportions are off and the work feels expedited. The best part of the artwork is the scenery. The backgrounds and vehicles are all well rendered hinting that perhaps the artist is the wrong choice for a series thats focused on the human body and what goes on between consented adults.

I still dont understand all the subplots and who is trying to outfox who. Although I joined this new series with #1, I still dont know what its purpose is about and why I should care about this comic book. Thats because the writer assumes that you have read the series from which this one spins off from, The Boys. Well, I havent and in comic book writing, not assuming that your reader picks up your book for the first time is a capital sin. I should not have to go through years and volumes worth of material to figure out what is happening in the pages of this comic book.

This issue was quite interesting as a set up issue, although not much into the early infiltration of the Skrulls has been revealed. It will be interested when more of the Easter eggs that Bendis has been inserting are revealed. However, this issue and possibly the rest of the series, will probably focused more on action than the secret plot. And there is the main problem with Secret Invasion. Readers will have to read a ton of other books where the real story will be exposed.

I actually like the work by Yu this issue. Some of the annoying aspects of his past work are not as present. The lines in his work make more sense and the layout of his pages, and hence, the progresses of the actions are better and less disruptive. Hes learning storytelling and how to refine his raw artwork as we read. Once he masters these, hell be a great artist.

Yu has improved. Although his characters continue to have the same cheeky and bony faces, his story telling and is actually clear. He also limits the amount of crosshatching which helps readers to read the pages. He almost feels like a major and serious comic book artist now.

At this point, I dont care about Yus anorexic characters that all look the same. Hes learned how to better pace his stories, but I still dont care about his artwork. Hes part of why I dont like this series and why Im quitting this Secret Invasion thing. Now can we get back to real storytelling and stories that readers can't figure out how they will end after just reading the first issue?

This issue, Yu uses wide frames to tell the story visually. Its always a good crutch for artists that are not expert storytellers. Its hard to do wrong with the cinemascope frame. And thats his saving grace, because I continue to believe that hes not an expert storyteller and that all his characters have the same face and expressions.

The fights in this issue are not well choreographed. They are like a collection of posters patched together with speech bubbles. Its hard to follow the action. This is an entire mess and it will be interesting to see if the extra large final issue will be able to salvage this series.

Of course, I cant give this comic book a decent grade. But, I must ask all comic book readers hooked on Marvel Comics, to use the little disposable money they have left to spend it on comic books that do not degrade their intelligence like Secret Invasion and to encourage promising creators that have something to challenge them and for whom creating comic books is not about keeping the brand alive long enough so they can sign a movie deal. Please support real comic books and people that actually care about putting out a good product.

Visually, the story is good with a well flowing story reinforcing the plot. Its just too bad that the artwork is wasted on a story that makes no sense.

At least Laura Bragas artwork was great and, in this issue although there was little to differentiate the real Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy from their Riverdale cosplay competition. Its Halloween season. I saw a woman dressed as Harley Quinn in the subway last night. Her cosplay skills were incompetent as best. One would exect that if Betty and Veronica were cosplaying as Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, that their disguises would look like cheap imitations of the real thing too.

The artwork by Mirka Andolfo is great although seeing her draw gore is odd given her clean style. It works well for the housewife scenes but is not the right fit for the gore. It feels more like cartoon violence and gore like a failed Bugs Bunny experiment than something from Vertigo.

The issue does whats its supposed to do. It offers readers many viewpoints on a troubled character that was an enigma for many. Ok scratch that. The issue should have been about offering readers many viewpoints on a troubled character. What we got here was all positive viewpoints and nothing about the crazy lunatic that resuscitated his wife and locked her in a cell in tower. The only explanation for this book was that Jenkins was trying to salvage the character he had created and that was changed by Brian Bendis in the New Avengers. There are hints that well see more of the Sentry but thats left opened ended.

While Andrews is a decent artist, his storytelling needs improvement. He delivers a pretentious comic whose visuals make no sense. The faces are often unattractive and the colouring overbearing. Just don't buy this comic, okay.

Sepulveda renders a great comic book, but he may have added to the complexity of reading the pages and the convoluted nature of the comic book. His work reminds me of Bryan Hitch which is a good thing. However, his inker may not be the most appropriate for his work. Im not sold on this series yet and I think this will be my last issue. Thats too bad because I really wanted to enjoy it.

I dont like the Philip Tans work. Its way to confusing. What exactly is happening on page eight? What is the woman doing to Morphicius? To say that Tan is a weak storyteller is an overstatement. He just cant put a series of images in a sequence that makes sense for a reader to follow. I have no clue about whats happening most of the time. And the text captions dont help either. As for the colouring by Gho, the colours are nice, but he buries Tans work in dark tones and makes visual that are already hard to decipher impossible to comprehend.

The title of the comic book is also very misleading. There is no trial at all in this book, although I found the forensic talk of the Asgardian investigators a little too modern to be credible.

A bunch of androids and people who dont seem to like mutants are after some red hair girl and Nightcrawler gets killed trying to save her. Aw, give me a break. I didnt spoil anything you didnt already know a was coming. Its the only reason I picked up this book at the comic book store this week. I like Nightcrawler, like most of you do and Im sorry to see him go. Having said that this storyline is ridiculous and totally failed to grab my attention. I know Im expected to read the blurb in the first page that explains what Im supposed to read, but Im getting lazy and if a comic book cannot be enjoyed without extensive research in the past, for a recent storyline, chances are its not a good comic book. This is not a good comic book. It looks good though. It looks very good and has good art. But the good art only serves to cover the paucity of story inside. Nothing happens here. Theres a few fight and flight to Utopia. Then, theres the shock image of the dead Nightcrawler which we all know

Visually, this comic book feels like an anim. Its gotbright colours and weird page compositions used to draw the reader in theaction. It should be a fun read, even if the story is weak.

Of course, the stories from the Street Fighter series by Udon are always weak. This issue is actually better thought out and with more material to peruse. However, its difficult to understand where this issue fits with what has happened previously. It seems that the writer is still exposing the basic plot elements of the story, instead of developing them.

The artwork is just right even if painted. Often painted comics feel stiff. Janet Van Dyne has never looked better. Even the wacky costumes look decent with very little updates needed. The price of this comic book is a bit steep though. I would encourage readers to only pick up issues they are interested in as opposed to all of those coming out. For example, I skipped the one on Luke Cage because I dont really care about the character.

Don't pick up this comic book. It's bad and muddies up the origins of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver even more. Instead, go pick up their original first appearances in the Avengers and the X-men.

Having written this, there is not much that I need to say as this story has been written in a much better way for Superman by Alan Moore no less. Max Fiumara is an eclectic artist. Its really take it or leave it with him. I dislike his Aquaboy but like the oddness of much of his work. He makes characters ugly and deformed but on purpose, not because he cannot draw. It gives them a form of expression and in some ways it is suitable for this story. I just dont like his Aquaboy.

I also need to mention that a comic that features black characters prominently should not be plagued with the black palms problem, where colourists draw the palms of Blacks the same colour as the rest of their skin. This usually betrays a colourist who has little clue about how people look in real life and has not spent much time observing the world. In Sam Wilson Captain America, this is not just an oversight, its bad design.

The one salvation of this comic is Jesus Saizs work. His Captain America is solid and real. There are dimensions to his characters and they are pleasant to look at. There is an Art Deco feel to the dimension that he gives his characters that fits the story of a white supremacist. Art Deco always makes white supremacists look better.

Daredevil and Cage have a bet about which one can take the other first after Cage misjudges Daredevils capabilities. But good old Daredevil thug, Turk is involved in the match as Cages trainer. Will he manage to sabotage this friendly fight? This story is set in the past and of course, is full of continuity errors. In the past, Foggy Nelson, Matt Murdocks partner did not know he was Daredevil. Or if he knew, he did not tell the hero he knew. Thats a major mistake. Second, Turk looks way too modern with dreads rather than the good old afro weve always known him to sport. There is no point to the story. Its not even charming or reeking of that good old fake nostalgia story set in the retroactive past that comic book publishers like to publish. The characters in the book look very stiff which is not a great thing when featuring a very acrobatic protagonist.

The visuals are not bad, but they do annoy me. They have that sharp edge that feels like someone is rubbing their nails on a blackboard. Thats how it feels looking at them. Its not that the artist is bad. But his work is not quiet. Blame the inker for that one.

Kevin Nowlan is a good inker for Bryan Hitch because he solidifies the looseness of the latter. The first version of Hawkman drawn by Hitch looked like the classic version without the trunk and much of the pouches and gear. He looked clean. The one that we see fly away at the end of the issue is has a whole chest armour instead of a harness and metal wings instead of the traditional feathery grey pinions. Im less thrilled with this depiction of Hawkman.

The Justice League investigates the death of Prometheus and tries to capture Green Arrow his murderer. Can Green Arrow stay aloof for long? This issue, of course continues the story from the Justice League Cry for Justice mini-series where Star City was destroyed and Green Arrow committed a murder " ahem again. The whole story about Green Arrow killing a bad guy is ridiculous as he has been there and much further during the years Mike Grell wrote the character. In fact one of the crucial scene in the Green Arrow Longbow story that reintroduced the character to an adult readership, he murdered the torturer of his girlfriend, the Black Canary. So all of this story feels hollow to me and not as poignant as when Green Arrow first started killing people 20 years ago. Krull reminds me of A.J. Liebermans Martian Manhunter series. Both try to write groundbreaking tales about the characters they are responsible for, but all of their efforts fall short as a better creator has done the same and

The art changes a lot from the beginning to the end. I really wonder if this is the same artist here or if he farmed out some of the work of an unaccredited one. I dont like the first few pages, but later, the artwork and the characters proportions become more normal.

Of course, the visuals are tight and well executed. It good to see that the art of inking a comic book is still valued and used profoundly by some artists, like Parks. Marvel Comics contribution to this book is minimal. They just lent Daredevil. Thats too bad. More interaction between the characters various universes would have been cool.

Im not a fan of Adam Kubert, so of course Icare little for his work in this issue. Its tolerable and does the job. Heplays with new page layouts, using much more space to draw an empty story.

Bachs is a great artist. I hope he stays with this series long. In fact, as long as he stays, Ill excuse the poor geography skills of Yost. One thing does concern me though. Tim Drake is not the standard six feet high yet. Hes still growing up. It wasnt easy to perceive that he was a smaller compact guy in the artwork. I hope Bachs remedies to that. Tim Drake did look young out of costume though.

Bongo Comics has not adjusted its Canadian prices on Simpsons Comics yet and charges an extra dollar to Canadians, when their currency is traded at the same price as the American dollar. This is a problem and may lead me to cancel my subscription if Bongo Comics doesn't adjust its prices soon.

This is a straightforward issue with much action and many surprises. Although there are many flashbacks and subplots building up this story, it is easy to understand what is going on. However, except for the cliffhanger, not much makes me want to come back next issue. The characters personalities and motivations are easy to figure out, but one doesnt feel enthralled by their challenges. The short Chung Lin and Master Gen story at the end of the book was much more interesting and made me relate to the characters, even if they are hardened killers.

Visually, the designs are classic Disney and the characters move in and out of pages, always in that style. It was a pleasurable thing to see as the great penmanship one expects from a Disney product could easily have been sacrificed. The little reaction shots with the various forests animals were quite fun too.

Romita here is more polished than his recent work on the Avengers which is not looking too good. The storytelling is good. It seems that series like this one are better suited for the man than stuff like the Avengers where there are as many characters to draw but on a larger scale. Here, the scale is human. These goons in costumes still look good in them and if Romita has a weakness its that. They still look like super heroes instead of idiots dressing up with pantyhose Lulu Lemon gear.

Romita helps Millar achieve his goal, but I fail to see what else hell get out of the deal besides some hefty royalties on the next Kick-Ass film. Tom Palmer does a good job of cleaning up the dirty pencils of Romita. In the Avengers, Romitas work is a mess of lines. Here, there is an actual flow to the page and lines.

Romita Jr. Is back in shape this issue. Perhaps not having to draw the Avengers every month has freed him and allowed him to deliver more than bland sketches with too many lines. His composition is good here and the figures look fully formed. This is the Romita work that I like. The one that looks so easy for him to draw, thats full of energy, but all you have to say when you look at it is say that its pure genius. Its gory. He shows the piss and blood leaking down Kick-Ass dads body while being hung in jail. Not a cool pic to remember. But for what this comic book is about. It works.

Romita should just retire before he becomes a farce like other great comic book artists of the past. It used to mean something to have john Romita Jr. draw a comic book. Now, it just means that the publisher has paid a lot of money and is trying to recoup its investment by over-hyping a piece of crap that looks rushed, that the artist has not really slaved over or bothered to add any special touches to. It looks like Romita Jr. I has the same energy and pacing, but it's like he paid some imitator to copy his style, picking up only the worse traits of his work so he could deliver this comic book in time.

I like Garneys work. It has the crispiness of Romita Jr. and the dynamism of Gil Kane. I would argue that hes finally coming of age here and in the previous Spider-man stories he worked on. His work elevates this story to a major event instead of the random story it should have become. Reading his comic books is truly joyful.

Edwards work takes some adjustment before one can enjoy it completely, but once accepted, its quite entertaining. Kuberts story was acceptable, but not engaging. Im not sure I like either his rendition of Spider-man or Wolverine. I much prefer his Batman.

This issue is an anthology of new and old Wolverine stories providing readers with a greater insight into the Canadian mutant. The question is was it necessary. I dont know where the number #900 came from. They could have called this Wolverine Annual Volume something and be done with it. The stories read like those from an annual. Nothing groundbreaking, some reprints and touchy goody stories that show the mellow part of the protagonist. The stories are not bad at all, but nothing worth remembering. And this is whats wrong with how Marvel Comics markets Wolverine. They put him in every book to boost sales and write the most ridiculous stories and fans like you and I support them by buying sub-quality material because Wolverines in it. The artwork is all over the place in terms of quality and most of it is not the type I like. The story with the Morlocks in particular, looks amateurish. But for Wolverine fans may appreciate the diversity of portrayals in this issue. You can definitely p

I dont know who Manifold or Captain Universe are. I dont know much about this comic book because the writers expect readers to know all the characters and what happened before. Although this comic book is gorgeous, I have no idea why someone cares about something so empty.

This series has to end. It will now fit in with the rest of the DC Comics universe closely. Spellbinders defeat was rushed and the conclusion of the story was designed to lead the reader to the future of Tim Drake and Rebirth. I did not enjoy the art by Stephen Thompson. It felt like a bad version of Barry Kitson with badly telegraphed action scenes. In the fight scene, it felt like the characters were floating in the air performing ballet and not connecting with one another with their fists. Also, white characters looked Asian for some reason.

I was bored by this comic whose only reason to be special is the artwork and the pedigree of the writer Brian Azzarello. If it werent for these, the comic would not fare well with critics.

Just looking at the cover, one could see that art wise, it wasnt the strongest issue of the series. The storytelling and the choreography of the fight between the Birds of Prey and Prometheus is all over the place in a weird page crossing panel layout. Such storytelling invariably doesnt help the smooth reading of a comic book and are but excuse for an artist to show some of his work. It hurts the book, instead of helping it.

Past two alternated reviews:

Visually, I find it interesting that all the principalswho worked on this series seem tom have Qubcois origins. Bedard, St.Aubin andcover artist Roux all have typical Canadian names. Im not a fan of inker Floydand I think hes the reason the artwork looks so generic. This series has beengraced with strong artists in the past, but its not going out with a bangart-wise.

I am a bit disappointed that Joness Catwoman, being created by a unique cartoonist is not more profound but then again, she is jumping in just after Tom Kings Batman run.

My problem with this comic is the art by Dave Acosta. Its not bad, but its not competent. Chastity is not the most popular comic book character. Chaos Comics is a small publisher Chastity. The Acosta needs an inker to equalize his work. I grow tired of comic book publishers who cut corners by taking unpolished pencils straight to colouring. Inking improves comic book art.

Jurgens and Prez deliver a crisp and solid comic book, but it feels dated and from an earlier generation. Its not to my liking. Ill have to seriously consider whether Ill get the next issue.

Jurgens and Prez may sound like a dream team, but the work comes out stiff. It really feels like a book from the 1990s. The storytelling is brilliant, but the rendering, while well done still continue to feel old.

