Boy, the author is REALLY not taking any pains to make his demon gimmick hard to decipher, is he?

That part underwhelms me, but it's more than made up for by the way the other key elements (gang-fighting, priest-ing, and Matt's new (-ish) form of Catholic guilt) are balanced so nicely--including with the demons.

This issue's artistic tone shift is another treat. It's far darker than what's come before, and that suits Matt's current mood perfectly.
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This issue's first priority is introducing the new Latverian mutants, and it does a damn good job of that. We get a satisfying demonstration of their powers, glimpses of their backstories, and hints of more to be revealed in the future.

Add on a rock-solid depiction of Dr. Doom, good pacing, good dialogue, and exceptionally gorgeous art, and you've got a good, next-door-to-great comic.
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This issue is full of pleasant surprises. The rougher, looser art style suits my taste. Granted, it's less detailed, but I thought it was actually clearer and more dynamic.

The author does a talented job of throwing most of the focus to the antagonists without making the Avengers feel sidelined. And they profit by the focus; the Twilight Court develops toward distinctiveness and interest. (They seem like a pack of horny teenagers in their relationships to each other--which is not necessarily a bad thing.)
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As someone who regards virtually every Sentry appearance since his original miniseries as misguided at best, I wasn't looking forward to this series.

This first issue was quite the pleasant surprise! Now, it's far from perfection or greatness. The prose has plenty of glitches, and though the art is clear and clean, it's pretty generic. The plot looks generic as well, and the pace is slow.

Even with those drawbacks, I could call it acceptably average. What elevates it into a good comic is the author's remarkable talent for characterization. He handles old and new characters with equal insight and empathy. He makes me care about a character whose total lifespan is significantly shorter than the issue.

You can tell me the dumbest story in the world, and I'll be happy with it, so long as you can get me engaged with the people going through it.
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This anthology neatly dodges the criticism I usually have for anthologies (particularly in the Voices line): It's not a collection of aimless, too-short strips. Each of these four stories has a solid conflict, a solid resolution, and a solid message, and thus they're all pretty dang satisfying.

Devil's advocate: It might be that the final Captain America strip is so good that it's raising my opinion of the others.
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This issue delivers some vitally important plot points. The art is nice, and a lot of the ideas are compelling and cool.

But subjectively, the script was annoying. Hugely important plot points were delivered in past-tense narration, ruining any sense of tension. The sex jokes were half-hit, half-miss at best. The pace was slow, and felt even slower--probably another effect of the narration.

Still, it has its moments. Emma's new diamond-form combat move definitely goes in the "cool" column.
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The story chugs to a rational conclusion, but I don't find it to be a particularly satisfying one. It features excellent art (particularly for a collaboration), and this issue's script is probably the strongest of the whole arc.

My main complaints are probably that the climax feels rushed and that symbiote-ified Black Widow felt underutilized.

In my opinion, this is *almost* a good comic, but not quite.
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I find it difficult to explain why this doesn't click with me. Normally, I'm cool--even enthusiastic--about the contrast between the serious and the absurd that's so common in comics. But in this case, subjectively, the seriousness is too serious, and the absurdity is too absurd.

The art is a bit short on detail, but it's a powerful narrative tool. The script is stocked with plenty of cool lines. Bucky's mission endows the plot with focus and drive.

I'm hung up on the little absurdities, from the Red Skull's supernatural nature to the Contessa's robo-surprise to the utter mechanical impossibility of Sharon's helmet. I don't know WHY these things rustle my jimmies so much, but they do.
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The creators aim for a bleak Empire Strikes Back-style ending, and they hit the mark. The art is nice, and the script sticks to a fast, tension-building pace.

If I'm lowballing my rating, it's because I have the same complaint as I did in #3: this issue *by itself* is not emotionally engaging. It relies entirely on the reader's preexisting knowledge of, and engagement with, Alpha Flight (and the Hudsons in particular).

It also resembles ESB in a potentially negative way: A lot of plot threads are left hanging, and I have no idea where or when or if they'll get tied off.
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Is the narrative structure flawed? Yes, a little. Is the continuity work messy? Undoubtedly. Is it a little too much of an Uncanny Spider-Man bonus issue and not enough of a standalone one-shot? I say yes.

And the flaws don't matter, because this is a momentous and moving story. The creators bring it to life with passion, making it much more than a set of continuity footnotes, making it easy to sympathize and empathize with the characters. The art, in particular, is remarkable--all the more so for being a collaborative effort.
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It's a satisfying conclusion to the story. Kamala's thoughts seem authentic and endearing all the way through, and the Sentinel fight has some spectacular art. The script remains the weak point, though. It's not bad by any means, but the pace and the dialogue are improvable.

PS: What happened to the fish?!

The pace remains relentless, speeding toward a conclusion with slick action-movie dialogue and strong, sharp (but not too detailed) art. Like the last issue, there's one little point of corniness--Zodiac's sheer ego wards off vampires, huh?

I was on the verge of being underwhelmed. This goes by so quickly that it seems to contain even less plot development than it really does. But I appreciate how elegantly that last-page reveal ties together almost a year of foreshadowing.
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It's got gorgeous art and some clever ideas for developing its plot. The script has more than its fair share of snappy lines, too. It's challenging.

