Review- MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE X-MEN VOL. 6

MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE X-MEN VOL. 6 (Marvel, First Printing, 2014; Softcover)

Collects The X-Men # 54-66 (cover dates March, 1969- March, 1970)

Writers: Roy Thomas, Arnold Drake (#54), Linda Fite (#57), and Denny O'Neil (#65)

Artists: Neal Adams, Don Heck, Werner Roth, and Sal Buscema with Inking by Tom Palmer, Vince Colletta, and Sam Grainger

How many times can one person buy the same material? Let us count the ways. My first exposure was the X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams trade paperback. While the stories blew my mind, the unfaithful coloring made me ill. I dumped it to buy the first upgrade, which was...

Marvel Masterworks: The X-Men Vol. 6, a nice book marred by wretched glued mousetrap binding. The awful tight binding made the next dip more palatable.

The X-Men Omnibus Vol. 2 not only boasted sewn binding, but was remastered again, even over the Masterworks! Wow, where do I sign, or so I thought at the time.

I then bought this book, which boasted the state of the art restoration, albeit it in softcover. I've also dipped again with the second X-Men Epic, although that was to get the remaining issues I lost when I dumped the second Omnibus. Clear as mud?

In any case, this is top shelf stuff and is eclipsed only by the Claremont and Byrne run. I am done with all of these endless dips for this material. This version is nice enough. At least Marvel cares enough about their material to revisit it every time superior source material appears. DC does restoration once and leaves it, which is unfortunate since they never try to fix subpar restoration.

The OCD zone- This is the part where I go into tactile sensations and materials used in physical media. Those with heart conditions, high blood pressure, or women who are pregnant should exit my blog at their earliest convenience, as their safety cannot be guaranteed beyond this point.

I loved the softcover Masterworks line, as the books are wider than a standard trade paperback. Marvel since went the Epic route, but I would have been happy buying softcover Masterworks.

Linework and Color restoration: This is the same upgraded linework and color restoration found in the second Omnibus.

Paper stock: Matte coated stock. This is my favorite of all of the paper stocks, as it feels high end yet looks like a comic book.

Binding: Perfect bound.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- WOLVERINE: OLD MAN LOGAN

WOLVERINE: OLD MAN LOGAN (Marvel, Eighth Printing, 2017; Softcover)

Collects Wolverine #66-72 and Wolverine: Old Man Logan Giant-Size (cover dates August, 2008- November, 2009)

Writer: Mark Millar

Artists: Steve McNiven with Inking by Dexter Vines, Mark Morales, and Jay Leisten

Colorists: Morry Hollowell, Christina Strain, Justin Ponsor, Jason Keith, Nathan Fairbairn, and Paul Mounts

I passed on this when it first came out for no real reason. Well, there is one reason. Wolverine has been mutilated beyond recognition by writers who have played carelessly with this toy over the years, leaving him broken and unrecognizable from his original version. I like the stubborn, temperamental brawler that was introduced in the works of Len Wein, Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum, and John Byrne. As time went on Claremont became bored with what he considered to be a two-dimensional character and he decided to add layers to him.

All of a sudden he was a ninja, which was cool because it was the mid-80s and I was a kid. Ninjas were everywhere and they were cool. Cripes, even G.I. Joe introduced ninjas in 1984. Then he developed this worldview and wisdom that defied earlier characterizations. People grow and change, so I can overlook this one. Then his healing factor made him omnipotent. His healing factor was always cool but not without limit, as we see Logan get vaporized by a Sentinel in the Days Of Future Past arc. Then he became almost immortal thanks to Origin, becoming a couple hundred years old. We can't forget how stupid the bone claw addition was in Fatal Attractions, can we? There are more bad Wolverine stories than there are good ones, so I guess that is the reason I passed on this. I passed because I couldn't stomach the endless ret-cons and changes that have occurred since I fell in love with the character. Someone could make the best Wolverine story ever and I wouldn't notice because all of these changes have made me look the other way.