Benes draws this issue well although he still is a poor storyteller that relies on grandstanding shots of people standing around full of angst without doing much. The section by Marco Marz actually show what a better artist can deliver in but a few pages and how Benes is overrated and out of his league in a book like Green Lantern.

I dont know Neil Edwards but he had some difficult material to work with. Most of the issue was a bunch of talking heads in the suburbs. Only towards the end when the villains showed up did he finally let lose. Hitch overburden his scripts with dialogue, something one would expect a comic book artist to be weary of. He is not.

The story itself was very limited with a classic infiltration plot and some other bad guy breaking in at the end of the comic book. There was also a lot of grief about dead Legionnaires, but again Levitz failed to explain to those of us reading a Legion of Super Heroes book for the first time why we should care and why there were so many deaths. This was my first time reading Legion of Super Heroes, and will probably by my last time.

The artist has a classical illustrative style that is well adapted to this science fiction story. However, the inking could use a little more weight. The sketchy lines left on the characters face feels sloppier than stylistic. Tan also has a few problems with proportions. His characters head are too small compared with their bodies.

Tans work is not bad, but Banning is the wrong inker forhim. He just muddles through the drawings of Tan, making them almost undecipherable.Banning makes Tans work look like a poor imitation of Leinil Francis Yu, whichhimself is not a great artist. Can standards to both writing and art be raiseda bit?

I wasnt a fan of the artwork this issue. Its mostly agroup effort that always intrude in the immersion a reader has with suchmaterial. I understand that Marvel Comics wanted to make the series seemspecial for each character, but the guest artists arent even iconicillustrators known for their particular renderings of the characters theytackle, so they lose their relevancy.

As for the story, Bendis is following existing patterns of developing a story. You know your work is either seminal or clich when people can pick up your writing techniques and tricks the moment you introduce them. It feels like I have read this story before in Civil War and Secret Invasion. Its not really what happens that is copied. Its how its presented.

Tan is a clone of Leinil Francis Yu but with better sense of how to pace a fight. He also uses less cinematic tricks to get his storytelling to mean anything. Thats useful. He doesnt have the crispness nor provide the anorexic cheek bones similar to Yus characters. Its a good improvement when I think about it, even if it feels a little off Yus style.

Im sure that Tans work looks decent when only pencilled. Here, it looked stronger than in previous issues. The problem, as one can see from the cover of this comic book is that the colourist overpowers the artwork with the flashy colours. She submerges all the art and thus its hard to get a quick representation of whats going on when looking at the art. A cover staging the Avengers fighting a gigantic villain is a classic clearly taken from Brave and the Bold #28 which introduced the Justice League and Fantastic Four #1. But when looking at those other comic books, its much easier to understand whats going on. Here, we have an overabundance of reds, yellows and oranges engulfing characters that already where bright coloured costumes, like Wolverine, Spider-Woman and Spider-man. Well, the interior of the comic book is the same and no iconic element can step out of the page because of the submerging effects of the colouring.

Immonen is a good artist, of course, but Im not supportive of the attempt to give a Leinil Francis Yu flavour to his work. Their style are totally different and I consider Immonen a superior artist. Having his work changed through the ink to mimic Yul is somewhat insulting considering Immonen doesnt have to ape anyone. Why editors at Marvel Comics this is a good idea is anyones guess.

The old Captain America is back and along with the new one investigates the men and the security around the Avengers mentioned that has been overtaken by Norman Osborn and his Dark Avengers. Elsewhere, Spider-man and Spider-woman are on a double date fighting villains and making sure neither is a Skrull spy. This is a filler story like much of the stories that have been featured in this series to give enough time for Bendis to tackle bigger issues in many other books. During the Secret Invasion series, this comic book was again relegated to the back burner, but at least it featured profile type of stories on about the Secret Invasion and its main players. Here, this story is the type that made the Avengers an not so interesting series way back in the 1980s. There is nothing here, except for punchy one lines by the characters and fake character development and characterisation contradicted by the unified voices all characters have. Visually its more interesting, but the colouring in the

Spider-woman is under mind control by lower grade villains and attacking Spider-man. Spider-man dares not hurt his ally, but time is running out and something has to be done before someone gets hurts. Will Spider-woman snap out of it? This is another filler story with a useless premise that does not show the Avengers at their best, safe for the original Captain America. Its also a preparation of sort for the Siege storyline. Skip this one if you are on a budget. I like the two sets of artists used here, but their work is wasted on such a mediocre story.

This issue focuses on the relationship between Mockingbird and Ronin. They are powerless Avengers, married, but forwarded in the middle of the action and plots against the Avengers. Will their relationship last longer than the next fight with the villain next door? This is another filler issue the way Bendis writes them when he is doing a major crossover. It ads some details to the bigger conflict, but is otherwise somewhat irrelevant. His Dark Avengers series has more juicy details. Here, he tries to do what several writers have attempted over the years. Hes trying to prove that Ronin and Mockingbird are not clones of DC Comics Green Arrow and Black Canary. Its not convincing and the quick wordy jabs the characters spat at one another do little to convince. The dialogue is weak and hip. The artwork is good but not memorable. Frankly, Im not sure why Im reading this series. Its been bad for months now.

The Hood has lost his powers. Loki has taken them away to give to the super heroes battling the Void. The Hood is a broken man and must find a way to get back at the Avengers. So he and Madame Masque make a quick getaway. This story explains why the Hood was so loyal to Norman Osborne and shows that Bendis has more plans for the Hood. The series is nearing its end and its about time. While this issue was a better read, there isnt much to justify keeping this series alive now that the Siege is almost over and the running story with the Sentry is almost over. Like usual a lot of the marerial was filler, although the artwork was quite good. Mckone is an old pro. He really could not mess something like that. Hopefully hell have better material to work with the next time.

Having written all of this, there are reasons for readers to get this book. It shows the progress Bendis has made and how hes managed to make the Avengers more popular than the X-Men in but a few years. So careful readers should take my criticisms with a grain of salt. Had Bendis totally failed in elevating the Avengers front and center at Marvel Comics, I wouldnt be writing this right now. Id be feeling relieved the series ended. Now Bendis is not going anywhere and is continuing his work on the next chapter of the Avengers history. Lets hope he succeeds there.

I kinda wish that this series would fail and that we would only get to see Nightwing is other peoples books. But unfortunately that wont be the case. The character has a huge following and DC Comics probably consider him too important not to invest more in him. I wont pick up Nightwing #2.

Now, I didnt like the art at all. It started with KidFlash whose face I felt like punching. He just didnt appeal to me. Later, we also see ugly faces for Wonder Girl which made me more focused on how much I couldnt stand her face than what she was actually doing. I dont like the work of this artist much, so I wont focus on that too much here. His work is dynamic and seemingly well positioned for an action-packed comic book. Some readers may enjoy the Jim Lee influences.

Porter did a decent job visually this issue, although hesnot my favourite artist. His characters are not very appealing to me. However,he told the story correctly and did not confuse me as reader, by focusing onthe good storytelling.

The story itself is less interesting with nothing but fights and stuff blowing up. Little has been learn from the previous issue. In fact, since its been months since the last issue I read, I couldnt quite understand where the story was picking up from and where it was going, even with an introductory recap to the story, it took me a while to get a grip on things.

Marvel usually relies on Romita when it wants to push a comic book out there. Romita delivers, of course, thinking ahead, this may not be a wise decision as we know Romita will probably leave in about six issues and the artists left to pick up the slack, while probably good will probably drive the sales of this series down. Wouldnt it be better to build this series from the ground up with a regular artistic team committed to stick around for a while instead of borrowing a popular name to jump start a new franchise?

I think Romita is tired. His work is becoming sloppy in these pages. All the good thing about his storytelling and the way he draws characters as massive statues becomes a caricature of himself in this story. There is no elegance in the posing of his character. It feels as if hes delivering pages after pages mindlessly without taking proper care to compose good layout and something visually interesting. Romita is a great artist and I really like his style, but too much Romita without any control only shows his excesses which like everything consumed too much is bad for you.

Im tired of Romitas mumbo jumbo that passes for artwork. I never thought I would say something like that. While his work on Black Panther and the Eternals was well layed out and interesting. Here, Romita indulges in his greatest weaknesses. Characters have no real shape. Ok they look like cylinders so that must count as a shape. The story is full one full-page panels that attempt to look dramatic but arent. There are almost no backgrounds behind the characters and all the technology looks like a bunch of pipes plugged into bigger pipes. I understand that readers like Romita. Everybody likes Romita. But I feel like hes pulling a John Byrne on readers. Hes a high level artist mailing in crap as work and readers are supposed to feel privileged to read this crap which is a pale shadow of the real work the artist is capable of delivering. Didnt Frank Miller and Neal Adams try to pull that one too? Didnt turn out too well for either of them...

Romitas work was bettet this issue and less sloppy than I remembered. I especially like the last page with all the Avengers commenting on the new recruit and how the multiple panels showed their expressions. Its drawings like those on that page that made Romita a popular artist in the first place. Its simple work with but a few lines that capture so much energy. When he rushes his work, its easy to perceive that. By the way, I like how everyone but Wolverine appeared to be drink hot chocolate or tea. Wolverine had a beer instead!

Im not sure what will be salvaged from the crossover next issue, now that there is no Avengers Tower. It almost feels like Brian Bendis is compelled to put all the toys back in their box by destroying one mainstay of his Avengers run " the Tower. One thing I can say is that John Romita draws too many comic books per month and the lack of cohesiveness in his work is really harming the Avengers. He is still committed to Kick-Ass. Perhaps he should let another artist have go at the Avengers. His work does not bring anything to the table anymore and is actually a detriment. It used to be that his work on a series was a special thing. Now, its just a pale imitation of a master who works too much and sends in pages of scribbles instead of properly designed comic book pages.

Acuna is the right artist for this storyline which is less explosive than the previous one. Im actually glad to see John Romita Jr. gone from this series. He was really pushing it to the ground with his rushed artwork and dirty lines. His work was all sketches and no finishes. Its good to see a totally different take here with Acuna whose work is somewhat painterly and much more stylized. There are even hints of crime noir in his work. Im hooked again.

Some people told me on Twitter that they dont like Acunas work. I wonder why. Its not as designed and as distinct as it was on the Freedom Fighter series for DC Comics. Hes tone down a lot to look more like the crime noir work of Steve Epting on Captain America. Acunas not really good on action because his work is so stylized. The Avengers are all about action. It will be interesting to see if the toned down stylization works with action scenes.

Norton is not a bad artist, but his work is not memorable either. Its solid and well crafted but without the extra oomph that creates a star artist. I think his greater weakness was having Rubinstein ink his work. While Im glad to see old pros get work, his inking totally overpowers Nortons work.

Norton is a good artist that delivers. But my problem with his rendition is that theres nothing that grabs the reader and takes it to another level. He is not a bad artist at all. His work is professionally rendered but he doesnt try to break any mould. DC Comics seems happy to hire a lot of artists of this caliber for its series. On one hand this is a good thing because artists like Norton and Rubinstein do their work proficiently. But on the other hand, this work does not elevate the comic book into anything more. In these times of shrinking audiences and economic downturns, Id like to see artists like Norton and Rubinstein put more efforts to grab readers attention.

Rubinstein gives a Dick Giordano feel to the book which is not bad, but does date it and make it less attractive than other comic book. Its a pity that a fine inker like him who understands the art of the comic book feels dated in his handling of comic books. The reason I worry so much about the dated look, is because the majority of comic book readers these days dont have appreciation for the art of comic book inking and looking at this comic book may decide that it is old and boring, because of the well executed, but not mind grabbing artwork.

Dallocchio is a great artist but his inked lines are too thin in several instances. He would benefit from a more present inked line. His characters look weird in some places. He tends to draw women with gigantic opened mouth that look silly.

Green Arrows secret identity is busted and he is on trial for the murder of Prometheus. Can Green Arrow maintain his old friendships and save his marriage with the Black Canary? Im not sure what Im supposed to read here. Green Arrows secret identity has been busted? I thought everyone knew about him being Oliver Queen? Isnt he married with the Black Canary a super heroine with no secret identity of her own? Its a time like this that casual readers, like me who claim to not care much about continuity become continuity freaks. The story is ridiculous and makes no sense. The entire mayor storyline before that, where no one connected the dots was as ridiculous. But worse is the fact that we are supposed, as readers, feel that Green Arrow did something really bad. In Identity Crisis, the actions of the super heroes were genuinely wrong. There was a real tension and a feeling that a threshold had been crossed. But Green Arrow? The guy whos been killing people since the mid 1980s is supposed

In this story set in the past, Iron Man travel to the fictional country of Transia to stop an genocide in progress, but the US Government, under pressure from other world powers wants Tony Stark to reign in Iron Man. But will the lives saved and the technology retrieved worth more than obeying the United States Government? Its a good issue that doesnt even forces the reader to having read the first one. The story is that easy to get into. This story is quite similar in set up the premise of the first Iron Man film and some of the stories by Matt Fraction on Invincible Iron Man. The formula here seems to work. Add some technology wars, some world despots and a couple of remote caves in the most inland and hard to reach places in the world and there you have a good Iron Man story. I read the first issue, but I admit this one is the best of the two. The artwork is a hit or miss in some places. While we have very good renditions of Iron Man and the many armoured opponent he faces, the re

Kurths work is likable and annoying at the same time. I dont like the finite detail in the line work. It draws attention away from a good reading of the story. Yet Kurth draws good figures and realistic backgrounds. Martinez, the collaborating inker should tone down the finite line work inking and let Kurths decent work shine through, instead.

If every few week, readers are gonna be subjected to bad art, because of tight deadlines, than this does not bode well for this series. The inker and the pencillers style dont match at all. Lashleys work is in line with Jim Lee while Draxhall inks are fuller and darker. It felt like reading a bad Jim Lee clone. The editors should pay more attention and with whom they match when handing assignments.

The artwork was great this issue. It was easy to comprehend the action. The inker, is also above average and gave a soft and clean look to the characters and backgrounds.

The artwork is decent but not exceptional. Smith's characters are stiff and his proportions are off. They have very small heads, long torso and long legs. Smith tries to convey some emotions but most of his characters have the same open mouth-dazzled look.

Marvel and DC Comics really differ. When you look at a Marvel comic book with a no holds' fight, things are messy. Here Batista drew a clean fight, although much of it occurred under rain. Looking at this issue without a Marvel comic book next to it, the fight looks spectacular. But comparing it with say, New Avengers #27, it feels dry. Nevertheless, the storytelling here is solid and it's far easier to understand what was going on in this issue, than it was in the other title mentioned above.

Camuncoli's work doesn't look as good here as it has in other series. All the crispness of his lines is gone. His work requires solid inks not thin lines. Benitez's two page origin of Starfire looks wild but interesting.

This issue reunited Ralph Dibny with one of the artist who drew him often in the old Justice League Europe / Justice League International series. Although the cartoony look was right for Ralph Dibny, it also took away from the seriousness of this issue. Sure Dibny stretches, but he doesn't have to look weird when he does. At the very least, the team who brings us 52 every month is finally making this series entertaining.

The artwork was fine, but the inking was all over the place, with so many artists.

The series starts with a mystery and enough motivation to fill two years worth of stories. However, visually, its a hit and misses. Some pages are gorgeous, others are hideous. This series will need much better art to survive the 52.

The artwork is dreadful on this series. Every page is inconsistent. If this series gets cancelled, the artist will have to shoulder much of the blame. Its kind of painful to look at. The inker is too soft on this artist and many of the poses attempt to be dynamic but exaggerate everything too much.

Im still rooting for this series to work its magic and find an audience. I really like this character but there are a few plot holes. Wallace glances over core elements so quickly and then brings them back as if they had been well-established. He did that the previous issue with people knowing Michael Holt was affected by a temporary madness and quickly exonerated. This issue, he does the same with the extent of Mister Terrifics secret identity. At first glance, it seems that everyone knows or can easily make tie the two. But apparently thats not the case. There isnt enough distinction when the character is a super hero and when he is a business man. The villain quickly figured out the secret identity thing and used it against Mister Terrific. The ideas for this series are good, but there are too many important points that are continually skipped over.

I used to really like this character but this series fails to entertain or take the character anywhere useful. It's a shame.

