Spider-Man takes down the Red Goblin with the help of many friends and some highly unexpected allies. This is a glorious capstone to a volume, and it makes productive use of a TON of great characters. There are sacrifices and triumphs, heartbreak and laughter, and pure perfect Spidey-philosophy covering both "Great Responsibility" and more subtle lessons. Visually, this issue is one of the best-ever implementations of an artist carousel. The subtly-shifting styles somehow add to the story rather than detract from it. This is a stupendous book in every respect. more

The story concludes by revealing a shockingly good origin story for Lockjaw, showing his triumph over Annihilus, and kicking a healthy slice of action and growth to D-Man. Superb art and formidable funny writing throughout. Sheer enjoyability and the significant service this series has done in clarifying Lockjaw's origins make this final issue all-time great.

Plus, the creators take a one-panel dig at Brian Michael Bendis's impromptu resurrection of the Ultimate Universe.
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It's the big finish for the Doomlactus AU, and the creators peg the needle on bigness. Epic action with superb "Time Runs Out" visuals, important lessons for the Infamous Iron Doom, and a couple all-time great "Holy ☠☠☠☠!" surprises. The only hesitation is in the tone of the ending, which seems to fall short of its full potential for meaning because our heroes are leaving this AU behind. <br/> more

Team Bruno beats Team Red Dagger on a technicality - Bruno's coming back to Jersey City and Lal is going back to Karachi. But Bruno IMMEDIATELY creates a new romantic triangle by making nice with Kamala and Mike at the same time. Oh, and supervillain Mean Girl Kaylee is unmasked as a Doc.X Bot and defeated at the Spring Fling dance. It all looks good and there's solid humor and characterization, but the sheer number of developments prevents any one of them from getting satisfyingly deep. more

It ends the way a choose-your-own-Deadpool-adventure series written by Al Ewing would have to: With a clever, funny, meta-textual assault on the rules of the story itself. There are just enough twists and bright ideas here to keep the finale from feeling indulgent or trivial, and I was thoroughly satisfied at the end.

Gwen rallies her friends after publically unmasking and stares down Matt Murdock. This issue aims for grand plot developments and big, heartwrenching moments, but it didn't land the latter with me. I can recognize this story's ambitious intentions. It lacks a solid foundation of storytelling skill, though, and good intentions don't make for a fun reading experience all by themselves.

Carol shows off the possibilities of the Reality Stone by touring AUs where critical moments in her life went differently. It's a fascinating selection of possibilities and the art is outstanding, but the script doesn't quite succeed at making Carol's reactions seem rational. Perhaps the AU vignettes should have been in a different order? It seems to start at the highest emotional intensity and then trail off. more

The Mothervine conspiracy collapses thanks to a well-timed heel-face turn on Emma Frost's part. Magneto whips out a few healer mutants to erase most of the negative fallout with suspicious ease, but very bad blood remains between those two. Some high-quality art and a nicely-timed plot are big positives here; on the other side of the scale are shallow characterization and a powerful feeling of inconsequentiality. more

The Punisher holds his own against a ridiculously huge roster of heroes in a big fight that manages not to embarrass anybody involved. Things get a little sillier as he keeps ahead of the heroes' magic nano-tracker long enough to disable it, then effortlessly grabs Nick Fury Jr. for a nice gritty conversation. Net result: Frank's going Hydra-hunting. Good dialogue and pacing, but the art's underwhelming to me and the whole nanotech tracking deal feels like a plot hole. Frank's also still running a bit high on viciousness. more

Daredevil's plans to defend against the Hand look mighty questionable, and that's before the Beast releases a cloud of Green Yick over the city. The plot barrels along speedily, but Matt comes off unlovably smug in both words and art. The initial Elektra scene offers some wonderfully choreographed action.

A flashback to Jean's post-resurrection activities flounders under poor art and corny dialogue. The plot is sound and the intent of the characterization is great, but the execution is lacking. The art puts detail in all the wrong places and desperately needs bolder, more conventional linework. The script pulls multiple tricks to hide some of Jean's key conversations using narrative summaries or psychic mojo; given the quality of the dialogue that does get to the page, that's probably just as well. There are enough flaws here to drag an otherwise-promising story down and render it merely average. more

An entertaining but pond-shallow flashback shows what Peter and MJ got up to on a super-rare romantic getaway 8 years back. A few Mark 1 Heartwarming Moments liven up the "low-hanging fruit" comedy. This isn't disappointing, but it's heavily non-essential. Some rough, sketchy art seals in the averageness.

