Monday, December 31, 2018
Another year draws to a close and I am just trying to get through the limbo week between Christmas and New Year’s day. It doesn’t help that The Comicshop in Vancouver will be shutting its doors after being in business 44 years. I was part of The Comicshop family for 10 years and kept in touch with my ‘Shop brothers Keith and Brent after moving back to Ottawa. I feel so lucky to have worked in comic book retailing for almost 40 years. Getting paid for doing something you love is a privilege that I will never take for granted.
It was a “skip week” for new comic books but a few books hit the racks last week. This is all he wrote folks.
Superior Spider-Man #1 – Christos Gage (writer) Mike Hawthorne (pencils) Wade von Grawbadger (inks) VC’s Clayton Cowles (letters). If you don’t know who Elliot Tolliver/the Superior Spider-Man is, maybe you’ll recognise the name Otto Octavius. I like this super villain turned super hero with the arrogance and high and mighty attitude intact. It’s the smidgen of humbleness and humility added that appeals to me. We start off with a classic Spider-Man bad guy and end with a cosmic foe landing in the city. I hope San Francisco’s protector has a long run.
X-Force #1 – Ed Brisson (writer) Dylan Burnett (art) Jesus Aburtov (colours) VC’s Cory Petit (letters). New number one, same old team, sort of. Domino leads Cannonball, Shatterstar and Warpath against Romanian anti-mutant terrorists to track down futuristic weapons being used to kill mutants in the 4-part “Sins of the Past”. They team up with Kid Cable and Deathlok after they’ve been framed for murder. Where’s Boom Boom you ask? You find out in “The Big Sleep In” by Ed Brisson (writer) Juanan Ramirez (art) Brian Reber (colours) and VC’s Cory Petit (letters). This comic book is rated Parental Advisory for some extreme violence which I found gratuitous. X-Force has a no kill policy but the bad guys don’t. The art in the main story isn’t very pretty but it’s serviceable. Too bad cover artist Pepe Larraz doesn’t do the interiors too. I liked the art in the back-up story a lot more. I’m going to keep reading because I like Domino and Deathlok.
Fantastic Four #5/LGY #650 – Does the wedding of Ben and Alicia go off without a hitch? The surprise appearance of a couple of classic super villains answers that question. But first, this $7.99 US comic book answered my question about the Fantastic Four’s new digs on Yancy Street in “4-minute Warning” by Dan Slott (writer) Aaron Kuder (art) Marte Gracia & Erick Arciniega (colours) & VC’s Joe Caramagna (letters). I knew Reed would expand the interior space. This is followed by “Change Partners” with art by Michael & Laura Allred where Sue and Ben reminisce about the past. Then it’s “Guys Night Out” drawn by Adam Hughes where shenanigans are involved during Ben’s bachelor party. Finally it’s off to Benson, Arizona where the nuptials take place. It’s all a big family affair and perfect for this iconic book.