It's a short story filled mumble jumble pseudo science, as much of this series has been, but little to make it feel realistic.

Viacavas work is solid, although not sexy and provocative. He delivers a straight story visually sticking closely to the story and not bringing innovation. Im not complaining. For a story stepped in the real world, its important to have something easy for the reader to identify with. He succeeds on that front. But I cant help wonder how this series would have looked if say the publisher had tried a crime noir feel.

Rivera is not a master storyteller himself " the scenewhere Wolverine is shot in the head is unclear. However, his work is more kineticand his panels less filled with useless visual information, the way Bachalofills his. I do like his interpretation of Wolverine. He looks more human thansuper heroic.

I like the artwork. The colours are vivid and bright. The best part about the entire comic book was the slingshot frame at the bottom of each page mimicking the red bird attacking the pigs. I enjoyed this comic book and would recommend it to kids. Yet, I wonder how the creators will create enough stories for a continuing series.

What are the reasons for still buying this series? Well, the Enchanteress is back. I like her. The real reason is Alan Davis who proves that he is as relevant as ever no matter what new generation of comic book artists comes after him. He makes Bryan Hitch look like an amateur. I like it when these old pros come out and are given opportunities to show why they are the real deal.

I like that the artwork in this series is so similar. Although there are small variations, all characters are instantly recognizable. Unlike all the Batman animated series, the characters model sheets are always respected. This is how a comic book based on licensed property should be conceived.

Robin is left alone with a smiling and begging Joker that revealed the truth of how he has been manipulating Batman and Robin and the rest of the city police force for months. But Robin is too impulsive to be caught by the Jokers temptations. This story was good but weird at once. The beginning which starts a few days before the rest of the book was confusing in a Morrison way, so Im not worried about this. All we be clear by next issue. The best part was the smiling Joker who really didnt want to smile and how it was totally unclear if he was begging for his life or just taunting Robin. Irivings Joker is beautiful and scary to look at.

Murphys inks are strong. He plays up the Dark Knight aspect of the comic with a generous helping of inks. His Batman is very much like the Dark Knight of Frank Miller but interpreted with his own narrower and triangular design of faces.

Sean Murphys artwork continues to be the highlight of this series although unfortunately, he did not have room for any car chase or the gratuitous exposition of vehicles this issue! Still his backgrounds are solid and detailed. Given how wordy Murphy is, at this point the artwork is what makes this comic interesting to read.

As Im uncertain about why I should be readingthis series, the art by Lashley doesnt help. Hes one of those artists thatdraws women in mysterious ways. I havent seen women like that in real lifeyet. Theres a lot of cross hatching which means hes channelling Jim Lee.

Hudlin is taking the series in a new frontier, using the often used conflict of science versus magic as the theme and path upon which he builds this series. Doing so he tries to recapture the African heritage aspect of the series. Its also an interesting proposition given that the Black Panther has always been immersed in science and technological breakthrough as if this was the value that Africans placed on their culture. By going back to the magical and folkloric aspect of African culture he puts emphasis on matters that are closer to a typical African society than science.

McNiven is the top artist to have work on Captain America for a while. This is a compliment as the past series was quite well drawn with solid art by Steve Epting. McNivens page layout stays consistent and mostly simple which helps with the storytelling. Hes shading adds a layer of grit to Captain America and make his seem slightly older, but tougher. I can grow to like this way Captain America is being portrayed. Now, if the story could only get more interesting...

McNiven is a great artist, but his work here only serves t highlight the weakness of the series. Was the series a real suspense thriller, his Captain America might have a chance to look and feel right. But here, we see stitches and chainmail details on the costume which only reinforces the reality of the world Captain America lives in, while he looks like an idiot wearing a rubber suit. It doesnt work, unfortunately, no matter how good the artist is.

McNiven is good here. The illustration and storytelling are fine, but I still feel like his work is like a bunch of photographs. So even though he can move through the story visually and make it clear for readers to know whats happening, it feels stilted. Its really difficult to understand whats off. Check out the picture of the Falcon flying on page four. He just stands there in the sky on top of a city as if he had been stuck there. Its hard to feel that hes in the air floating. Well, much of the comic book has this feel. So gorgeous art work and decent storytelling, but it feels stiff, monotone and non-moving. There is no kinetic energy to the drawings.

The story was a bit too wordy for my taste and even if a lot was spoken, it still did not make things easier to grasp. Its only when Mazra started fighting the female giant that things got interesting and that it was easy to follow the story. It was a classic super hero fight, after all!

I guess, giving the Flash to a new writer like Manapul was a big gamble on DC Comics part. The Flash is one of the core characters at DC Comics and its always had great creators working on it. Visually, Manapul does incredible work and because hes both the writer (partly) and the artist, his work relies on the visual storytelling a lot. It works. There are very few mainstream comic books still written and drawn by the same guy and I hope that DC Comics will let the experiment continue a while longer. These comics usually produce gems when given time to grow.

Invincible Returns occurs between Invincible #70 and #71 where the character prepares for war against the Viltrumites along with his father. It also returns the character to his original super hero costume. Invincible feels bad after having murdered an innocent man possessed by an alien squid. His recent actions have him fear that his Viltrumites origins may push him over the edge and make him violent. Can a return to his original costume mark a return to more innocent times? Well the writer answers this one quickly. You cant go back. I dont mind the older costume. But I like that the character is trying his best to do good and be good. Ottley draws most of this book but its not his regular inkers. Thats too bad because they almost change the look of his work. This issue by the way is a good jumping on point for readers as it recaps the recent history of Invincible. Often, Im not sure why I read this series. Its not bad, but its not groundbreaking. What it does best is show the gory s

I have finally figured out who de la Torres work reminded me off in this issue. With his rendering of the Silver Centurion Iron Man armour, which is more muscular and less mecha-like, posing abilities and excellent anatomic renderings of de la Torre seem inspired by Neal Adams. Just look at how his characters twist and turn as if their bodies were tortuous masses that really occupied the 3D space they depict. The inking may mask the more traditional comic book style of the artist, but a scene with good fashion super heroics doesnt. Im not complaining.

Yet, Sturges has a winner with the characterisation and the motivations. I get the characters and why they are doing this. This is a good story and I like how reliant on their own skills they are while still being a good team in a fight. I do like the leadership conflict with Power Girl and Magog. I wish Magog would just die, but apparently, DC Comics is trying to push him down our throat as a major character. Does anyone remember Agent Liberty from way back and how he was hyped as the second coming of Christ? Thats how I feel DC Comics is trying to push Magog and hes one of the reason that I dont like the story. However, I do appreciate the conflict with the Injustice Society. The villains have as much personality as the heroes. But I do have to ask about Geomancer. Wasnt he killed way back in the old Justice Society series?

The All-Stars have a little break. Cyclone and King Chimera get closer to one another but a new perilous mission threaten the budding the relationship the two have. Will death get in the way of love? I feel that Cyclone is like a modern Kitty Pryde. Ive finally figured out who she was. Shes spunky and different from all the young girl heroines out there. Thats fun. Shes also annoying and turns this series into a soap opera. I never cared about her and wonder why would supposedly responsible adults would ever put a kid like that in a super hero team. Well, I may not have to worry about her for long, unless this is another illusion by King Chimera. Another character that was badly introduced in this series. I had no idea that he was the legacy of a real Golden Age character. His back-story was never really introduced properly in this series. Can we all agree that Freddie Williams is not a good thing for this series? His works like a bad Bart Sears . Hes the one reason I just cant get int

Now, what you probably wonder is will this comic want to make you eat some Zingers? Well, perhaps they could have shared a bit more about what makes this chicken sandwich so special. They could have replaced it with chicken thighs and it wouldnt have affected the story much. If youre going to go capitalist, do it all the way and tell us why your product is so special!

Visually, I feel like Im supposed to be enjoying myself, but Im not. Painted comics are always good to look at, but when the artist uses Photoshop to reuse the same sea creature in many pages of the comic book, I start to feel like Im watching an old Flintstones cartoon where the background kept being reused every five seconds while Fred and Wilma are driving by. I think modern readers deserve more care and attention in their comic books. I can understand reusing artwork for dramatic effect, but using the same fish all over makes the artists look sloppy.

I like Lopezs work. He draws beautiful women. Without his contribution, this series would not have been so strong. Its rather unfortunate that the plot was weak this issue, giving him less material to work with. But I really like how he redesigned Mocking Bird. Other artists should use her new costume.

Dexter Wee captures action scenes well but his brush strokes are too muddy. There are too many lines in the characters faces and telling them apart in the end of the comic is a problem. The two women had the same body type and attire. Only their haircut helped me differentiate them. This graphic novel read like a treatment for a movie. I wonder if Powers has more stories in store for Patriot-1.

I like the mix of cartoon styles used in this comic. Harley Quinn and the Joker looked their best with the 1990s Batman Adventure look while Batman and Robin sported the classic Hanna-Barbera look. Some of the background characters even looked like they came from an Archie comic.

Tan is a hit or miss. Hes a hit this issue. The characters look good enough and he did a couple of wonderful pages with Ghost Rider. Its not easy to capture the power of a guy on a flaming motorcycle. However, he has problems with his anatomy, giving the heroes impossibly long torsos and very small heads.

A new killer has been hired by the Octopus to stop the Spirit, but hero is already in on the scoop and is preparing his moves. But will this new assassin prove more than a match for the Spirit? Im not sure why this series was created. It seems to me that if the previous one by Darwin Cooke and Mark Evanier didnt work out " and they were probably the best revival the character could get, why would this dumb down Spirit series work now? Is it because it removes the grey areas of the character? Is it because its now typical super hero fare? The reason is because its meant to fit with that new FirstWave line from DC Comics. Well, this reader doesnt care. It felt like watching the Frank Miller film all over. I had the same sense of disconnect with the dialogue and the characters acting. This type of series is why so many people are afraid that big publishers like DC Comics can only rape and milk and original creation for its brand name only. It falls short of what I expected from the Spirit

There is a bit of a Guy Davis quality to N. Steven Harriss work where his line is not as steady. This could be the lack of inks playing tricks. One thing is that colourist Dearbhla Kelly is the wrong pick for such a style. When art is this loose, the colours must pick up the slack and reinforce the looseness to give the comic coherence.

I prefer the pages with Dagnino to Batista but overall it was a well drawn issue with a lot of fighting which all I really cared. The plot as mentioned above has been done so many times just to see two heroes fight each other. The artists deliver on the fight and may entice me, along with Simones script to stick around for more issues.

While the artwork is clear, many of the action scenes are not. The storytelling in such a series that switches locals often is important. The series is not often easy to follow and I should not have to rely on the speech bubbles to figure out whats happening in the page. Id recommend getting a storytelling to do the breakdowns before letting penciller Emilio Laiso finish the illustrations. Im think the cover features a very dark alien ship reflected on the visor of X-O Manowar but it looks more like a bat-signal. Its odd and breaks the cover.

Camuncoli has been a better artist. When he drew the Intimates for Wildstorm hes characters looked more compelling. The only difference is that he had a more competent inker " Sandra Hope that was capable of improving his work. Here, Catacchio only enhance Camuncolis weaknesses like the wider than normal mouths and the goofy expressions of the character. The way this is drawn is not bad, but would be a better fit in a Vertigo series, than one featuring a Wolverine.

Im not a fan of Segovias work. He makes womens breast stupidly huge and draws their hair as floating in the wind, even inside a closed office. His storytelling is all over the place as he favours expressing and showing off his art work and weird angles as opposed to sticking to the script and delivering something the average reader can decipher without having the rebuild a puzzle that ultimately doesnt make sense.

Im not a fan of the artists work as their storytelling is not good. Theyd rather put dismembered panels all over the place instead of concentrating on telling the story clearly.

Daken, the son of Wolverine is courted by Fates of Asgard that want him to start Ragnarok anew. Will Daken follow their lead or continue to prove that he is his own master? I really like this issue and although I hate Daken as an antisocial jerk " he represents the worst type of person I would never want to come across, he is the most interesting villain I have read in years. He is just a bad guy and there is nothing redeemable about him, as the Fates see. I see a future for this series after the Dark Avengers story and would gladly follow it, if the writers stay on board. Camuncoli has always been a great artist and I wish he could get a better inker to show how good he really is.

Daken is offered a future where he is a leader of men during the Siege of Asgard. Will he rise up to the occasion or will he be a loner once more. I really liked this issue as it showed the best and the worst of the character. I really despise Daken as a character but I feel compelled to read his comic book series. I dont usually like clones of other characters like X-23, but Daken here is his own character. Hes not his dad, Wolverine and his even more interesting than the old man. Hes just crazy and a psychopath. Much of the fun of this series lies in the strong characterization by Way and Liu. Im not sure anyone else could make Daken such a formidable character. Camuncoli of course is a great artist, although Sandra Hope is his best inker to date. Catacchio brings another dimension to Camuncoli and in this gritty war with Asgard, it fits just right.

Wolverine recruits his son, Daken, the Dark Wolverine so they can team up to take down Romulus, the man who trained Daken. But Daken is his own man and betrays his father. But can Daken really trick his own father or is there a greater plot at work? I like that Wolverine is no longer treated as an idiot next to Daken. I like that Daken has been taken down one peg and that his sexuality is his downfall. Hes not that smart, just a psychopath. What I didnt like was the clear cut break from the last storyline where no explanation about where Daken ended up after the Siege were given. The last issue of Siege is next week and I know this series is not meant to spoil that, but some better transition is warranted. I felt like I had missed an issue. Im not a fan of Segovia. He seems to me like another of those Leinil Francis Yu clone artist. Maybe with an inker that did not reinforce Yus style it would have worked better. On the other hand if you like Yus work, this comic book is for you.

Daken, the Dark Wolverine sets his father in a trap in order to deliver him to his guru Romulus. But will Wolverine fall into the trap or will Dark Wolverine try to set up the two men against one another and claim the spoils? I hate stepping into a comic book that In follow monthly and discover that Im missing a whole chapter because of some stupid and convoluted crossover. Its whats happened here. I didnt know the last issue would be continued in Wolverine Origins. Frankly, I dont care about Wolverine Origins. The only thing that occurred here is Marvel Comics proving that I didnt really need to read much of Wolverine Origins to get the story. It was confusing at first, but after ignoring the missing chapter, I could focus on the present tale. The story is pointless and a bunch of fight strewn together. Im not interested in the whole Romulus affair, although one could argue that Romulus is a big part of Dakens history. Smith s visual work is good and flows well.

The artwork is good in places but weaker in other ones. Still it captured the ambiguity of the character well. I actually like seeing Daken without his super villain costume more than. The character feels more genuine and his conflicting personality can shine better. The colours were particularly good this issue.

I am not familiar with Trevor McCarthy, but he adds a lot of grit and realism to this story. I like the double-page spread of the Justice League going after the Legion of Doom. It felt like a classic shot of the old Super Friends cartoon series. The colouring reminds me of the one used in The Golden Age, drawn by Paul Smith. Strong magentas, oranges, and blues adorn the page and almost make the artwork suffocate. But the blacks still come off as very strong. Its an interesting mix.

McCarthy is good with action scenes and emotional ones. Starfires face does change a bit and looks a bit odd. His layouts are packed which means he can tell a lot of story in mere pages. A device he likes to use which fits the theme of the comic is the black gutter space. In some flashback scenes, there are no frames around the panels who appear to float on a white background. These tricks all work and give his works a sense of maturity and professionalism.

There have been many depictions of Superman fighting Batman. In this issue, there is but one full page spread that will send shivers down your spine as you witness Superman brutally burning Batman with his heat vision. Trevor McCarthy delivers the goods. Thats all I need to write.

Trevor McCarthy had just the right pulp feel and remined me a lot of Paul Smith and Jim Baikie. He worked with the script that he was given and excelled at that. The only problem is that non-one will care about this series in a few years because while the artwork was there, the depth and grandiose scope of the story was no available.

Olivier Coipel is one of my favourite artists. To think that people used to complain about his work when he was working on Legion of Super Heroes for DC Comics. Granted most of his characters look alike, he has the ability to capture mundane and non heroic characters unlike anyone else. His use of facial expressions has also improved tremendously since he last worked on Thor as its regular artist.