The Logan in this story doesn't contradict the Logan that I grew up on. He is older and wearier and seems resigned to his fate. He has settled down and has a family. In many ways all of us who are settled into family life are like Old Man Logan. We don't want to be bothered with all of the nonsense and just want to be with our kids. But screw with us and our kids and SNIKT- the claws are popped and we are ready to throw down in a heartbeat.

Old Man Logan deals with a timeline 50 years into the future where the villains have finally organized themselves and killed off all of the heroes. The handful of heroes who survived have gone into exile. Logan has sworn off violence, refusing to pop his claws under any circumstances. He has settled into being a farmer with his wife and children but has run out of money for rent. This is when Hawkeye shows up. Hawkeye is now nearly blind and needs Logan to help him deliver some mysterious package to the other side of the country using the old Spider-Mobile from the Gerry Conway/Ross Andru run on Amazing Spider-Man circa 1974-1975. The Spider-Mobile is one of the goofiest footnotes from the Bronze Age of comics. It's ridiculous, but the fact that Hawkeye is still relatively spry is even harder to swallow.

The general consensus is that 10 years have passed in Marvel time since Fantastic Four #1 in 1961. I believe that it would be closer to 15 years by this point (2017), but I'll go with their conservative estimate of a sliding timescale of a decade for the sake of argument. Hawkeye first appeared as a villain circa 1964. I guesstimate his age to be at least 18-20 years old in that first appearance. Add close to a decade of Marvel time, and that puts him at 28-30, possibly older depending on exactly when the villains launched their attack on the heroes since it is in a hypothetical future. Add another 50 years to that, and you have a nearly 80 year old Clint Barton. Hawkeye is far too spry in this story for me to buy that. Let's assume that Hawkeye has engaged in the intensive regular exercise that all non-augmented Avengers undergo. I've seen 70 year old guys who go out running everyday, but even they don't appear to be as hearty as ol' Hawkeye is in this series. I don't buy it.

S P O I L E R S in the following paragraph.

Another sticking point, and this is the big one, is that Mysterio tricked Logan into killing the X-Men during the villains' attack on the heroes by fooling all of his senses. Unless someone was helping Mysterio or his powers get a serious upgrade in between the present and the future where this event takes place, this is outside of Mysterio's power set. I don't buy it, either.

Complaints aside, this was a very enjoyable read. Mark Millar and Steve McNiven have always produced good stuff like the original Civil War. I enjoy Mark Millar's writing even if I don't always agree with his characterization (see Iron Man in 2006's Civil War). Steve McNiven does brilliant work (the aforementioned Civil War and Captain America, among others), and the pair's reputation was enough to push the needle to buy after a friend of mine raved nonstop about it.

If you take this on it's own, as a standalone story not necessarily rooted in continuity, it's great. If you try to fit the jigsaw puzzle piece into the big picture you're going to have force it in. Your mileage, as always, may vary. I'm just one guy with one opinion. You spends your money on it and read it, you got an opinion. It didn't make my eye twitch, if that helps.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone-

Paper stock: Fair weight semi-glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock. The cardstock is thin and it sort of curls upward once you are done reading it. 

Review- Free Comic Book Day Review Part One

Free Comic Book Day Review Part One

I have been lackadaisical in my reviews lately and did not do a Free Comic Book Day overview this year. Rather than do one at this late date, I'm just going to list two stores with each batch of Free Comic Book Day comic reviews. Please note that the comics reviewed here did not necessarily come from the shop listed in this review, nor does the shop endorse these reviews.

Not all of the comics that I'll be reviewing over the three parts of my Free Comic Book Day reviews will be FCBD editions. Some are singles that I paid for on FCBD while others were offered for free as part of the FCBD festivities.

The first shop that I hit this year was Detroit Comics in Ferndale, MI. Detroit Comics has recently celebrated ten years in business. Brian and crew are a friendly bunch so stop in and hello.

Resurrxion Free Spotlight #1 (Marvel, cover date May, 2017)

This is a fat 52 pager with previews of 11 different X-Men titles which have been relaunched as part of Marvel's supposedly new fan friendly line. Excuse me, eleven titles is new fan friendly? Come on Marvel. This is ridiculous. Some of these ideas were interesting in a way, but eleven titles? What kid can afford this? Hell, what adult can afford eleven titles for one line of comics? Ridiculous.