We're dropped into a wild sink-or-swim sci-fi adventure along with a T'Challa who might or might not be the king we know from previous volumes. The action is breathless and enthralling. Scene-setting hints and plot foreshadowing are woven through the adventure with exquisite skill, never meddling with the strong pace. There are a few pickable nits (very minor ones), but this new world is so audacious and inventive that I'm absolutely thrilled to explore it. more

Moon Knight was really hoping that he'd filled his quota of "weird" for this volume, but nope, here comes the Collective, a Cronenbergian nightmare of malevolent melded-together misanthropes. I felt the self-deprecating hipster origin of the Collective went on a touch too long, but this was otherwise magnificent. Ambitiously, audaciously crazy. I appreciate how shamelessly the villain is tailored to the hero, thematically speaking. This issue knocked the physical confrontation out of the park; I can't wait to see the psychological match-up in the next one. more

Stephen closes a chapter in his life by getting a proper goodbye from Zelma. And Spidey is there in maximum "Kooky Peter" mode to sand down some of the awkwardness. The core relationship chat delivers excellent closure, though it's a bit understated. I was in the perfect mood for Kooky Spidey, so that turned into a nice little bonus bringing this finale up to greatness in my eyes.

Clint gets overwhelmed with Venomdroxes and Bullseye goes thoroughly rogue. This issue has a pace - overall and particularly in the fight scenes - that perfectly suits the visuals. I hope it's a case of the writer learning his collaborator's strengths and playing to them rather than just a happy accident. Bullseye's story is starting to parallel Clint's in a very interesting way.

The Champions fall afoul of the Master of the World, who ties them up in a "what do we do when baddies do good stuff?" conundrum. Meanwhile, local girl Amka is tooling up towards becoming a hero herself. Truly beautiful artwork and impeccable characterization make this a delight. The cliffhanger undercuts #20 a little by promising bigger and better things to come, though.

Chris Powell is stuck on the Earth-sidelines as Big Raptor Events unfold out in the cosmic world. A left-field fight opens up a surprising hitchhiking opportunity for him, though. This series kicks off with tons of promise and some distinctively great manga-style art. This issue burns a few too many words mulling over new power limitations, but that's a pretty minor nitpick. The balance of the book is thoroughly enjoyable, and it does an excellent job building "and then what happened?" anticipation. more

Youpool's sojourn in the 80s is highly Daredevil-centric, and it pays good comedy dividends. The presence of the Grasshopper reimagined as the 90s-tastic "Weapon G" is an outstanding diversion, though. The scripting throughout is hilarious, but it's the Weapon G section that really cooks with the perfect combination of funny words and ridiculous (in an awesome way) art.

Old Man Deadpool has actually REPLACED contemporary Deadpool, lending an extra air of insanity to an already-insane standoff between the LMDs and everybody else. We're closing in on a resolution, and I don't have much hope for it in terms of drama, but this issue was a lot of fun thanks to scrupulously crazy art. The jokes and characterization also set an excellent "but not too serious" tone to relieve the more melodramatic aspects of the plot. more

OML rallies a skeleton crew of mutants to fight off a Purifier attack and support poor Glob. This is incredibly simple, textbook X-Men stuff, but it's executed quite well. I really hope Ibraim Roberson is the first illustrator in line for any future Glob stories; he does great with the big pink dink. I liked the hints of affection going from Shark Girl to Glob, and I wouldn't have been sad to see them get a little less subtle with it. more

With help from his friends (and especially from his sister's day-saving technobabble), Amadeus finagles a "meets minimum closure standards" victory over the Dark Hulk. The aftermath: He loses a bunch of muscle mass and now maybe he's permanently green? And he feels real contrite? And New York nabbed all his Olympus Group moolah to pay for property damages. This conclusion is clearer about Amadeus's FINANCES than it is about his super-powers or his feelings - it's fair for me to be underwhelmed by that, right? Add in some mercurial art that includes too many disappointing panels and you have a recipe for a big finale that finds itself stuck at "thoroughly average." more

Sam saves the day with plenty of help from his friends. His romance with Misty is rekindled, Shaun comes through OK, and Blade is the big loser. He doesn't get the girl, he doesn't help out much, and his arch-nemesis gets killed in front of him by a bird. Poor Blade! This issue had nice visuals and some excellent moments, but the plot didn't make nearly enough sense. And some of the moments were a lot cheesier than they should have been. "The only place I wanna see feathers is on a plate." Really, Blade? You eat your chicken unplucked, do ya? more

Circumstances in Siberia produce roster turnover - Warpath ditches the team and Omega Red looks poised to join. It's an issue for remarkably good character work; the prospect of death makes Sabretooth set aside some of his jackass ways. The plot is still amply stocked with lazy gimmicks - tigers outta nowhere! - and the visuals do basic storytelling without adding much to the reading experience.