While the fight between Thor and the Silver Surfer seems like it will never end, Fraction manages to show how one-sided Thor has been in this war against Galactus. The Silver Surfer is much more level-headed, patient and merciful than Thor, even is his job is dreadfully worse than Thors. The best part of the story is Loki. Dare I say that Loki was never as interesting a character as now that hes a boy? Hes really the god of mischief now. The magic with Coipels work, is that his characters all feel like dwarves, even Thor. But their facial expressions are unique and even if there is a lot of familiarity in all the characters, it is so easy to tell each character apart.

Is it just me, or is Coipel shrinking the heads of his characters even more than before. Thor towards the end of the issue looked like a his head belonged to a midget. It was so compressed, it made no sense. I like how Coipel draws all the regular folks, Volstagg, Galactus and the Silver Surfer, but I like his Thor less and less. I hate it when artists become caricatures of themselves. However, I have to say that with the head compression thing, the Silver Surfer really looked like he had been drawn by Jack Kirby.

Ferry is a marvellous artist with anything related to fantasy. His work is epic. Its too bad he gets to work on filler material instead of better stories, until Thor comes back from wherever he is.

Ferry saves this comic book again. Just like Salvador Larroca on Invincible Iron Man, he makes a comic book which would be unreadable at least pleasant to look at and probably props up the work of Fraction, helping cover all the problems in the script.

Land is a fun artist to work with, from the look of his work that makes half of the text and captions from the writer useless. Its a pity that Land wasnt given the opportunity to be the eyes of the readers for this story. Its compelling artwork and strong storytelling.

Dodson creates beautiful people. Hes like amodern Adam Hughes, but with more angular designs. He does a great job in thisissue, but even his sugar-coated illustrations cant coat a weak story.

Its easy to package boring stories with beautiful art. It makes the less palatable, palatable. But want to know something? Im growing tired of Greg lands work too. Marvel always assign him to series they dont feel would fly on their own. So he adds an extra boost that makes the reader feel like this is major stuff happening, when in fact, its as banal as the worst of the 1990s X-Men material. Is there any hope for the X-Men?

Land was born to draw women and this issue proves it another time " not that anyone needed to be told that. The fact that most of the characters in this issue are women also gives him solid material to work with. Although all his women look the same, all being drop-dead gorgeous, he can still instil a good action scene here and there that carries the story forward.

I long for great adventures for this team. At least, the fight looked good with Land getting better at drawing womens anatomy with realistic proportions.

Dodson is a much more enjoyable artist than Greg Land. I like how he moulded the white space reality inside of Emmas mind and played with the panels in the page to further the effects. I doubt Land would have landed such a creative layout. His storytelling is also quite good in this issue. I like the diamond effect used to depict Emma Frost and the ice effect on Iceman. Dodson, by the way draws beautiful women.

Im quite happy that Dodson is continuing to work on this series. He brings a plastic quality to the characters and has them interacting in well designed, but simple environments. His depiction of Scott Summers made the character look very old in the mind game adventure versus the Void. Im not sure how old Summers is supposed to be, but 40 is definitely not the number I have in mind.

Magneto is meditating and Cyclops and Emma Frost are investigating why. Elsewhere, Wolverine, Colossus and Psylocke are fighting the mutants that released the predators upon Utopia Island a few issues ago. The fight starts out as something the heroes cannot win and quickly turns into an easy fight that shows that the heroes were never threatened in the first place. Theres a lot of that in the X-Men world these days and that doesnt make for a compelling narrative when you know the hero is in no danger. Land is Land. He draws women with mouth so wide the state of California can fit in. They all look the same and the fights are not very interesting. This series needs a serious reboot.

Dodson is good here. Im not a fan of his Cyclops though, but all the other characters look fine, except it seems he wishes they all had metallic shine on their bodies so he can draw wavy lines on their faces.

The X-Men send a smaller team to the future to stop the sentinels from traveling to the present and destroying all mutants, but the ground zero of the sentinels may prove too strong to destroy. The issue is interesting with all the guest stars, but for me the highlight was the art by Dodson. If it wasnt for him, this issue would not have been so interesting. The X-Men are tired and are not innovating anymore. I like the special operation team, although I found Angel, the old X-Men veteran and founding member weak in character and not a good example for the other newer guys. There is a sense that the X-Men have reached their limit but it feels more like the writer is telling us rather than showing us the threat.

Whilce Portacio is back drawing an X-Men book after having propelled X-Factor and then, Uncanny X-Men to high sales in the 1990s. Whoever thought he could rekindle the magic here was wrong and I wish he gets off the book soon. At this point, having bad stories by Fraction and now bad art by Portacio makes this book one of the last one I want to read when I get my piles. Portacio attempts the realistic and smooth look that graced the series prior his arrival and fails utterly. His style just doesnt work. He lacks the perfect anatomy to pull it off and his characters faces look too rough to display any emotion or facial expression. Then the inking by Tadeo only exposes Portacios weaknesses further instead of highlighting his strengths.

Portacio was not great last issue, but here, his work improves tremendously and is enjoyable. He tries to work hard on the characters faces and the storytelling was better. The story flowed well when read visually. However, the best pages were those by artist Harvey Tolibao. Why cant he be the regular artist? His drawings were rich and detailed with a great quality and texture to the lines.

Fractions story is all right. The idea of giving humans mutant powers has been done several times already. The idea of a pathogen that only affects mutants has also been done. Gosh, isnt there anything new to report here? Its not the idea that matters so much as to how they are handled here. And of course, the treatment is better and more rigorous and more steeped in reality than past X-Men stories. This is what a lot of the work we see in comics feels like. Its a reinterpretation of older stories but done with better storytelling and visuals. It may seems fresh, but it isnt. The story is not bad, dont get me wrong, but like much of his run on this series, Fraction fails to advance new concepts and stories that can add to the X-Men mythology. Instead, he sticks with safe stories groomed in the lore of the characters.

Djurdjevic is a great artist, although he draws his characters open mouth wider than Rob Liefeld. He gets pacing and page composition and its hard to find anything bad with his work. Its crispy comic book fair and it may help to justify this fourth or fifth " I lose track " Avengers series.

Tan is a bad choice for this series. His work is better suited to clear-cut and brooding super heroes, not crime detective tragedy like Daredevil. Although his work was not bad, he lacks the skill to capture Daredevils kinetic moves. When Daredevil dodges an attack from Bullseye, it doesnt feel like its this superbly trained acrobat beating the odds. It feels like Cable ducking an explosion without any grace.

I didnt know Mauricet before but one can tell hes been trained in classic European comic book art. All his work is solid and mildly cartoony and fun to look at. He is a good fit for this comic. He manages the visual expressions of humans well but I hope that he makes his Muttley more expressive in future issues.

Mauricet contributes solid visuals that are realistic but integrate the cartoony aspects of the story lightly. It would be fun if he would let himself loose a bit and just draw the crazy stuff happening. The restrain Mauricet and Ennis have is holding the comic back and not allowing it to just make fun of itself. There is not point trying to maintain realism in this comic. It is about two silly cartoon characters after all.

The president depicted here is a mix of Nixon and Trump. This is good. The rest of the visuals are solid but still not wacky enough. This is not because Mauricet is not imaginative enough or a great storyteller. It is because he is limited by a script that does not allow him to cut loose.

I marginally prefer the Doc Shaner pages to Ron Randalls pages. Jonathan Cases pages were good too. It feels like one is watching the old cartoons. Perhaps that is why these artists were created. The transitions between their pages were seamless thanks to the colouring from Jordie Bellaire. Im looking forward to reading more issues of Future Quest. The cover and the colurs for the cover are not as good as what's inside.

Ariel Olivetti has experience drawing Space Ghost comics. However, his style is a bit jarring compared to what weve seen previously. He is an excellent painterly artist. It just feels out of place in a comic with pure retro art.

I really like Ron Randall and think that he is a great replacement for Doc Shaner. His work is cleaner too. Randall is an old pro who delivers good super hero action. Veronica Gandinis colouring is also very good although he draws the palms of black characters the same colour as the rest of their skin. No one has melamine in their palms and soles. That means that they should not be coloured brown.

The saving grace of this series has been the characters which so many love and the artwork by wonderful artists such as Evan Shaner who is back this issue after only been the cover artist, as I assume that he was working on other projects. Ive said before. Shaner is the perfect artist for this series.

I want to see more of these characters but I want the stories to avoid dragging and to mean something.

Immonen is an old pro. Here he went for a simpler look and style but his solid storytelling is still visible to all. I would argue hes the strongest asset of this series so far, although hes no longer a super popular comic book artist. But, hes a solid artist that can take deadlines and deliver good work. That counts for much.

The joke here was saved by Immonen who is a first class artist who doesnt seem to get the respect he deserves. Hes a pro and he delivers no matter what comic book hes working on. Of all the new Avengers series since the heroic Age debut, this one is the least interesting and the first one Ill be dropping, even if the artwork here is incredible.

Immonen is the best thing about this comic book. But looking a good art will not mask flaws and what I perceive as a lack of interests by the writer of this series. It feels like he patches up some story at the end of the day, after having spent all his time on other stuff. If he doesnt care about this series, he should stop writing is and let another writer take care of things.

Deodato has joined the New Avengers and thats a good thing. He is a breakout talent. I was going to cancel this series, but I may keep buying it just because of this artist. This issue he experiments with crosshatching which gives a textured feel to the shadowy part of his illustrations. Thats great stuff.

Deodato renders a mean and lean Daredevil. I like how he drew him here. I could easily see him become regular artist for Daredevil should the sales of his series plunge further. But that is another story. Meanwhile, did I mention how this team feels more and more like the Defenders? I wonder if it would sell as much if it was billed like that.

Deodatos work is impressive. Hes changed how he draws his Norman Osborne. I see less Richard Nixon in his rendering. I think Deodato is a master comic book artist and Ill definitely pick up any other book hes working on in the future. However, right now, even the best part of the New Avengers is not enough to make read the same plot over and over again while I pay way too much money for a comic book whose writer after eight years should retire and allow someone else to tell the next chapter of Earths mightiest heroes. If you are not jaded by Bendis and the New Avengers, I say continue to read this series. Its not bad at all and there is still some humour left. But Im not willing to put up with this anymore so Im bailing out.

Deodato made his name drawing Dark Avengers and hes treading on old grounds here. His Norman Osborn is also the best. Hes the best thing in this issue.

Kenneth Rocaforts artwork reminds me of Art Thieberts. And like Thiebert, he needs a strong inker. While not my favourite type of comic artist, his work is dynamic enough for this series and keeps in line with what has appeared before. This version of Titans has looked like it came from the 1990s from the start!

I miss Brett Booths 1990s Image style here. Its the only thing distracting from this nostalgia-induced comic! Minkyu Jung is great and a better artist but not the right fit! Still, as a great storyteller, Jung provides a solid issue.

If it wasnt for Paquette, this story would not be enjoyable. He makes Wolverine look like a real man, not a perfect Adonis. He looks rough and out of shape. I like that. When you see fear in his face, you can believe it. The inking is solid and adds the right dark mix to the story. Its too bad the plot is not good enough to benefit from this.

Wolverine fights for his life as his brain is about to be busted by a crazy scientist in a mental institution. But the toughest task for the mutant is to find out who he is. Will he find out in time to save himself? This issue reminded me of old Vertigo Comics where gore and body parts were part of what made the line geared for a mature audience. But besides the gore and the crazy scientist and his funny outlook on the world, there is nothing interesting to see. As I wrote before, this is a bad Batman Arkham Asylum type of stories using Wolverine but not really exploring what makes the character special, besides mentioning every couple of pages that there is a beast within him. At least with Yanick Paquette, no one can complain on the artwork. Its rich and gory and perhaps why this book feels more like a bad Vertigo comic book.

Wolverines X-Men friends have come to save him from the clutches of Doctor Rot at Dunwich Sanitorium but before X-Men Nightcrawler and Psylocke can rescue their friend, they have to reach his mind. Doctor Rot continues to be the only funny thing in this storyline. I like that his gut was spilling all over the place yet, he survived the ordeal and will probably be back for more. Hes the kind of villain that takes a good beating and loses limbs every time he meets the hero, yet one wonders how he survives. If Aaron was aiming for a crazy equivalent to the Joker, he hit every button here. The gut action was of course delectably sick thanks to the beautiful and gross artwork from Paquette. If it wasnt for him, this story would just be another B-type of story and not much enjoyable.

Larrocas work is cinematic and captures the acrobatic feel of Spider-man well. Although this story was staged at night, it still looked quite bright as Spider-mans world should be. Thats excellent work on the colour palette.

Im not a fan of Chris Bachalo. His work is confusing and he doesnt seem to care about storytelling. I feel like he takes shortcuts when he draws both anatomy and both when he lays down a page. It seems that omitting certain elements is where he draws his unique style. While some like these omissions, they annoy me. His Spider-man, for example, is not overly muscular. He looks like a slob with a beer gut and a few extra pounds, instead of being a slim acrobat. Why does Spider-man look like that? Well, Bachalo doesnt like to draw waist lines. So his Spider-man looks like a couch potato without a v shaped torso. His Wolverine looks like a fat sumo wrestler without elbows joints. Elbow joints are a pain to draw for Bachalo.

There has been many times where I have not found Jimenez work suitable for Spider-man. Hes work feels better in epic stories with iconic characters. Spider-man is iconic, but not larger a god-like figure. Yet, Jimenez added enough grittiness to make this story entertaining visually and selling me on the idea that he could be a great Spider-man artist, if given the right story. This was his breakthrough and he impressed me.

I never knew that Mike McKones art could look like Phil Jimnezs. It was a good issue with great graphics and great inking where each character looked like who they were supposed to be, as opposed to generic stick men. McKone is welcome to draw more issues in the future.

The artwork for the Obama insert was bad. Surely, MarvelComics could have found a better artist that can capture Barack Obama. He doesnthave high cheekbones. But then again, all of Nauck's characters look the same! I felt thatBarry Kitsons part was weaker, now that Mark Farmer was assigned as his inker.If Marvel Comics could go back to the previous team that corrected theweaknesses of Kitsons work, his run on Spider-man would be priceless.

This is an interesting story that extends a few plotsintroduced before, while introducing new conflicts. The story was not complex,but then it seems like a stepping-stone for much more to come. Its intriguingenough for me to come by next week.

What saves this issue from being a bad one isthe art by Romita Jr. Hes just fantastic. He adds grace and escapism to thepages, elevating them to a greater story than the usual Spider-man story. It feelslike great art even if the story is poor. Thats saying a lot of the masterartist.

This issue should be a treat for readers that havecarefully read all issues of this series for the last year. A lot of hints weregiven as to the identity of Menace and those readers will feel vindicated. Forthe rest of us, it will be no more than another reveal issue where the bad villaintells her complicated backstory instead of eliminating the hero while the goingis good. Im not sure if Ill be interested in reading more about Menace whenthe story ends.

Romita Jr. just continues to make me wish he would drawevery issue of Spider-man rather than anyone else. But then again, MarvelComics has to put him in all their big event series and they cant clone him.Too bad.

As for the plot, it too was rushed, but it wasgood enough and good wrap up of a long storyline. The ending with Menace andNorman Osborn is particularly interesting.

Ive never read anything by Van Lente before, although he seems to have been working in the comic book industry for some time. I really liked what I read this issue. The story was simple, yet complex. There was strong motivations and characterization. There was also some humour which is always good with Spider-man. I hope he returns for more stories.

I had to check the credits a few time. Kitson and McKones work is starting to look like Phil Jimenez. Im not complaining here. Kitson and McKone have been doing some great work in the past and Ive always enjoyed the rich textured pages filled with details and realistic renderings. But here, they are beginning to surpass their already excellent work. Morales' inks are thick enough to solidify Kitsons lines which are usually very thin. I like that. Hes also streamlining the characters visual to make them more recognizable as Spider-man characters. J. Jonas Jameson looks like himself. Aunt May looks like herself. The only character the team needs more work on is Mckone's Norman Osborn.

This new storyline is just in time to celebrate the 600th issue of the Amazing Spider-man. Part of me asks how Kelly will pull of the confrontation between Norman Osborn and Spider-man without detracting from the overall game plan of the Dark Reign storyline affecting all Marvel Comics. Still, it was a good build up issue that concentrated on the characters and introduced a credible stake and conflict in the person of Norman Osborn. One issue which I wish had been addressed this issue is how Jonah Jameson Jr. feels about the black Spider-man in Normans Osborns Avengers. Does he think hes ok?