Secret Empire Free Previews Spotlight #1 (Marvel, cover date June, 2017)

I have come to the conclusion that I have outgrown modern Marvel Comics. My son really enjoys whatever new comics he reads by them. Maybe I am too old and jaded and have seen it all too many times before. Any way you slice it, the writing and artwork no longer resonate with me so I won't be buying them. There is nothing in this comic that makes me want to throw money at it. I will stick with old Marvel Comics and leave the new Marvel Age of Comics to my son.

Miserable Americans #4 (Independently published by artist Evan Derian, copyright 2016)

Coming in at issue 4 of a series is like walking in late to a movie. Locally produced and published here in Detroit, Miserable Americans is a series about the clones of President John F. Kennedy and President Abraham Lincoln who are on the run from some secret organization that is trying to kill them for reasons that are as yet unknown. It was intelligently written (two or three typos aside) and there is so much story and characterization crammed into this issue that I am intrigued enough to read more.

2000 AD Free Comic Book Day Prog 2017 (2000 AD, cover date 2017)

2000 AD is celebrating it's fortieth anniversary this year, which is kind of crazy when you think about it. This year's FCDB sampler starts out with a story by a character who goes all the way back to the beginning of the series, debuting in #2. Judge Dredd leads the charge in a story that is a sequel to one of the stories that I've recently read in one of The Complete Case Files phonebooks. Blackblood is one of those early '90s British feeling comics, heavy on the robotics and light on humor. Hope has the potential to be an interesting read. Judge Anderson doesn't interest me at all, while Dreams Of Deadworld shows what happens in Judge Death's dimension, where life is a crime and the sentence is death. This is an interesting strip that I would be willing to read more of.

The second shop that we hit this year was Time Travelers in Berkley, MI. Time Travelers is a well stocked shop, although I swear some of those toys have been in those glass cases since the first time I walked in there roughly 25 years ago. They have an ample selection of everything: comics, toys from all eras, video games, cards, and more.

The Incal: Free Comic Book Day (Humanoids, cover date 2017)

Humanoids (the US branch of Les Humanoides Associes) offers English language translations of European comics. The first 26 pages of the book, the first published in the Jodoverse line of Humanoids books, are presented in this FCBD edition. I read and loved Metabarons as well as Technopriests, but this left me cold. It's interesting in a “this is how it all began” sort of way but that's about it. Your mileage, as always, may vary.

Star Trek: The Next Generation- Mirror Broken #0 (IDW, cover date May, 2017)

In the original Star Trek television series they had that parallel universe where everything was the opposite of ours. Spock was evil, and since goatees are evil, evil Spock had one. So on and so forth. The Next Generation may or may not have had such an episode as well. I haven't watched an episode since it originally aired in the '80s.

This was an absolutely fantastic read. The writing and artwork are flawless and it reads and feels like an episode of the television series.

Afterlife With Archie- Halloween ComicFest Edition #1 (Archie, cover date 2014)

I borrowed the first trade from the library and found it to be unreadable. I could barely make it through an issue. This version is printed in “black and white” (really grayscale and black) and I enjoyed it well enough to want to read more...just not in color.

Doctor Who: Free Comic Book Day 2017 #1 (Titan, cover date June, 2017)

I know next to nothing about Doctor Who but enjoyed this comic. It's slick and polished stuff. I can't say how well it relates to the source material, nor do I care. 

Review- NIGHTCRAWLER VOL. 1: HOMECOMING

NIGHTCRAWLER VOL. 1: HOMECOMING (Marvel, First Printing, 2014; Softcover)

Collects Nightcrawler #1-6 (cover dates June- November, 2014)

Writer: Chris Claremont

Artist: Todd Nauck

Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg

My kids love going to the library, and I enjoy taking them there. My local library system has an extensive graphic novel section, and I peek at it from time to time to see what they have. I was curious about how this series was when it came out, as I enjoy both Claremont and Nauck. Alas, there are so many books being pumped out at all times that it is impossible for me to keep on buying or reading them all. We live in an era where available content has outstripped both time and money for even the most lifeless loser. The library removes the barrier of money, so if I were willing to dedicate an evening or two I could finally answer the question about this book.