The X-Men chase their kidnapped Colossus into space. The raw plot is full of potential, so it takes a special sort of magic writing to sand it down into this thoroughly "meh" adventure. The art works hard to elevate the best moments, but it doesn't get a lot of script support. The Evil Pundit Lady falls into the absolute depth of cliched villain behavior - "So confident am I of my victory, I shall stop fighting and gloat." more

Brian Michael Bendis spent eight issues setting up six major stories (plus many smaller mysteries) and refusing to develop them. Each deserved a full arc for resolution. Now they're all abruptly chopped off in a single double-sized issue. And just to make sure that things are extra train-wreck-y, art duties go to a rapidly-spinning carousel of A-listers. That ensures that the issue lacks a consistent artistic vision and comes out extra super disjointed.

My vote for "favorite train wreck moment" goes to Mike Deodato refusing to let Alex Maleev have the "Parker Robbins is really a demon" point to himself. And Bendis and the editors just let him poach it!

Despite all the strikes against them, I did find a few of this issue's payoffs enjoyable. Rhodey's resurrection was straightforward and satisfying (if not all that logical), and uniting Miles and Riri almost made the SHIELD 2.0 idea interesting.

Moving forward, though, this issue leaves a bumper crop of dangling plot threads that are potentially toxic. If nobody on Earth ever speaks the words "Tony Stark, Sorcerer Supreme" again, I'll die happy. About the only thread I'd be interested in seeing continued is Doom vs. Hood, because it's the most flagrantly unfinished story. more

Dr. Whozits defeats Lord Trauma while David looks on with vague approval. It's approaching a decent story, but fundamental problems strategic (why is this Dr. Whozits' story instead of Legion's?), tactical (ugh, that twist ending), and visual (what was the art budget? Tree fiddy?) drag it down into thorough disappointment.

An all-female crew of Logan's mutant pals goes hunting for Magneto in Madripoor, but instead they "just happen" to run into an all-female baddie squad. This is a strong contender for the least enjoyable comic I've read in years. The all-X-chromosome gimmick is unjustified, the flashback characterization of Logan and his ladies is pond-shallow, and then there's the art.

It's not just me disliking Thony Silas's shovel-faced Nagel-ripoff style - though I certainly do dislike it. No, what really arouses my ire is the fundamental and, I contend, objective incompetence shown in anatomy, blocking, and visual storytelling. Logan's double-barrel chest on the very first page, the inept and confusing portrayal of Mindblast's airport disguise, the way Storm's keepsake is almost-but-not-quite-perfectly hidden from view ... There is no end to the artistic missteps.

This comic is a failure even on the basest level of juvenile titillation. T&A were definitely in the cards - look not just at the rosters but also at the X-Women LITERALLY and EXPLICITLY dressing in stripper clothes for their Magneto meeting. But sexy, too, falls outside Mr. Silas's wheelhouse today. more

The Hand's motive and modus for attacking New York are still unclear; Matt and Sam get into a guilt-o-matic squabble over whose fault it might be. Besides that, this issue showcases plenty of good first steps being taken by both mayor Matt Murdock and Daredevil. The strong, simple faces sketched in the mayor's office scenes are wonderfully expressive, and the rear half balances the talking with plenty of action. There are good roles for Foggy and Blindspot to play, too. This issue is surprisingly light given the "demon ninja" plot it's handling, but it's a consistently fun read. more

Jean exercises excellent leadership in defusing Storm, getting her onto the team along with Namor and Gentle, and preparing to go on the offensive. The X-Men understand Cassandra's weapon now - the Sentinites are a nice refinement of earlier titles' clumsy attempts at nano-sentinels - but they still haven't seen their enemy's face. I like the way this conflict is gearing up; the stage is set for awesomeness.

I normally come down diametrically opposed to "Diversity in Comics"-type opinions, but Trinary's awfulness transcends personal politics. No matter how closely my views align with her and her author, I find her techno-progressive yawping loathsome and paranoid. "This is a magic super-science bug that mind-controls innocent people into assassinating mutants. It's just like stealing your social media data for propaganda purposes!" No, it ☠☠☠☠ isn't, you tinfoil-hat-wearing donkey!
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