Siqueiras work felt still at times, and with tons of expressions at other places. Im not sold on his Harry Osborn depiction yet, although it resembles the design established in comic books these days. His face is not long enough and too cheeky. But I do like the Kevin Maguire influenced pages, like the one with the fake Hawkeye. They were quite fun. Siqueira draws beautiful women, but they all look alike. At first, I thought that the Invisible Woman was another hooker...

Checchetto is a very good artist. Im not familiar with his work but he showed that he could handle the chores remarkably well. The one weakness is his inking which should be more encompassing to cover the lines. His work needs it. He plays a lot with page layouts and use closure to suggest information happening off page. Thats quite good.

I like the artists approach to the visuals. That was the strongest part of the comic book and perhaps this was not rated even lower by this reviewer.

I enjoyed the artwork tremendously. It was clean, polished, and filled with details. From the initial pages, the artists created a mysterious mood that quickly gave in to the brighter world of Spider-man. Its amazing how they effected this transition so smoothly.

So many artists work on this issue that its jarring and shows the weakness of the story. Its not good. Pulidos work fits better a crime noir or period piece. It looks out of place in Spider-man. I felt his work was weak, but upon looking at it again, it was enjoyable. It just isnt Spider-man material. Ross work looks frozen The characters dont feel like they are moving. Its not even that they are showing up to take still poses. They just feel out of whack. Paquettes work is the best here and actually makes this issue salvageable visually. But he can only hide the weakness of the script so much.

I like Azacetas work. This is not typical Spider-man fare, but it worked for this storyline. He didnt give the work too much crime noir angle. Instead, we saw overtones of dirty and compulsive design featuring compulsive characters. Its a shame the story was not up the quality of the art in this story.

I think one of the problems I may have with Spider-man are the artists chosen like Pulido. He is not a bad artist by any stretch. In fact, I like seeing Spider-man with big winter socks and a tuque. But while an accomplished artist, he makes this run feel like and old Ann Nocenti story which is not what I want to read here. I really feel conflicted here, because the artist is a top talent matched to a series that doesnt fit his style. I really like his rendition of the Sandman, but its not the stuff that makes me want to read Spider-man every week.

Visually Pulido continues to shine, although I dont believe he is Spider-man material. I really like how he draws the Sandman and uses him ingeniously. He does have a great sense of storytelling and posing which would probably look better he he had been assigned a more solid inker.

Fiumara is one of those artists that you have to learn to like. His work does not come across as great Spider-man material, but in spirit, it feels right. Sure, Peter Parker looks like a skinny dude, but I really like the facial expressions he gives his characters and the gestures and poses they have. The colouring by D'Auria also enhanced his work. Everything flowed well, although some aspect of the storytelling were off. For example, all the scenes with the horses were badly integrated. Where did they come from and how were they killed? This issue also makes the jump from $2.99 to $3.99 which is a concern to me, although there is a back up story. I'm not sure if eight extra pages justify such an increase.

With Pulido, Fiorama and now Rodriguez, I have to say that I dont understand Marvel Comics current taste for non American comic book style illustrators on this series. We had the likes of Barry Kitson and Phil Jimenez for so long that I didnt know how spoiled I was. Rodriguez is not a bad artist at all. His characters have distinct features and his fine lines are a delight. But he seems to be of that same school of artists with a less heavy-handed approach to comic book art closer to what one would expect from something like the Will Eisners spirit or even a European artist. It feels metrosexual. Im not complaining, but it is an interesting artistic direction for Spider-man as a series.

Martin is a good artist and his style is in line with the more illustrative and distinctive style used in Amazing Spider-man the last few months. Like many of these artists, it takes a while to get used to the style although the artists are excellent. They are just not super hero material artists. Here, Martin delivers with Spider-man and proves that a good artist can change preconceptions.

Larks work was good although not exactly appropriate for Spider-man. He gives Spider-man a noir look instead of the super hero feel needed for the character. Still, hes a solid artist that draws characters in motion very well. I guess Id rather see him work on Daredevil than Spider-man.

Speaking of Kaine, he looked very different this issue. The artist drew him with shorter hair and made him almost a clone look alike of Peter Parker. He tends to look very different with the long hair. I like the work of Lark and Gaudiano here. It fits the story well. They are also remarkable storytellers guiding the reader through a web of action seamlessly.

Spider-mans death has revived Kraven the hunter. The balance of life is in disorder and Kraven does not want to live, unlike what his wife and family wishes. Whats at stake now that Spider-man is dead. Or is he really dead? I didnt like the bad sleight of the hand trick used here. We never saw when Spider-man and Cain switched places. The Chameleon was following them the entire time. How can that be explained? The only thing Im happy regarding this issue, is the death of Cain. I didnt like the character and didnt know why he was brought back in the first place. The artwork is good and the shots of the impaled Spider-man are deadly creepy.

Kraven the Hunter is back and wants to end it all with Spider-man. It turns out that it was Kaine that was sacrificed last issue and now the web is turning against Kraven and his family. Can Spider-man restore cosmic order? First, the explanation for how Kaine replaced Peter Parker was totally wrong. It didnt make sense. Why Spider-man was dressed in his black costume also didnt make any sense. His sudden anger also didnt make sense. How easy it was for him to defeat all of Kravens family after a year of failing to do so didnt make sense. I guess not much made sense this issue. Marvel Comics wanted Kraven back after his suicide years ago and thats all this story was about. It certainly didnt feel like a Spider-man story. Where was Peter Parkers plight? Where was his dumb bad luck? This issue was disappointing and Spider-man as a series is starting to lose the freshness that the reboot over a year a year ago with his marriage to Mary Jane Watson being erased was supposed to accomplish.

Azaceta is a great artists, but not necessarily the best choice for Spider-man. The editors of the book have been favouring artists like him over the traditional action-oriented ones for a while now. Perhaps they are trying to give Spider-man a unique look and feel. Well, in a sense its working. Im just concerned about how Azaceta makes Peter Parker look so fat!

I dont like Humberto Ramos work. I wont go in details since I have never liked his work. Theres too much happening at once and the characters proportions are exaggerated and distorted. However, many people like his work and I wont fight against that. While many of the pages interior art was tough to follow in action scenes, the quiet ones were much better laid out. I will give him props for being a dynamic illustrator.

And thats why this entire story was painful to read for me because the same type of pulling without a pause that characterizes Ramos work is also present in the script. Things move fast then stretch, then compress into a mess that makes it difficult to care for the characters. Still Slott understand Peter Parkers voice and throughout the story, there are flashes of the eternal inner demons that affect the character. Here, hes worrying about whether or not to tell his girlfriend Carlie about his secret identity. It was actually quite fun to see him stress over that again.

I really like Casellis work this issue. Its everything Humberto Ramos is not. Its well constructed with good anatomy. Backgrounds are not rushed and are rich. Characters dont look exaggerated and the action flows naturally. A very good read.

I used to love Camuncolis work when he worked on the Intimates several years ago. On Dark Wolverine, he was perfectly suited for the twisted and anti-social nature of the story. But in Spider-man, he is painful to watch. The grins and angst he draws his characters with doesnt work with the adventurous world of Spider-man. Its too gritty. And he doesnt do emo kids so well. If he had a better inker, like Sandra Hope, his work would be better for this series.

Lau is a good artist, but his characters seem too long. Im also not a big fan of his action scenes. What I do like is the colouring. Its bright and vibrant. It helps that the various covers are as enticing as the ones from Now Comics.

Although accomplished artist Phil Hester draws the breakdowns, the storytelling g and fights scenes are not the best I have seen. Theres a real problem with the choreography and Laus elongated figures dont help much. But regular non action scenes fare much better.

Britt Reid Sr. is murdered by the Black Hornet in front of his son Britt Reid Jr. while the mysterious Asian woman fails to save the day. Whats going on? Can Reid Jr. exact vengeance on the Green Hornet or is the Black Hornet as different man? There was inconsistencies in this issue. Who exactly threw the Green Hornet darts at the home invaders last issue? It seems that it was this new Black Hornet character, but why would he attack his own men? The rest of this issue serves as the wake up call for Reid Jr. and will soon explain why he must become the new Green Hornet. The old Green Hornet, from what I gather in this series didnt become vigilantes for revenge but for justice. It will be interesting to see the old Kato guide the new recruit. This issue is almost farcical. The old Kato really is Miyagi. Its unfortunate that Green Hornet has to become the karate kid. Still this series is interesting, even if one knows exactly where its going next. It may not be the most thoughtful Kevin S

Lau is good here with, although the first few pages with the missiles and the transformation of the Black Beauty into a hornet jet were incomprehensible. The other pages were much clearer and easier to read. Hester who did the breakdowns is usually good at storytelling and may have helped with that a lot. Theres a manga feel to this comic book series, and it feels odd because Green Hornet feels more like crime noir.

Im not sure if Hester even helped with the breakdowns of the storytelling this issue, but Laus work seems more dynamic than usual. The figures look much better than they did a few issues back. My only criticism is that I feel he needs a thicker inking over his pencils to strengthen the characters on the page. But it seems that now inkers was hired for this book and that it was sent directly to the Photoshop colourist for treatment. If thats the case, that would annoy me greatly as comic book inking is an essential skill and part of why comic books look so good. Skipping this production step in favour of the colourists fixing the work is a short term gain that doesnt help to highlight the artwork and make it more solid for a viewer.

Graham Nolan is very dynamic here. His work is expressive in the old action adventure comic book way that we dont see as much these days. While his style looks a bit dated it is exactly how a big brute like Bane needs to be portrayed.

The story is quick and little time is spent explaining transitions or events leading up to the tracking of the baby. Dixon avoids slowing down his story. I would argue that this comic has an adventure comic strip feel because of the talents involved. I kind of miss such comics sometimes and although I am not a fan of Bane, this comic is a good throwback to an earlier age while still being contemporary in its themes and tropes.

The artwork was jarring. There were too many lines and magic energy blasts to follow the action. If this is what the creators intended then good job. But its not the kind of comic book that I want to read a second time. It was too busy. The illustrator is good but he buries his own work with unnecessary details.

One artist would have been enough to tell this story. Not trusting any of its great cartoonists means that DC Comics is still playing it safe. I dont want to read a safe comic meant to comfort me in the familiar. I want to be impressed and shown what the future holds for DC Comics. I dont quite feel it yet with Rebirth #1.

Mark Feehan is a solid illustrator at ease with everyday scenes, and the odd animal snout. The work is not dark at all for a period piece. Feehan could have used more contrast with light and dark. Instead, he and inker Mark Morales kept the pages bright and free of shadows and large masses of blacks. Paul Mountss colours support this bright world.

Hitch doesnt help his partners story. His art, here is ugly. The inking is poor and the characters not solid. Johnny Storm who is supposed to be a hunk, looks like a 40-year-old guy. Reed Richards looks alright, but what Hitch does with the story is not interesting. There is a lot of information in each panel, but after a while you ask yourself why? It doesnt make the story clearer or more interesting.

Hitch draws a decent George W. Bush, and adds many intricate details to the CAP and other settings. The story definitely looks over the top and out of this world and I understand why Marvel Comics picked him for the storyline. Because of the outlandish sets he creates, there is always a threat that his work will not connect with readers because they are out of scale. However, he does add enough of those close-ups shots with enough human emotions.

Hitch is a hit or miss. It depends on how much he inked his work or let other inkers lend a hand. I would bet that Currie does a better job of inking Hitch though and maybe he should have more space to interpret this great penciler. In the past, teams such as John Romita Jr and Klaus Janson proved that an inker can add as much thrill and delight to a great artists work, when they are given the space needed to shine. Lets hope that Hitch inking his own work is not a matter of ego, and that Currie can start taking more spotlight.

Im not a fan of Hitchs work here. All his male characters look like George W. Bush. However, the action sequences are entertaining enough and of course done in cinema wide scope format. Perhaps thats why the issue feels like such a quick useless read. Its filled with giant posters.

Hitch continues to deliver superior renderings in these pages and he will be missed when his and Millars run end. He clearly defines how the characters should look, although I dont like how he draws Doctor Dooms nose. It seems like something DC Comics Hawkman would wear!

Epting is a great artist. Hes like a mix of Alan Davis and Bryan Hitch. If I have one criticism, its that he needs a stronger inker to strengthen his lines. In many panels, they look almost half-closed. Beyond that it all looks nice and has great colouring by the unmatchable Paul Mounts.

With an anthology format, its easy to have bad art. There were no real weak chapters visually. It all looked nice although the styles were very different. Di Giandomenico was my favourite artist. His piece on Johnny Storm was crisp and lively.

Guess artist Goldman does a good job of telling this action-based story. The difference in storytelling with regular artist Ed Benes is easy to see. Goldman is not a pro storyteller, but after two years of gruelling with an artist that just cannot understand how to tell a story visually, its a fresh change.

Ah, artwork... I keep saying that I dont like Luis work on this issue. He needs a better inker. His lines were too sketchy and weak in some places. He has a problem with proportions and the fact that he tries to mimic Ed Benes style, which to begin with, is not that great, is not a good thing.

Reading Len Wein as the writer for this issue, I feared thatwe would read a narrative that has not evolved with time. Thankfully, Weinswriting has evolved and was suitable for this story. I did find that the clichremark of Earth being a backwater planet repeated one too many time " how manyscience fiction writers have used this to show how Earth should not be athreat?Chriscross work was suitable for a storyinvolving the old Justice League. It was cartoony and with simple lines. Yet,the storytelling was excellent and the dynamism of the page was second tonone. It was a fun story to readvisually.

When you cant get Ed Benes to draw, you get his clone.Hes a better artist, but Im annoyed at the thought that the editors feel theymust serve reader a clone of their star artist in order for readers to besatisfied with this issue. Luis may be a better artist, but there are visualeffects, such as the display of power of Red Tornado that he cant pull off,the way Benes can. I cant believe I actually said something positive aboutBenes...

The artist for this issue is probably the best that has worked in it since this series began. Unfortunately, Sandra Hopes pencils dont enhance his work as she tries to turn him into another Ed Benes clone.

Bagley is a pro. Im more used to seeing him on a Spider-man book than on a Justice League series. So his characters have that Marvel Comics energy and looseness which is often lacking from the illustration centric DC Comics. With Robinson, this is an excellent mix that should produce results.

Bagley is a great Spider-man artist. He really knows how to make a page dynamic. He brings classic Marvel Comics dynamism to this series. It feels odd! Hunter and Rapmund are not the best inkers for Bagleys pencil though. They add a Jim Lee quality to Bagleys work which doesnt fit well with his style.

I really like Bagleys work but Hunter may not be the best inker for him. The work looks rush and like something from an Image comic book. Theres a lot happening in that comic book and Bagley is up for the challenge which is good. So maybe the inking did not please me very much, but its still an exciting comic book unlike much of what the Justice League has been about in the past. Im willing to give this fast paced League a go.

Bagley is an action-oriented artist and his work is one of the most dynamic of the comic book industry. Theres a kind of energy that was only found in older John Byrne stories that is still refreshing. However, I have to admit that reading this comic book feels like reading a Marvel comic book as opposed to a DC Comics title.

The visuals have not changed and continue to be powerful under Bagleys guidance. However, the inking was less dynamic and crazy than usual and perhaps a bit too clean for what I like to see on Bagleys pencils.

Robinson pads a fun story here where he continues to push this junior Justice League to the next level, proving they are not just replacements for the real Justice League. What Robinson has for him, what hes always had was a thorough understanding of DC Comics history and where each character fits in. For example, I like how Blue Jay assumes no one remembers him and his time with the Justice League. It shows his inferiority complex, while at the same time allowing the character to redeem his worth, by taking out Owlman at the first opportunity. This is the same Owlman who is an exact match for Batman and gave the second Batman, Richard Grayson a lot of trouble. Robinsons run on this series has not been liked by all. Its been criticized severely. Coupled with the Justice League mini-series he wrote last year that helped destroy Green Arrow and Arsenal, he has a lot to prove. But this is the writer who wrote Starman and the Golden Age mini-series. Before writing him off, Ill give him mor

I dont like Alex Ross work, so Ill skip any comments on that. Ok, I wont. I think Alex Rosss work hurts the comic book page. He does not draw (or paint) for comics. He does simply creates panels and links them together. His painterly style breaks the flow of reading, and bringing no closure between panels. Eaglesham is a great artist and does for this series, everything that Alex Ross doesnt.