Chris Claremont is unjustly vilified by modern day comic fans as being overly wordy, having unnecessarily complex ongoing subplots, and too many stylistic ticks. While there is some merit to all of the above criticisms, make no bones about the fact that the man saved The X-Men from extinction as well as helped pave the way for the sophisticated adult fare that you find in comics today. Many of your favorite current writers would not be here if he didn't help expand the notion of how fully formed a comic book character could be. I will admit that my pet peeve with his writing is that he often overdevelops a character, but that is a discussion for another time. Right now I'm going to go into this book.

Claremont seems to have taken a razor blade to his writing, chopping off all manner of dialogue and captions to better suit modern day audiences. It works, and his writing is still meatier than many writers nowadays.

Nightcrawler is back from the dead. As someone who jumped off of The X-Men merry-go-round years ago, this doesn't surprise me. There have been so many deaths and resurrections during the history of the title that even the characters seem to yawn about it. This is a major problem. The death of Phoenix was a powerful story in its day because it showed the high stakes of being a superhero. In the decades since then it has become little more than a sales stunt, a gimmick with no real bearing on the story itself. No readers take comic book deaths seriously any more.

There are S P O I L E R S ahead. People's mileage may vary on the shelf life for the spoiler tag, but I use it regardless of age of the material.

Claremont does a good job at weaving several smaller stories into the prerequisite six issue arc. In the '80s there weren't “arcs” as they currently are, a story simply took as many or as a few issues as necessary. Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner) is reunited with his longtime love interest, sorceress Amanda Sefton. He runs into a robot called Trimega, which can split into three different robots with powers of fire, water, and wind (the elements being a pet favorite of Claremont over the years). Claremont complicates things by bringing in Margali Szardos, who not so shockingly turns out to be the villain of the piece.

I don't know why the Beast has changed his appearance again, but I am thrilled to see the Grant Morrison era bastardization thrown out the window. Todd Nauck's artwork is decent enough. His action sequences and layout for story flow are excellent, but there are some panels where something seems off with the way people look. Art is subjective and your mileage may vary, this is just my two cents. This is a decent read, and I'm glad I finally found out what this series is about. My library unfortunately does not have Volume 2 available.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Standard fare Marvel trade paperback.

Paper stock: Fair weight coated stock with a slight sheen.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock. Marvel switched to thinner cardstock a few years ago, and they end with this “curl” effect when you set them down. It's odd.

On the flip side, this being a library book is a fascinating scientific experiment of the workmanship and durability of the materials used in these trade paperbacks. Bent corners, dog ears, and creases aside, this has held up very well with the rigors of handling by hands less gentle than mine. 

Review- CAPTAIN AMERICA AND THE FALCON: SECRET EMPIRE

CAPTAIN AMERICA AND THE FALCON: SECRET EMPIRE (Marvel, First Printing, 2005; Softcover)

Collects Captain America #169-176 (cover dates January- August, 1974)

Writers: Steve Englehart and Mike Friedrich

Artists: Sal Buscema with Inking by Vince Colletta and Frank McLaughlin

The recent announcement of a forthcoming new printing of this book in early 2017 embarrassed me into reading this, which has sat unread in my backlog for years. Captain America is a character who was launched as a political concept tied into the zeitgeist, so it makes perfect sense for the character to become disillusioned with America during a time when America became disillusioned with itself. The Viet Nam War and Watergate weighed heavily on the minds of the populace, and the white hat/ black hat nature of our country from three decades earlier had faded. We were no longer in the right, and our then-brave new world left Captain America feeling lost at sea.

