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comicsroundtable2017-07-12 10:20 am
callirhoe) wrote in comicsroundtable2017-07-12 10:20 am
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New Comic Book Day: July 12, 2017
This post is for discussion and reviews of new comics for the week of July 12! Feel free to start threads for anything you've just read, want to read, or are curious about.
Here there be spoilers. Read at your own risk.
Here there be spoilers. Read at your own risk.
PULL OF THE WEEK
X-Men: Blue #7
Okay, so as someone who's not engaged in the Secret Empire plotline or the Marvel universe of the last few years in general, this issue was 24 pages of "Wait, what???" I freaking hate crossovers, you guys, they mess up timing and storylines and ughhh. And this draggy pointless crossover is the goddamn worst. Make it stop.
I really liked the first bit where the kids swoop in and save those mutant rebels from "telepathic reconditioning"! Yeah, good old-fashioned X-Men adventuring! The meeting of the New Tian head honchos about those meddling kids was also intriguing; I'm wondering, based on old Beast's apparent sympathy for the young X-Men's idealistic point of view even if he claims to be pragmatic in his old age, if this might be the start of a redemption arc for him? It would actually be interesting to see old Beast redeemed just as young Beast starts to slide the other direction with magic and stuff. I'm also wondering just how much Xorn is Emma's puppet here, because some of the stuff he says about Xavier rings extremely un-Xorn-like to me and I wonder if she is setting him up to take the fall as part of her double-or-triple-cross plans. It's actually some interesting stuff and I appreciate that.
I did not know who "Briar Raleigh" was, but after googling she's a Magneto victim/ally/girlfriend from his solo series? Okayyyyy. There's something extremely sinister about her (not capital-S Sinister :P) and I am creeped out. Run away, kids! Go back to your wretched hive of scum and villainy, that was much more wholesome than this.
When the strike force (which is a super odd collection of characters, btw -- Toad, Havok, Wolfsbane, Mondo, Archangel, Firestar?? Whaaa?) attacked things got weird. There was a weird insistence on "secondary mutations", with Toad's fire tongue thing and Wolfsbane's weird bone-claw hands and being able to somehow duplicate her wolf form which seems like WAY more than a secondary mutation to me??? Where did they get these power upgrades? Also, I know Havok has been an evil!Emma henchman/accomplice/stooge in the recent past, but he seems extremely cold and evil here even given that. I am wondering if that "telepathic reconditioning" is in play with any of these characters or if the baffling personality changes are just the status quo for Secret Empire tie-ins. Firestar melting young Iceman down while he screams, and insisting "It's for your own good" was particularly... not right.
Also the last page with Emma macking on young Scott was all sorts of nope for me. "Scott and Emma against the world"? That is an incredibly creepy thing to say to the teenaged version of your dead lover, ew.
I read this one first to get it out of the way, and now I will go read something that will make me happier! :)
Re: X-Men: Blue #7
BLEEEEEEEEEEEEERGH
Re: X-Men: Blue #7
:P
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #22
First: that amazing, unusual watercolor cover art! Oh my god, it's gorgeous.
Second: the breakfast scene was adorable. I will take seven issues of Doreen and Nancy eating breakfast together in their PJs with gratuitous Doreen biceps because daaaayyum.
Third: everything about the Savage Land in this issue makes me laugh. I particularly loved Nancy being ignorant that it's a real thing and thinking that it was a Wikipedia hoax. LOL Nancy! I am wondering what happened to the people who live there? Kazar and Lorna's fake sister and Piotr's son Peter?? But all the Dinosaur Facts and the gift shop and ahhh.
Fourth: as a Doreen/Nancy shipper, not sure how I feel about Nancy engaging in an illicit romance with a Latverian computer programmer. On the one hand, okay, the rose petals and sniping are both top notch. On the other, I can't see it ending well! IDK! I look forward to finding out.
Fifth: OF COURSE everything is not what it seems and there is a mystery to be solved. I love this arc so much already and I can't wait for the next installment. <333
Jean Grey #4
This is a fill-in artist, Harvey Tolibao, and while he doesn't always match the dynamism and movement of Ibanez's art I still really enjoyed it. I adore the detail and how much stuff he packs into a page, which, yes, makes the issue feel a little cluttered, but the art here (and especially the coloring, GREAT WORK COLORING TEAM as usual, I really love those bright, shining colors!) manages to keep the focal points in each panel and page. This is a gorgeous series in general and the past couple issues have been particularly lovely.
Oh, and there was a story, too. I had a lot of fun with Teen Jean and Drunk Unworthy Thor, battling a band of orcs together while telling stories that impart life lessons about being a warrior! I expected more of a training montage, but Drunk Unworthy Thor, as he says, may not actually be the best teacher in the world. Haha. Still, telling drunken stories about past deeds of valor (and not-so-valor) is a very Thor way to share his expertise. I love Jean's frustration and impatience with his teaching style after she came all that way to seek his help (very Luke Skywalker tbh), and I especially love the end where she realizes what his point was. I love the sense that she's learning by example from all these different characters she's already encountered, taking what's helpful from each one, and it's only been four issues! Lots more to come! \o/
The neatest thing about this series is the way Jean is in so far over her head. Her powers are definitely not all there yet, her knowledge of the world isn't there, her confidence isn't there. I love how she's gradually building up her arsenal of tools to be ready if/when the Phoenix does come to get her. When she made that teke Giant Battle Hammer Of Doom during the battle, and then couldn't repeat it afterwards! So neat! She definitely has something to aim for and I can't wait to see her struggling toward her new goals as the series progresses. <3