Wiacek is the wrong inker for Ordway. He used to also inkJohn Byrne, which explains in part why he shouldnt have been given this job. Byrneand Ordway are strong illustrators, but their renditions are not exactly ascutting edge as the work of current comic book artists. Wiacek doesnt inktheir work in a manner that covers the crispy extra details the artists use intheir work. Instead, he exacerbate the very tones he should smudge under stronginks. It makes the comic book look dated, even if it is well crafted.

Travis Moore is a solid artist but the inking of Dan Green could have been stronger. The story looked good but nothing exciting. Moore shows some beginnings of mastering facial expressions but he isnt there just yet.

Merino does good work here and his inker is better than the one from last issue. I like the classic 1950s look of Liberty Belle. Shes really the hottest JSA character these days. I like the various villains depictions although its a bit difficult to understand who they all are as we have not been properly introduced to them.

This issue explains how the Justice Society was defeated by the Fourth Reich in the past and how the future changed. Its a Days of the Future Past type of story and its a good read. Mr. Terrific is the central character of this storyline and we see him use his intellect to the max. I like his interrogation and how he relates history. Im glad that there is finally a classic Justice Society story. The series has been too laid back for months and the use of Kid Karnevil to set up this particular storyline was a long time coming. But Im glad it pan out and this team may yet make a mark in the Justice Societys history. Right now, theres dangerously approaching the best work by Geoff Johns. A strong series is nothing without strong art. Merino provides the good old comic book visual punches and the strong group shots necessary to carry the story forward.

Mr. Terrific and the captured super heroes put their plan in motion on the arrival of the leader of the Fourth Reich in this alternate future story that looks at what would have happened if the Justice Society had lost to the Fourth Reich and its power nullifier in the present. This story is gripping. What I like about Willingham is that he shows how the Nazi and World War Two element is essential to the identity of the Justice Society. This is an important part of the teams history and he may have created in this storyline which is like a Days of the Future Past, an worthy villain that matches the anti mutant theme of the X-Men. My only worries is that this story will not go further and just simply ape what has been done in the X-Men. I really hope he can go beyond another classic. Merino is perfect for this storyline and I like how he draws the older super heroes.

Merino continues to draw great super heroes here and seems quite adept at drawing them when they are older. The cover is one of those where what is drawn doesnt happen at all inside but its still a good action pack story.

Speaking of expression, I like the pencils in the story, but the inks leave something to be desired. The artist needs stronger inks to reinforce his work and make it solid. Here, it feels too weak, although the visuals are strong.

Bagleys work does create a unified look for the entire story that often does not happen in a crossover. Because his work is action-oriented, it reads well.

Finally, the mayorship of Jay Garrick makes no sense at all, unless its to pit him against city council when he tries to help rebuild the city in future issues. Ive never heard of Monument Point before so I cant even understand what the writer was trying to pull. This story cannot get any worse.

I dont like the painterly look of Kolins work. But I guess the painterly look is back in fashion in comic books. The one thing I cant pin on Kolins is for making static poses. Many times painted comic books feel stilt. They dont here because Kolins is a master storyteller and understands motion and dynamism in comic book storytelling.

The art, however, is incredibly cool. Fernando Blanco uses heavy inks and patches of blacks that delineate most of the characters and settings, leaving just enough gaps for our brains to fill. Even the colouring is good. This comics excess are forgiven just because the art rocks.

Still, Pasarins artwork is very good and does remind me a bit of Morales. Its important for a series like this one about characters that are not important and cannot hold their own series, to look good. Although some of them, like Owlman dont do much.

Porter delivers the visual to a comic that could be the storyboard of a Hollywood blockbuster about teenaged kids trying to escape from a bunker filled with monsters. His work is scratchy and not clean cut as one would expect from a Scooby-Doo comic. Yes, he updated the style and the characters designs. They look like the cast of a current comic book. There is no nostalgia. Porter reinforces all of the character tropes Giffen and DeMatteis have wrought. Im not sure if it is a good thing.

Dave Eaglesham and Wellington Alves join Howard Porter this issue with the artwork. Eagleshams sequence is very short and thus there is little to say about his work which continues to be solid as ever. Alves does manage to show us the inner beauty of Velma in his flashbacks. Thus she cannot be all that bad. At least I hope so.

Howard Porter is really the difference that this comic needs and why it still looks fresh and dynamic. His work is dynamic and he can make talking heads crisp and interesting.

I really like the change of art with Ron Wagner. Wagners work looks like a classic comic by Jim Aparo. Its just solid storytelling and cartoony art from a bygone era. It actually works well here and if we are going to get replacements for Howard Porter, Wagner is just right for this comic, somehow!

Doug Mahnke is a god in comics and his work here was very pleasing. He does grit like no one else. While Patrick Gleason learned from him, Mahnke is still the original master. Of course, he was given a comic with larger cinemascope panels where he did not necessarily need to drawn transitions between vignettes. This lack of transition, even in the action scenes make the comic less fluid when reading it.

Su gives an iconic and symbolic look to Prowl and the rest of the characters and sets in this story. Its different from the manga-inspired look from recent years or the more realist interpretation. Although it makes Prowl hard to recognize, it also makes the story more personal.

Ironhide reawakens back from the dead to find out that there are only two Autobots left on the planet overrun by Insecticons. But is Ironhides benefactor a friend or a foe? I havent read the previous issues in this series, but am vaguely familiar with the events that left Sunstreaker for dead. There is not much exploration of Ironhides character in this issue but one can witness his braveness. I found Alpha Trion cryptic and less inspiring than usual. But maybe thats me imagining things. The highlight of this issue is of course the beautiful art by Coller. I like how he draws Transformers. I wish more of the Transformers artists at IDW Publishing had such a good handle on Transfomers.

Castellis work is not standard Marvel Comics, but I really enjoyed it. His characters have strong facial expressions. The storytelling is good, although some of the characters should be facing from left to right instead of right to left to pull the reader forward in the story. This is a minor detail. The inking, which I presume is also Castelli is excellent. Real comic book inking has become so rare that when one sees it, one understands exactly why its missed.

I enjoy Casellis work. He gives a lot of dimensions to the characters and combined with the beautiful colouring by Rudoni, he makes me wish all comic books could look this good. The quality of the artwork on this series surprises me. After all, it is not a main Marvel Comics series, unless that is really what Marvel Comics wants. Well, I can only say that readers win, and I might have to seriously consider adding this series to my regular reading list, because the artwork looks so good.

Visually, this series is strong with strong visual expressions for the characters and great action shots. Its too bad that the artists are assigned to a less important series.

Kurths work reminds me of Michael Bairs. His characters faces feel twisted and in agony. An inker with crisper lines would have improved his renderings. He does know how to capture emotions and perhaps thats why he was picked for this issue.

Gage is a good writer and ads layers of characterizationto his characters. Each is unique and has its own motivations. Its hard toguess where this story is going though. Oh, well, at least the ride isworthwhile.

I said it. Ramos is becoming more enjoyable. Hisfigures have more shape and show hope that maybe one day, theyll have spines supportingtheir bulging muscles. My only complaint was the size of their mouth and howscrew they looked. But to Ramos credits, not reading the captions did not takeaway from understanding what was going on. That means hes a good storyteller.

Asrar is a good artist with good storytelling skills that can weave a story with an exotic panel canvas without confusing the reader. Buchmans inks are complementary and solid and make this a very delightful comic book to read.

Butch Guice is doing some of his best work in years here and I like how his Captain America is stepped in that real gritty political thriller world. Thanks to colourist Frank DArmata, the transition from Guice and previous artist Steve Epting is smooth and it still feel like were reading the same series.

Epting works hard at recreating entire sets that look real. For example, the introductory pages in 1945s Paris, is quite vivid and respectful of actual Parisian architecture. When added to his fine depiction of characters, it creates a whole world that is almost like a film. Some of the main characters faces are starting to look the same, but thats a small caveat.

The highlight of this issue, is of course the artworkwhich gives Namor unique features, although his head is not as triangular as inother comic books. Dont let the cover fool you, Captain America does not fightNamor. However, its interesting to see Namor rendered in a crime noir series.

In this issue, we get some Bourne-like remorse fromCaptain America. What really happens is that it highlights the fact that thecurrent Captain America is a criminal and murderer, a wanted felon in much ofthe world. Granted he wants to do well and improve now, but this is far fromwhat the original Captain America stood for. Im not complaining though. One issue that concerned me was the use of theword China to describe Taiwan, that is, if according to the writers, Taipei isstill located in Taiwan and not Communist China.

There is nothing that I can say about the artwork in this series except for marvelling at the quality and consistency readers are treated to. Even when there is a replacement artist, like Butch Guice, the work is so similar to Eptings that its only noticeable when reading the credits. Kudos to the art director who works behind the scenes and never get any credits for his work.

The artwork is all over the place this issue. Some is good, some is weaker, some is historical, and some self congratulatory, like the Alex Ross piece reprinted from an earlier story. The one story that was the most fun to look at was the old one from the 1940s featuring very primitive artwork.

Ross and Guice are great artists as usual, but the colouring was simplified compared to what has been depicted in the series. The almost sense of tension brought by the colours that contributed the thriller feel are gone, replaced with regular comic book colouring. Its not bad, but less inspiring.

Is Captain America too violent? His partner, the Falcon thinks so and wants to chat about it with Steve Rogers, the first Captain America. But time for repentance is short as the latest Baron Zemo launches an attack on Bucky Barnes to destroy his life and may have help from a certain Red Skull. Will they succeed? This issue was interesting and obviously a set for Barnes to fall into more violent acts as he avenges his friend and at the last minute realize that violence is not the way. Well, thats what I expect at the end of this story as well as the formal introduction of a new Red Skull and the creation of a new batch of arch villains for the hero. In other words, I feel that Ive read this story before and know whats going to happen in about three issues from now. Guice delivers better art than usual, which is a weird thing to say as hes always very good. Theres something about the way he inks this series that has changed. Its much stronger than before.

Bucky and the Black Widow are searching for the girl who slipped some drugs into his drink a few days priors and caused him to hallucinate and attack several cops at the hospital where his partner the Falcon was treated. But Baron Zemo is prepared to take out the new Captain America. Will he succeed? This issue is much more interesting than the previous one and the Captain, thanks to the Black Widow has to use his brains for once. I like that he has a good back up with Steve Rogers and the Black Widow to keep him out of trouble. Although we know who is the bad guy and part of their motivations, its still interesting to follow the trail of deception with Captain America. The artwork is as solid and consistent as in previous issues with the established look for the series maintained by the forceful inks by Guice.

The dated feeling about this comic book must come from the new inker who turns Guices work into its weakest form. Guice is an artist that needs strong inkers. Here Magyar and Pennington gave us something that felt like I was reading a comic book drawn by Don Heck. All the mystery and mood of earlier issues in this series were replaced with quick action panels and poor inking.

Now, the artwork is another matter. Im not sure what happened. Its the same regular team, yet it looks so different and uninspired. It felt like I was reading a Captain America comic book from the 1970s with the angst in the characters face and the melodramatic poses. Maybe its the inking, or the colours that arent making Guices work look better.

Changing the artist probably made me like this comic book even more. Aruna has a great reputation for drawing characters in a way that makes them look like theyre from a political thriller. With the old Marvel Comics look of past issues, Im glad we have something more solid to concentrate on. Aruna particularly reveals the distinct traits of every character he draws. I like how skinny his Tony Stark is, compared with Steve Rogers.

Art-wise, the entire book is a delight. There is a risk that the colouring which is heavily paint-like will stiffen the storytelling, but Larroca,s dynamic posing and effective use of iron Man allows the work to breathe like a comic book instead of a photo novel.

Larroca is a great artist that brings the human dimensionof this story of a wider scale. He succeeds as well in drawing humaninteractions as big battle armour. Colourist DArmata has to be mentioned forthe way in which he channels the colour palette of French cartoonist M"bius. Itgives the book a realistic look mixed with some slight fantasy, informing thereader that this is not all real, but a comic book.

Without Larroca, the story would not feel as larger than life. With Larrocas participation, this series and the current story arc have the potential to dethrone previous highlights of Iron Man, like the armour wars and much of the run by David Michelinie and Bob Layton. Whether its technology, regular folks or super models, Larroca knows how to render them well.

Larroca may be credited as being the other half of this marvelous run in a few year. The work he does here, will allow him to stand on the same pedestal as that of classic comic book teams such as Chris Claremont and John Byrne, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. This is what hes delivering month after month in this series and hes making this run on Iron Man one of the best since the armour wars from the 1980s.

Larroca again delivers a stand up series of panels and images even when their narrative contents is less interesting, as is the case with the desert s dream sequence. I like his irregular line which when looked from a certain distance is quite stark and sharp.

Visually, Larroca continues to wow readers with complex set and differentiated characters that populate the universe of Tony Stark and Iron Man. It still like the details he puts into those armours.

Again Larroca is a solid artist that just works well and deliver results. The execution of this story visually is perfect, although the material the artist is given is not as interesting.

Iron Man is still in a catatonic state and only with the help of Doctor Strange can he assume his identity in the world he created in his mind and emerge outside. But elsewhere, the Ghost is actively looking for his body and some of Toby Starks closest allies have already begun to fall. Will Iron Man come back in time? The issue continues the unnecessary detour inside of Iron Mans mind. I understand that some filler was needed to make the heros return match the Siege storyline running elsewhere, but this is a stretch and as a reader, I know what will happen and when. The question is when will the creative team put it all together before we all lose interest. Visually Larroca continues to pen the best looking Iron Man in years, although his talent is wasted on this trivial story.

Im repeating myself here, but Larroca is working with poor material yet making it all look great. Ill write it again. Its a waste of his talent to be given so little to work with. But its also a compliment to his skills that he can make a bad story look so good.

This issue is a new start for the series after Siege, after the total mind wipe out of Tony Stark, after he lost everything to Norman Osborne. This series is a perfect jumping point for people curious about Iron Man and of course a great tie-in with the Iron Man movie. While the last few issues bored me to death with the mind travel storyline, Im glad to see some of the drama and corporate action back in this series again. Tony Stark is an industrialist and a technologist. The series does better when it sticks to that instead of all that new age mumbo jumbo. Of course, this story ties in with the other big Stark villain who will show up for the movie, Justin Hammer " actually his daughter. I like the hint of sexism directed at her character and am glad to see he portrayed as a worthy boardroom opponent to Stark. I like the new armour, but would have liked to see how much it differs from the old one and how it could no longer be attacked the way the Skrulls did the last time. Larroca fi

I like the interior scenes with Stark and Potts. Each really have a look of their own. Its the same for the other characters like Rhodey whos starting to resemble Don Cheadle who played his role in Iron man. Im not a fan of the Detroit Steel armour as it is too big and lack and any humanoid silhouette. But perhaps the thing about that armour is too show that its overkill compared to the lean simplicity of the Iron Man suit.

Iron Man is rebuilding his empire by creating top speed sports cars powered by his repulsor technology. Hes recruiting the best of the bunch to create his new company focused on helping the world and not creating military armament. But the Hammers have another objective and they want to shame Tony Stark and take over the business he relents. Will they succeed? This issue was talking heads. Although the artwork by Larrocca was gorgeous as usual, I had problems getting in the mood of reading the talking heads. I understand that some work has to be done to rebuild a solid core and cast for this series, but there has to be a better way of making it work than talking heads for almost 22 pages.

The creators of this series started strong with a package that was unique and interesting. But now they are falling on old tricks that worked the first two years of this series, but no longer can be relied upon right now. As a reader, Ive seen their best work and this issue is not their best. It was poor and not innovative both story-wise and visually. They have become complacent and hiding their mistakes under layers of nothing can only work so long.

Visually, the issue is good. Larroca does racing track stories well too. The cover is weaker not because of the artwork but because the composition and the monotone colours fail to draw attention on the flying Iron Man.