Things start out with Cap catching a commercial on the television discrediting him, paid for by the Committee To Regain America's Principles. In reality they are the Secret Empire. The Secret Empire baits Cap into action, setting him up in fights with Silver Age C-lister the Tumbler, going so far as to film Cap “murdering” him. The Committee, who speaks out against costumed vigilantes, bring in their own “hero” to fight on the side of the law, Moonstone. This would be the original, male Moonstone, whom I had no idea existed until I read this. Cap gets arrested by Moonstone while his partner, The Falcon, journeys to Wakanda to visit the Black Panther to see about boosting his power. The Falcon did not yet have his trademark wings. Those debuted in #170.

The Secret Empire again frames Cap, this time by breaking him out of prison and arranging for Moonstone to again fight and apprehend him. The Falcon returns just in time to join in on this battle, but both heroes get defeated and captured. They end up escaping and, using one of the most insane set of clues ever, use Moonstone's drawl and country music references to stereotype him as a Nashville resident. I'm not a very politically correct guy, but isn't this kind of racist to assume that just because someone has a drawl and references country music that they would be from Nashville? I dunno, this century confuses me. Maybe it is a micro-aggression or a macro-aggression. Who knows.

While in Nashville Cap and the Falcon run into the then-villain Banshee, who was being tailed by The X-Men. Professor X, Cyclops, and Marvel Girl were also hot on the tail of the Secret Empire. In some convoluted, it-makes-sense-because-everyone-was-high-in-1974 kind of way, the Secret Empire were capturing mutants to use their brain energy to power some bizarre machine. This being the Cold War, there is of course some giant robot for our heroes to fight.

The heroes win the battle but lose the war. Captain America is so disheartened with how easily the public turned against him, wishing to believe the worst about him, that he decides to quit being Captain America. This sets the stage for the next book in this line, Nomad, which I have also now read and will be reviewing for you soon.

I have always enjoyed Englehart's writing, and Sal Buscema turns in his usual solid work. The Bronze Age of comics is often maligned by modern fans for it's overly wordy nature. I enjoy this full-bodied flavor of storytelling to the wimpy, watered down light taste of modern comics. Your mileage may vary.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone

Linework and Color restoration: Some issues look better than others, but overall this is a serviceable restoration job with the original color palette maintained for the most part.

Paper stock: Glossy coated stock. While not optimal for material with flat coloring, it isn't too bad when read in natural light. Marvel used paper like this until 2006.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- AVENGERS VS. X-MEN

AVENGERS VS. X-MEN (Marvel, First Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Avengers Vs. X-Men #0-12 and Point One #1 (cover dates January- December, 2012)

Writers: Jeph Loeb, Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron, Ed Brubaker, Jonathan Hickman, and Matt Fraction

Artists: Ed McGuinness, Dexter Vines, Frank Cho, John Romita, Jr., Scott Hanna, Oliver Copiel, Mark Morales, Adam Kubert, and John Dell

Colorists: Morry Hollowell, Jason Keith, Laura Martin, Larry Molinar, and Justin Ponsor

I picked this one up at my local library. I tend to vote with my wallet against these endless crossovers, but for free...why not. This is a crossover built on the back of the umpteen crossovers that came before it, from Messiah Complex to House Of M and everywhere in between. Bendis seems so impressed with himself that he needs to reference his own work to convince everyone else of how important his empty calorie writing really is. Bendis references his past works as much as Roy Thomas, although he lacks Thomas' love of the characters and actual knowledge of the history of the artform to back up his ego.

The basic gist of this is that Hope Summers, the “messiah” first mutant born since the Scarlet Witch altered reality and depowered all but 198 mutants at the end of House Of M, is destined to become the host for the Phoenix Force, the primal force responsible for the death of Marvel Girl (Jean Grey). Phoenix has been so misused and crapped up that it is best left to the history books, as most writers don't know what to do with it.

The Avengers determine that the Phoenix Force is a threat to Earth and go to the mutant island base Utopia in order to bring Hope into custody. Cyclops sees Hope as the messiah sent to save the mutant race, and a fight ensues. It becomes a battle royal, with Hope becoming a hot potato in reverse. Iron Man devises a way to splinter the Phoenix Force, figuring that would eliminate it. Instead, the force goes into five different X-Men. Lots of broken bones and back and forth fighting later, and the predictable ending happens.