And yet, the slow pace continues to frustrate me. It's just a bit patronizing, as if the creators (the author in particular) are worried that I'll overlook how brilliant, ambitious, and thoughtful they are. The scrupulous review of every new idea is counterproductive, leaving me with the impression that this story is less than the sum of its parts.
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I found this a little less impressive than the first issue. Artistic polish, writing quality, and the complexity of the ideas are all falling off. The Reed Richards strip is undoubtedly the strongest: beautiful and bittersweet.

The highlights here are some good art, some good wisecracks, and one heartwarmingly authentic Howard adventure (the Kibblesmith/Wu strip) that pokes fun at modern Marvel's multimedia synergy obsession.

The other two strips are fairly annoying due to their belief that "absurdist humor" equates to frustrating the reader and their use of Howard as a passive observer of continuity wankery.

The frame story delivers nice, but tiny, morsels of Zdarsky/Quinones Howard. That tickles my nostalgia gland, but I can admit the frame is basically plotless.
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Add "explaining to a foreign writer how badly she's going to spoil the mood for American readers by using 'Summon the Grovers' as a battle cry" to the list of things Marvel editors don't do, I guess.

The pace is fast, and the amount of plot development is a little light. But those are about the only faults I could lay against this comic.

The well-turned words and brilliant art do a stellar job of building an air of suspense and menace. With this passionate storytelling, I'm okay with a small serving of content--and eager for the next round.

It's a cool little mystery just between its own covers, and it drops some more fascinating clues about "Victor Shade." It's written and drawn very well, and it has some great jokes. The icing on the cake is that it foreshadows an awesome twist for the Immortal Thor.

I've been waiting for the Booth shoe to drop for a whole year, and it's pretty enjoyable when it does. The script and the art build up to a terrific Hulk-fight--but the creators run out of pages before they can bring it to a conclusion. The overall shortage of content is what holds this a little shy of greatness in my opinion. (That, and the fact that the author shows little recap mercy for readers who might have forgotten the Booths.)
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The plot develops with a vengeance, and on the character side, we get that rarest of all creatures: a contrite Mr. Sinister. The art looks great. I think the "random past Jean Grey quotes" gimmick was a little overdone, though.

This is drawn well, and it has memorable dialogue, but what I appreciate most is the way the characters' decisions are justified in rational--often gut-wrenching--ways. It makes this feel far more consequential than a lot of miniseries.

It's another solid one-off adventure for Logan. The Black Panther's cameo is functional, but not all that inspired. The art looks good, and the arc seems to be chugging reliably toward an impressive climax. I do like that Benjamin Percy is getting some more mileage out of Jun Wei after introducing her in X-Force.

The plot threads all weave together into a thoroughly satisfying second act. The supporting cast shines, and the art looks great. But there are plenty of nits I could pick, and things unwind into frustratingly vague foreshadowing at the end. So I call this issue good, but not great.

The art is what stands out most to me. It's incredibly dynamic, polished, and just a ton of fun to look at.

On the script side, Elektra's voice sounds good. The plot leaves me a little underwhelmed, though. The antagonists are aggressively non-memorable. But maybe I'm old and cynical.

This is a satisfying read, but not (so far) an essential one.

The prose and the art are solid, but not spectacular. The whole issue is elevated by an impeccably consistent theme, one rooted deep in Shang-Chi's character. Of course, it all comes down to Shang's daddy issues, as always, but it's compelling nonetheless.

This issue juggles an admirable number of balls, and it does so with a creative style that I find personally appealing. An adequate amount of groundwork is laid for post-Gang-War adventures. But first, the Big Dumb Crossover.

Jess is set up well for GW by developing a personal beef with Diamondback--and the gangster gets enough development to hook my interest.

The storytelling skills (the art in particular) get slightly shaky in spots. But the solid content and the creators' clear commitment to the characters ensure that I'm thoroughly engaged.

I give the author credit for building well on top of Bendis's Defenders, which makes for a pretty shaky foundation.
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It looks pretty damn good on the artistic front, and Jessica's voice is a delight. Forward plot progress is a little slow, though. The spycraft that fills the majority of this issue is entertaining, but it also feels inconsequential.

This issue did a remarkable job of getting me excited for a crossover that I previously had zero enthusiasm for. I'm strongly in favor of the "resurrection" featured here.

For me, the weak link is the art. It's clear and polished, but the style seems too cartoony for the subject matter.

The script is definitely not weak. The pace is fast and tense, the story flows clearly, and all of the dialogue sounds realistic. It's also peppered with memorable lines, particularly by the "resurrected" character.

Plus, the verbal spankings that Pete gets from Miles and Robbie were SORELY needed. Pete's been so aimless for so long. I really hope that he follows through on the final scene and gets proactive about protecting his city.
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The resolution is a little unfocused, and this issue features a weird take on Marc's DID. However, it does bring things in for a solid happily-ever-after that might impact Moon Knight's status quo in the future. The art is strong, too.

There's a truly impressive amount of action, world-building, and character development packed into this issue. Miles continues to push his solo stories and relationships forward, while making room for a healthy helping of crossover combat.

I appreciate the wit and sass in the dialogue. I'm still ambivalent about the art, though. There are individual moments of great dynamism and excitement, but the details and the flow from panel to panel could be much clearer.
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