Larroca is back in shape this issue with well-drawn pages filled with details and a realistic view of the world of tech. Sometimes, hes off his game, but this issue, he was very careful with details and designed gorgeous pages. The segment with Pepper Potts drawn McKelvie was good looking too, but although the artist is superb, it looked simplistic next to Larrocas work.

Visually, this comic book rules. The characters look consistent and have similar recognizable facial features throughout. Now, Im not a fan of Larroca reusing some of the panels and blowing them in some shots as the line thickness loses its impact and it doesnt make for a nicer picture. If hes going to reuse material, he should at least adjust the line width.

Larroca is a great artist as usual and I like how he draws the dwarves. His work is splendid as usual. One thing important has to be said about his work. He has successfully delivered almost all issues of Iron Man since the 2008 almost always on time and still continues to work on the series while not missing deadlines. This is not very common these days.

Larroca serves his usual great imagery in this comic book which is really about nothing right now. If it wasnt for his work on this series, I probably would have dropped Invincible Iron Man by now. I remember in the 1990s when readers who only bought comic books for the art were criticized. I used to criticize them too. Ive become my own worse enemy.

Larroca draws well and is the one strength of this series. Without his work, this series would have failed already.

Beautiful artwork with as much action as Larroca could cram in given this issue was about a bunch of talking heads. Have not picked up the latest issue yet, but if nothing improves, Ill stop collecting Iron Man, even if it sports very beautiful art.

Larroca executes the visuals well. Hes to be credited for this book still being one of the top one at Marvel Comics. Its his vision and continuous work the last three years that has made this book with it is and allowed Fraction to get away with poor and unimaginative stories. Fraction owes Larroca a lot for making his pitiful work, the last two years seem better than it really is.

Eaton is used to working on the Black Panther so his work seems natural here. It is a bit busy with too much going on in the page to really make the layout work. Thus its not very engaging even if the characters designs are strong.

Eaton is used to the Black Panther and his black characters actually look like they are black, instead of Caucasian with brown painted on them. The characters also each have their own looks. This is good. Unfortunately, the darker colour palette used by Beaulieu is too dark to enhance the work of Eaton and the entire book ends ups being a smudge of lines and colours that is not really appealing, although the artist is fine. The cover by Romita was poor by all standards and looks like it was put together at the last minute just so they could say Romita participated and try to sell more copies. Well poor covers, even by Romita dont tend to do that.

The artwork was good of course with a team thats quite used to working with these characters. It seemed less dark than previous issues. Its not an impressive issue either which means that this comic book will not have that much resonance or influence in a few years. Thats a bummer because there was so much great potential when it started.

The last Future Quest series was a success mostly because it was drawn by Evan Shaner who easily evoked the simple and effective designs of Alex Toth but for comics. Ariel Olivetti was one of the artists who took over Shaner when he needed a fill-in artist. In the previous series, I was critical of Olivetti because his style conflicted with the what had been established by Shaner. Art direction matter more than the ability to fill-in a comic. Many editors forget this.

This comic is adventure-based and serviceable. However, it is not very entertaining although well written and solid. There is a spark missing and I wish I knew what it was, so that I could indulge in the pleasure of reading about these characters. The Space Ghost and the other Hanna-Barbera characters have genuine appeal. I liked knowing more about Jan and Jaces origins.

Ariel Olivettis work is a stark difference from the Alex Toth-inspired designs for the Space Ghost. Although a painterly style, it is simple enough in details. It feels much like what Steve Rude would paint which means that it is easy to see the progression from Toth to Olivetti. This work would look better in a larger format book. It is a waste that such epic illustration be lost on such a small-sized comic and something very few will ever pay attention to. Perhaps Parker and Olivetti should work on a larger-sized Space Ghost project.

The artwork is good but there are a few pet peeves. There is a shot of Huntress swimming underwater with her hood still on in the water. As she pulls from the water, the hood nor any other part of her uniform look wet. She hood just fits on her and feels as puffy as it did before she jumped in the river. Its an amazing material that just looks great and dry at all times. Granted Roge Antonio is not drawing Aquaman but really?

While I liked the artwork, I have to severely criticize the use of black palms in the colouring. The new Oracle is black but his palms should have no melamine and hence not coloured brown. Colourist Allen Passalaqua should pay attention.

Now Ed Benes. I dont know how many times I have said that this guy just is not at the level that DC Comics is pretending he is by giving him all those top assignments that he cant possibly deliver correctly. As this issue was mostly talking heads, he was capable of doing a decent job, but the man cannot choreograph action to save his life. At this point, I consider him as nothing than a cheaper Jim Lee knock off to sell books DC Comics thinks are important. Benes wrecked the Justice League series with scenes that did not make sense, he continues to draw stuff all over the place without any sense of composition. Perhaps DC Comics thinks that putting an overrated writer with an overrated artist is the way to go. Well, its making it easy for me to skip this series.

That Daniel draws and writes the story is essential to its current success. He intuitively knows where to put emphasis on visual elements. The visuals could be a little more integrated with the plot, but Ill forgive him for taking a few graphic liberties when the story is so entertaining.

I already wrote about how I like Tony Daniel on this series. Hes different storywise and brings another energy visually. Its the first time in years, I believe, since the days of John Byrne that Batman has been written and drawn by one single artist (outside of Legends of the Batman and special oneshots and mini-series, of course). There is as much energy in the visuals as a Jim Lee comic book. There is also a lot of mood and brooding. Its a perfect mix.

What have we learned at the end of this story? Not much. The art was all over the place. Some was good, some was bad. Overall it just reinforced the craziness of this story that might as well have been credited to the Joker.

What happened to Batman just before he crawled out of the bottom of the river where he was trapped and insane and left off to help the Justice League figure out a case during the Final Crisis? This is the story of the last hours of Batman before being teleported to the past by Darkseid. The fact that I forgot that there was a gap between the story of batmans death and the one he suffered by Darkseid is probably a sign that it really didnt matter. At the time Grant Morrison was all over the pace confusing readers with complicated construtivist stories. What this story is about is how Batman is pushed to the limits of human endurance and mental stability by his work. Surely, Superman could have found another detective such as Mr Terrific or Dr. Mid-nite to solve the case of the dead gods. But it would have robbed us of another one of these stories where Batman is an omnipotent god instead of a man who tries really hard. Daniel is a favourite Batman artist of mine. He makes the story even

About the visuals. Well, I like the logo a lot. Its original. I get that DC Comics is trying to market this comic to a female audience. I just dont like how Annie Wu draws Black Canarys face. It seems angry and she looks like a cheap trailer trash girl on drugs. This is not how I imagine Black Canary. She is not sexy.

Ditto is cute. Annie Wu renders action well. I just dont like the face she chose for Dinah. In some drawings, Dinah looks healthy and strong. In some, she looks meek and skinny. It feels weird as long time Black Canary fan to see her rendered this way. But I accept that I am not who this series is intended for. I find the background by the paparazzi blogger annoying. Its not easy to read. Maybe if the format was improved it would be more fun to follow.

Annie Wus work is still solid, although I continue to dislike the sneering Dinah she draws. The other characters all look great. So its a personal choice that she made about how Dinah looks. I like the variant wardrobe Dinah uses in this issue. Its inspired from older depictions on the character from the first Birds of Prey special from 1996 while emulating the classic costume. Hey, Black Canarys a good comic. Im only critical because shes my favourite female character!

Im not a fan of Williams. I didnt like his work in JSA All-Stars. But here, hes actually effective. The energy that grows and ebbs works for his style. Im not annoyed at all by his take of Captain Atom, although hes not my favourite artist. What he draws is classic super hero and its just right for this series. Now, whether this series will make it is another story. Ill stick around for the next issue, and maybe the concept of a Doctor Solar and Doctor Manhattan-like character in the DC Comics universe will materialize. So far, I cant say this creative team is not getting it.

Sometimes artists you literally hate on some series find their voices on other ones. The number one reason I didnt read All-Star Justice Society was because of Williams. I just could not stand his work. Here, on Captain Atom, that series is perfect for the fluid forms he likes to depict. He really complements the series. The colouring is fine too, although I wonder why Captain Atom has to glow, if its hinted at in some scenes that he was invisible to onlookers. I didnt like Kruls work on Green Arrow and Arsenal and I didnt like Williams Justice Society work. But here, both creators just merge their talents and create one of my favourite and one of the most innovative of the 52 reboots. Woah.

Howard Porter does the best he can with the thin script he was given. He continues to draw his characters with as much expression as Bart Sears and the dynamism of comics in 2017. Not many artists at DC Comics have the level of dynamism that Porter has. For this issue, he was the best pick. I do like how he redesigned Jay Garrick though.

Carmine Di Giandomenicos work continues to remind of the art of Carmine Infantino with the elongated figures whose muscles are well defined and almost sculpted. I wonder if he has trained with Carmine Senior. Of course, his take on the Flash is more modern yet still pleasing.

Carmine di Giandomenico and Pop Mhans show a lot of the pencils (whether they are actual pencils or digital) used for the page. Often Giandomenico reuses elements but does not adjust the width of the lines in close shots. Here instead, we see the thickness of the lines that he uses and the analog quality that they have. Not any comic book artists these days are willing to play with the lines of their figures the way Giandomenico does. It adds a lot of energy to his work.

Many artists contribute to this issue and do make it good. I like that each artist was given the right section to illustrate. Carmine di Giandomenico is violent in his expression of emotions such as Barry Allens pain and the Reverse-Flashs evil. Neil Googe gives the Flash and Thawne innocence and naivety. Its lovely. Ryan Sook adds grounding and the weight of a body to the few pages that he draws. If the colourist had toned these pages with sepia or another filter it would have added to the historical feel the artist conveyed.

To some extent, I feel that now Flash suffers from the Daredevil problem where since Frank Miller every writer wants to rewrite the classic stories that elevated the character. So just like Daredevil, with Flash, every writer since Mark Waid has been trying to write the ultimate epic with the speed force and the Reverse Flash. When Geoff Johns did it, he added layers by beefing up the Rogues gallery. But Im not too sure what Williamsons contribution will be at this point other than playing with other writers toys and retelling their greatest stories his way. Why wont writers of characters with defining stories like Daredevil and Flash just not forge their own paths?

Im glad that this story is over even though the Reverse-Flash seems to be gone for a while. I suspect that he will be revived yet again. Im tired of seeing him. Hes like Sinestro for Green Lantern Hal Jordan. You can always count on a writer to bring him back no matter how often he dies. Because the death of the Reverse-Flash does not appear to be permanent, the story loses all emotional connection and strength. He had been killed in the Button crossover with Batman, and revived the very next issue in Flash. Writer Joshua Williamson has sabotaged his own efforts here.

The art was almost as good as the story. Mixing Pop Mhan and Christian Duce does not work though. Their styles are too different and clashed. I prefer Duces pages. His faces are stronger and his figures better shaped. Mhan was gave the few Negative Flash illustration a lot of energy but hes not as great when it comes to illustrating police procedurals!

Neil Googe was a welcomed change from previous artists who deformed the shapes and the forms of characters so much. But Googes characters are anorexic! They are very skinny and in the case of the Flash, does not show the heroic stance and body that would make us believe that he is not just a runner, but a supper hero.

Neil Googes section which covers the fight between Flash and Bloodworks looked good and that was the point of his contribution, regardless of logic. Gus Vasquezs took care of the police procedural after the fight which was cleaning up Bloodworks mess. It wasnt as spectacular but was the appropriate part to hand to the second artist. Googe was great at drawing blood-based constructs.

The story sets up a few plot threads to be followed soon so it moves slowly enough. Not much happens of course. It's a decent read.

Howard Porter continues to draw twisted versions of the Flash and any character he draws making them less heroic and uglier with stretched expressions and twisted bodies that pervert the elegance of the simple body of athletic figures like super heroes. There is a lot of dynamism in his work, but it does not always look aesthetic.

Pop Mhan is competent, but I dislike his Barry Allen. Too many artists are assigned to these series and the art becomes inconsistent. I understand that the two-week production schedule means that no single artist can keep up with producing a series, but it should not feel like every second issue is a B-issue and not as important because a filler artist was hired. How about assigning artists to complete storyarcs so that solid artists like Mhan dont feel like B creators when they are not. I just dont like his Barry Allen, but the rest of his work is fine.

Pop Mhan displays a lot of energy in his work and somehow makes the pages look big. His speedsters dont pop in the same frame multiple times like Francis Manapul. Yet the characters still look like they are moving so this is good. I find some of his faces a bit distracting and the jagged layout is inventive but does not really improve the storytelling and the narrative.

Having read much of Joshua Williamsons Flash, I now understand how he crafts story arcs. He introduces a current conflict and problem that Barry Allen has to deal with before resolving it a few issues later. The pacing is all classic super hero action and surprise revelations that careless readers would have missed but old timers would anticipate. In many of those stories, I fall in between surprise and anticipation. Williamsons entire stories on The Flash are part of one larger canvas but where that leads is anyones guess.

I have written this before; it is always a good thing to see someone named Carmine drawing a Flash comic. Di Giandomenico is the perfect foil for Carmine Infantino. Their styles with elongated muscular limbs is very similar. Di Giandomenico is of course a much more current and dynamic artist but he is equally suited for the Flash. One thing that he does not do as much as the other Carmine, are multiple drawings of Flash doing things at super speed I one panel. Instead of that or speedlines, he likes to populate his panels featuring Flash with thunderbolt contractions.

I really like Carnie Di Giandomenicos work this issue. It works well even though he does not draw many repetitions of the Flash within one panel. There is feeling that the character is moving fast, regardless.

One remedy could be to stop wallowing in the speedforce drama and world of the Flashes and explore new grounds that does not include the Rogues or anything concocted by Mark Waid or Geoff Johns.

Christian Duce is another from a long line of artists working on this series as a fill-in artist. His style is reminiscent of Howard Porters but leaner and cleaner. He has a good handling of super hero dramatics and action but he does commit several 180 degrees errors

This is another issue where a fill-in artist is featured. Christian Duce gives some grit and nice textures to his characters. He is quite good at drawing exaggerated musculature. This is not a jab. This is needed for this issue. I wish the editors would retain one alternate artist for when Howard Porter is working on the other issues. Duce would be a good pick if he could commit.

Scott Kolins has drawn the Flash for so long that whenever he comes back to the series, it is a pleasure. It is as if he simply picks up from where he left the last time and continues. Although he was assigned with the Wally West version of the Flash, everyone, including Barry Allen look familiar. I like that he draws the warden of Iron Heights again. If Kolins wants to stay, and draw Flash more regularly, please sign him up!

Im really enjoying Scott Kolins here and I am glad that the editors have finally figured out that it is better to let one artist handle a complete storyline instead of bringing in many fill-in artists. This has hurt the series a lot in the past.

This is the third issue in a row with Scott Kolins drawing the comic. Of course, I am elated. But I really hope that he will not draw the next issue, so that he can prepare and draw an entire future storyline without interruptions. Im ready to see some good artwork by Howard Porter or whoever is lined up next. Scott Kolins on Flash is a joy. His work is messy and reminds me of Chas Truog and Greg Larocque mixed with a bit of Gil Kane. Kolins does not draw multiple Flashes in one frame as often as other artists, but it does not matter much. His work is still enticing and a good fit for this series.

This story tells the origin of the first Green Hornet and how he and Kato started fighting criminals in Chicago. As an old comic book fan of the Green Hornet, Im happy to see the multi-generational history of the character first established by writer Ron Fortier back. When Now Comics published the Green Hornet, there was a Golden Age one " the same from the radio serials, there was Silver Age one, the same from the 1960s television series and finally, there was the new modern Green Hornet and a female Kato. While the female Kato will be seen in the modern Green Hornet series, the other Kato is the original butler that passed as a Korean while being Japanese. In this issue we are shown flashbacks of both Britt Reid and Kato before they become masked vigilantes. We see what motivated them to become the men that decided to fight crime. Although the Green Hornet is much like Batman and preceded the later, there has not been such thought provoking work done on the character. Kato, in the N

The Green Hornet is here to give a warning to crime boss Carusos men. He wants a share of the business and nothing happens in his city without him being a part of it. The best parts of this comic book were those where we did not see the Green Hornet and Kato. In particular I liked the sequence in Africa with the warlords. All the parts with the Green Hornet and Kat were standard super hero thug action without anything imaginative. If youve read a Batman comic book, youve read this one. Lets hope future issues can put more fun back in the characters as opposed to their flashbacks. The art is solid and reinforces that 1940s look.