I had all but given up on modern Marvel. My 9 year old son has since softened me on modern Marvel Comics. I can accept that these characters as they stand today are his definitive versions of them. This is his golden age of comics. I have learned to let go of a lot of things these past few months. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what this “old man's” opinion is. My day is done. The future of the medium belongs to him, although I think I'll hang around for quite a while to yell at you kids to get off of my lawn.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 2.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I find library copies to be fascinating studies of durability in the workmanship and materials of these collected editions.

Paper stock: Glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- THE X-MEN EPIC COLLECTION VOL. 1: CHILDREN OF THE ATOM

THE X-MEN EPIC COLLECTION VOL. 1: CHILDREN OF THE ATOM (Marvel, First Printing, 2014; Softcover)

Collects X-Men #1-23 (cover dates September, 1963- August, 1966)

Writers: Stan Lee and Roy Thomas

Artists: Penciling by Jack Kirby, Werner Roth, and Alex Toth, with Inking by Dick Ayers, Chic Stone, Paul Reinman, Vince Colletta, and Joe Sinnott

This is not only the third time that I have read these issues, but the third time that I have bought this material as well. Allow me to explain. I owned the first three hardcover Marvel Masterworks many moons ago but sold them when the hardcover Omnibus came out, as the Omnibus boasted vastly superior linework and color restoration. The Omnibus fell out of print, and when I saw how much it was going for I dumped it a year or so ago and picked this book up. As long as I have the material with the finest restoration I am fine. Plus, I honestly enjoy the paper stock in this Epic over the one found in the Omnibus.

One of the creepiest Stan Lee plotlines ever. Professor X's crush on the teenage Jean Grey (Marvel Girl). This was thankfully dropped. 

OCD upgradeitis/ eBay flipping exploits aside, I enjoyed this material more the third time through. The X-Men were always the red-headed stepchild of Marvel's Silver Age. Neither Stan Lee nor Jack Kirby seemed to give this series much thought out of the gate. Compare these issues to anything else that these two were doing during the same cover month and you will see what I mean.

Kirby's successor was Werner Roth. I disliked Werner Roth's artwork until a couple of years ago, when I read his 1950's Atlas output. I still feel like his style is not as energetic as Kirby's, nor as nuanced as Ditko's, because he draws superheroes that look like regular people. If you read this as a book about normal teenagers who happen to be mutant superheroes his artwork makes more sense. He is a solid artist that was ill-suited to Silver Age superhero comics.

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby lay down the entire foundation for the series here. Professor Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters. Cerebro, Professor X's mutant-detecting device. Magneto as well as the Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants. Future Avengers Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. The Blob. The Juggernaut. The Sentinels and the first wave of anti-mutant hysteria that Roy Thomas and later Chris Claremont would use to great dramatic effect. It's all here, even if it isn't spit-shined or ready for prime time yet. Like I said, neither Lee nor Kirby nor Thomas nor Roth made this series seem like it was their priority. It falls short of every other book that Marvel was publishing during this time. Reading this for the third time was the charm, though, as I finally got what made it special to a small group of fans back then. It was those fans who would become the creators who would go on to make this one of Marvel's most popular titles a decade or so later.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

If you enjoy Magneto in the movies, thank Jack Kirby. 

The OCD zone- When I returned to comic books in 2003 after a thirteen year hiatus I discovered the Essential line, which were 500 page black and white phone books. At the time I wished that they were in color. The Epic line is an answer to my prayers. Five hundred page chunks of classic comic books at a reasonable price.

Linework and Color restoration: The absolute best version of this material, using the same files found in the Omnibus and softcover Marvel Masterworks. Excellent linework and a color palette that is faithful to the original comics.

Paper stock: Matte coated stock of sufficient thickness and weight. This is the same stock found in the softcover Marvel Masterworks and Epic line books. This paper is my favorite paper used out of any collected editions from any company.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.