This story tells the tale of how Kato first met with Britt Reid and became his lifelong servant and sidekick. Caught in China during Japans attack on China and witnessing the horrors of his fellow Japanese patriots, Kato switches side and fight his countrymen until caught. But Reid saves him just in time to create a friendship that will take them all the way to Chicago where they will fight mobsters. This is finally the story that should have been told for the first two issues explaining the bond between the two heroes. Theres always been a racist context in the Green Hornets relationship with Kato where the former is less skilled and talented than the man that serves him and drives him around. Wagner doesnt deal with that issue head on, but helps alleviate criticism about the white guy who bosses around the yellow guy. Katos devotion to the Green Hornet is explained more in cultural obligation mode than in terms Westerners are used to. Lets hope future stories delve deeper in this asp

I have already praised Williams many times, but I have to do this again. Few artists would make such a complicated comic work. The best part is that one can feel the love he has for this franchise and how he tries to make it work with Injustice. I will argue that he is a better fit for the Masters than Injustice who usually is rendered in a slick and clean style. But the best thing is that the story moves, and moves, and moves.

Freddy Williamss work is good but sometimes cluttered. I will say that Darkseids minions look great next to the villains usually serving Skeletor. Its a natural match. I also have to mention the eclectic but beautiful and engaged colouring by Jeremy Colwell. Few could add as much to Williams illustrations.

I like the new costumes created by Freddie Williams. They update the Masters of the Universe and even the Injustice characters. I do feel that too many characters have huge proportions that make them look like wrestlers.

Deodato is even better here than in Dark Avengers. His growth is phenomenal. The story is detailed and the characters look unique. He creates cool suits just for the Mars landing and I like how he draws technology and ships. Although Ill drop this series because I cant buy all that Marvel Comics publishes, its still a good read.

The art also looks much better With Deodato continuing to grace the pages with remarkable pencils and strong action sequences. Few Marvel Comics look so good these days.

The art is odd. Its not bad, but its not hot. Its super detailed with a lot of good visual in the jungle. However, the hero looks like a villain and the action is not very kinetic.

Ferigatos work is solid. Hes the kind of artist that doesnt get as much work anymore because their style is not popular, although he is a solid storyteller. His work is completely competent. Every character has a different face. His sets are lush and filled. His inks are beautiful and contrast elements in his composition quite well. Coupled with the great colouring, this is a visual feat. This story has much potential. If you havent a Phantom story in years, this one may be for you.

The design on the Transformers is changing again. They usually do when theres a new toy around. Being out of the loop on the latest Transformers toys, I cant tell whats happening. However, I will say that I hate how Figueroa draws the Transformerss faces. I get it that hes basing their designs on the films, but it just makes the characters look ugly and less relatable. Another problem is the lack of real inking. I wish they would hire a real inker to strengthen the lines on the page. Relying only on pencils and posterized line art is not a replacement for proper inking.

The Decepticons are in disarray and reverting to cannibalism to survive. Meanwhile Megatron is preparing his return and complains about how he finds Optimus Prime weak and how ultimately, his nemesis will be betrayed by the humans they seek to protect. Is that the ultimate fate of the Autobots? While this story is interesting, itshas many parallels to the arrival of Galvatron in the Transformers cartoon series in 1986 with the Decepticon leader, after having been defeated by Rodimus Prime, return to lead his troops to glory. But the parallels end here and the story is much more a personal study of Megatron which unfortunately does not go far enough. Sure Megatron tells us whats wrong with everything, but he spends little time telling us whats great about him and how he will lead his troops differently than say Starscream. Su can be pleasing and sometimes less. I like his Transformers in many panels, but just find his humans too simple. The light effect he traces all over the characters

Guidis work is good, but hes not the best Transformers artist around. Yet, hes good for action and its easy to follow whats going on in the page. He may be a bit low key and not hot on the ornate stuff drawn by other Transformers artist, but hes a good value and great for this series.

Im not a fan of Figueras Transformers. Hes never been good with humans either. I dont like how he makes the Transformers faces ugly and alien-like. He also puts way too many details that dont help strengthen the structure of the images he draws. The inking this issue was inexistent. I grow tired of all these comic book publishers who think they can get away with Photoshop colouring and skip the inking production step. There is some inking here, but its not used to solidify the work and make it better. Its only used to indulge in the artists pet peeves. Comic book inking is an art form and a necessary step for pencil-drawn illustrations. Inking cleans the muddiness of a pencil drawing and brings structure and solidity to a drawing. Then, its used to establish shadows, highlights and lowlights. It adds dimensions and helps elements in the foreground comes forward and draw the gaze of the reader away from the background and other mid-level layers. Figueroa understands some of these princi

Milne draws good Transformers although he gives them a human face. The colouring is good and there are touches throughout the book that make things interesting visually. For example, there is a scene where Megatron throws a rock on a piece of glass. The wreckage is shaped like the Decepticons symbol.

Milne is good, and I like that he continues to work on this series, providing it with visual continuity. His Transfomers faces have more human qualities, than robotic ones, but I dont mind that.

One thing for sure, it was fun to see little used characters like Breakdown and Streetwise, instead of the usual golden team from the very first Transformers stories " you know Prowl, Jazz, Bumblebee and all. O they were there, but for once we got to see characters that deserve much more exposition. It was fun to see the differences between Prowl and fellow cop Streetwise. They are both police cars, but like in real life, they differ in tactics. Im not sure where this new storyline is going, but I cant wait to find out about this new conspiracy.

What this does is show how shallow and irrelevant the story ultimately is. If as a reader, I cant force myself to decipher a comic book, then theres a problem. Its actually a problem that as a reader Id have to force myself to figure out whats happening. This storyline which is supposed to be important to the world of the Transformers is a non starter for me because of the muddle atmosphere artwork that impede on the actual reading of the comic book. I want to read a comic book, not marvel at the pretty colours on a canvas.

Cahill should be the regular Transformers illustrator beyond the Chaos storyline. I really enjoy his take on the Transformers. Prowl really looks unique in robot mode, although in his alternate car mode, its sometimes tough to distinguish him from Streetwise. This story is really enjoyable from the first page to the last.

Of course, without Cahill the story would not be as interesting I like his take on the Transformers with just enough human facials but well designed and updated robot modes. Im not impressed with Jazz latest designs though, but I understand its probably tied to some toy and not a decision of the artist.

The story and the characters are still interesting, butbeyond the break point in issue #50, I dont feel that much has happened,although Ive skipped many issues.Visually this series continues to be strong,with clear storytelling and engaging sets. Many comic book artists should startstudying Ottleys work and aptitude to deliver a monthly series.

I like Ryan Ottleys work. Hes definedInvincible for this reader and adds a good super hero but lightness to the workthat makes it pleasant. In hindsight, Im not sure if his work would fit in anotherseries that was not about a young idealistic hero, like Johnny Rocket orSpider-man.

Ottleys rendering of the various vignettes for this issue works. A lot of stuff happens. But unlike Morrisons Final Crisis, the vignettes provide just enough information for the reader to complete the missing elements in one narrative. Thats good storytelling. Ottleys work is violent and full of blood, but dynamic. Perhaps his simplified and almost cartoony style is what will keep readers from perceiving the full effect of the gore in this issue.

I ask myself often if Ottley will ever get equal billing to creators Kirkman and Cory Walker. When I think of Invincible, I dont think of Walkers interpretation. I think of Ottleys. Hes defined the character and his universe for me. After delivering months after months of work on this series, it would be just for him to be acknowledged as an equal creator of Invincible, even if he did not draw the first issues.

By the panel counts, this issue seems to have a lot going for it. There is actually a lot to view visually. Ottleys storytelling is impeccable and entertaining. Sure, all his characters are covered with blood, which seems odd in such a clean cut comic book, but at least the gore has a purpose.

This is the second issue of Walkers return to Invincible. May I ask where hes been? I really like his work on this series as it gives a solid form to all the characters. He seems to be able to draw action, quiet scenes and gore as well as the regular artist of the series. The only difference here is that hes also part creator of Invincible and its world. A very good issue over all.

Ottley is back, but the inks on his work are to fine. I like the thicker lines better. I still like the amount of details he puts in and the construction of the panel. Its really a dynamic series when hes around.

Invincible fights the horrible squid guy that looks like the Justice Leagues Starro. But the fight against the parasite alien organism turns bad when Invincible has to make an important decision about the how to stop the villains threat. This story seemed like it was played for a laugh until Invincible crossed that line and ended the threat posed by the villain. I like where this is going and what it means for the character. After all the crap hes been through recently his reactions make sense. Theres not much to discuss about this issue except for the fact that it was a solid read. Ottley remains my favourite Invincible artist and he knows how to draw gore.

Invincible, his brother and his dad go out in space to join an alliance against the Viltrumites. However on route, they are attacked by Viltrumites and the one man that cause so much grief to Invincible. But prior that, its goodbye to everyone, including Eve who has a secret that could change Marcs life. I like this issue. It was a simple story with the right amount of action and strong storytelling. Its also the pause before the big fight. Im not sure how Invincible will get out of the jam hes in though. This issue a;so introduced a new character called Tech-jacket. Im hoping to see more of this character but I hope this is not Kirkman signalling that hes ready to retire Invincible after this run. Ottley is again gracing the pages with inker Rathburn who works so well with him. If both draw the next issue, I bet they will be tons of cool gore!

Invincible faces Conquest a second time. This time neither combatant will underestimate the other and they will fight until one of them die and the other barely makes it alive. Which one will it be? This issue took me by surprise. Its a great super hero fight to the finish the likes of which we rarely see these days, even with all the violence thats been allowed to creep in super hero comics. It used to be that Invincible was the safe series for those who long a old school super hero with challenges and real emotions, la Spider-man. The last year or so, Invincible has proven that every time we think it will become bland, it will shock us. This issue is like that. I really did not expect a fight to the finish when I picked this title this week. I didnt skip to check out the last pages, so it was a real shocker for me. I dont know how they ll come back from that one. Ottley, like everything in this issue is great. However, I seriously hope that drawing these comic books draw out all th

Mark is hurt badly and the Viltrumite war is being waged in every reaches of the universe without him, his father, and his brother. Months pass and Omni Man and Oliver Grayson, bond while attending to Marks wounds. But will they make it in time to help the fight the Viltrumite war? This issue annoyed me because it showed that Invincible would magically be healed up very soon although his guts were pulled from his being last issue. All of the drama established about the importance of the fight are useless, if the next issue erases everything and heals Mark completely. Nothing was gained, nothing was lost. Meanwhile, the war continues and it doesnt really matter as Mark and family are sitting this one out. Its a sleight of the hand for the reader and a cheap trick. I bet by the time we return to Earth Atom Eve, Marks girlfriend will have given birth already... The art is of course good and solid as usual. It might have been the most pleasant thing about this issue.

Ryan Ottley. Ryan Ottley. Hes Invincible. He draws all these worlds and characters, and then kills them in the most gruesome ways, making us care about all these cool characters that appear in the pages of this comic book series. I cant complain about anything Ottley does, including the gore. Its emotional. People are mangled and obliterated without care. Its not emotional or redeeming. Their deaths are true, in a sense. They are not heroic or romantized. The threat of the Viltrumite is well visualized. Ottley is a true super hero comic book artist. Hes a classic. Pick up this book. Its worth it.

Ottley continues to draw this series with a passion, although his figures are becoming more cartoony. Colourist John Rauch softraces many of the lines in this comic which is new here. It does reinforce the cartoon look of this series. It doesnt look bad at all. Its good to see the series growing visually, even if I dont like how Ottleys work is changing. Its not bad at all, just not what Im used from the artist.

Ottley was drawing this issue. He didnt draw Invincible #85 and that was a lot. I know hes not the original creator, but hes probably contributed more to Invincible than any other artist for several years now. His work can become a caricature at times " Eve is not exactly beautiful this issue. Yet, the visual pacing is fast and dynamic.

Cory Walker is back this issue and I have to say that I prefer when Ryan Ottley draws this series. The characters still look very much the same though, but Ottleys work is more lively and the faces more interesting to look at.

Cory Walker continues to art shores on the series after Ryan Ottley's departure. Although the characters look very much the same, he doesn't do gory fights as well and as bloody as Ottley. Yet the storytelling in this series is solid and following the action, never a problem. I'd like to see Walker's work under another inker. I have a feeling it would be more appealing.

The weak point of the story is he artwork by Liam Sharp. I prefer year one artist Nicola Scott. But a weakness is relative in a story so well crafted. Some shots, like Wonder Woman plunging through Urzkartaga looked like super heroics of a bygone era and so were less satisfying. Yet for such a jungle epic, he is the natural choice.

Bilquis Evely has a pulp feel which is just right for this story that will make you think that Lara Croft is a red-haired adventuress. Romulo Fajardo Jr s colours add the right tough to an already pulpy comic. Its a great mix and a great comic that I hope will become every Wonder Womans fanss favourite.

Im glad that Greg Rucka is a feminist writer. Wonder Woman is written in a smart way that will please anyone who cares about social justice and those who do not. She does not preach. She is still innocent. But she is inspiring and caring. This year one storyline has to be one of the best rendition of Wonder Womans origin ever written.

All of DC Comics issues this month suffer from guest artist syndrome. Renato Guedes is a solid artist but like those in other comics Ive reviewed in the past month, his work contrasts greatly with Liam Sharp, the regular illustrator on the current day stories. Even the colouring is different.

If you still havent picked up this series, please do. Its one of the best of DC Rebirth.

I like the tile motif that Liam Sharp used for this issue. It allows the various vignettes that make Wonder Womans life come around while symbolizing her current detention in a psychiatric hospital under a cover name. Sharp mixes a lot of elements, including shots taken from Nicola Scott. In scenes where the art needed to be clean like with Diana Prince, Sharp did that. But with other scenes like the runaways Steve Trevor and Etta Candy, the mood was just right. Dark, and gloomy.

Although I dont like how Liam Sharpe draws female faces, everything else about his work rocks. Im glad that he is on this title and has been able to keep abreast of a tight schedule.

While I enjoyed Mirka Andolfos issue, I missed Bilquis Evelys handling of this issue. Her replacement created a break with the rest of the story by making Wonder Woman look like a young woman almost like an airhead. There was a lack of majestic demeanour in her interpretation. Andolfos work is fine but it was not the right tone for this story.

At first glance, it appears that this comic and this storyline were great. I urge you to reread this issue and really ask yourself if truth was well represented and if Wonder Woman was not forced to solve the problems hypocritically. Sure the scene where she meets her mother Queen Hippolyta for the last time is great. So are the parallels with Dr. Veronica Cale losing her daughter a second time. But these are just drapes over the frail script and story concluded in this issue and a weak place to start the next 75 years of Wonder Woman.

Bilquis Evely offers us her last issue on this marvelous run. I will really miss her. Her Wonder Woman had pleasant pulp qualities. She does not look as nave as Nichola Scotts Wonder Woman. But she feels anchored to the comic book genre, instead of being cinematic, like Scotts.

Even the great art by Liam Sharp and Bilquis Evely will not make me forget what a stupid story Rucka wrote about Wonder Woman was. It could have been so much more.

I will say that I was annoyed at the feminism in this issue. Im not exactly sure what bothers me yet. Im definitely not against feminism but this comic read more as girl empowerment than a comic with a strong lead. Many comics which seek female audiences are this way nowadays but they usually are from independent publishers. Part of the formula is to put down males. This comic has done a bit of that but not gone overboard yet in but I can sense that it will be one of those comics that Id rather skip. There is a way to write strong female leads without feminism taken to an extreme. Greg Rucka hates my guts but he did manage to reach that balance to his credits.

This is seriously what happens here. It is a major downgrade from Greg Ruckas Wonder Woman which regardless of its flaws was a much better comic. Its a pity that this is the best comic that is produced about Wonder Woman, DC Comics flagship character today. This issue was modelled after She-Hulks origin, however, the Marvel heroines story was created when such things were simpler.

This issue is kinetic with beautiful art from David Messina that reminds me of Yanick Paquettes Wonder Woman. There are a few problems with the colouring of Etta Candy, making her look like a white woman in several panels. I will also add that Etta Candy is drawn like a man and has nothing feminine about her.