Not only is this the second posting this week, but it is the second posting in as many days.
Wow.
And, yes, I know, I am breaking my new declared convention about using hyphens instead of colons to separate the comics's titles from the reviews.
Avengers #1:
And....let the "Heroic Age" begin. Anybody who thinks that "Heroic Age" is not a "more or less the way it was" style reboot is an idiot. The only real change from the last 10 years that applies here is that James Barnes in wearing the Captain America suit, while Steve Rogers is working as a spymaster. And, that largely applies to "Secret Avengers" which I am skipping. Bendis spends very little of this issue setting up the team, not unreasonably assuming that most readers are familiar with the more or less all star cast. It is still too early to tell if Bendis has any real ideas, or this will just be capes and tights filler. (Well, more accurately, it is too early for me to tell, as I am still about 3 issues behind.) There is a back-up text piece, presented as an in-context history of the Avengers. Bendis splits the difference between the original comics and later retcons, doing more to confuse matters than anything else. Between the fact that this is probably an editorial mandate and how well Bendis carries this off, I am more than willing to forgive it. The text story continues over in "New Avengers", creating a cross over of sorts.
Grade: B
New Avengers #1:
Rather than just read through the "Avengers" issues I have, I am going to use the history of the Avengers back-up to determine reading order. This issue spends a bit more time on traditional "gathering the team", though the main arc more or less beings by the end of the first issue. Bendis all but admits, (though the characters), that at least a few members of the team have improbably packed schedules. But, he really does not seem to care. My gut feeling is that "New Avengers" will be more character driven while "Avengers" will be more plot driven. And, as noted above, the answer is probably apparent in comics I have not yet read. The text story seems to indicate that the "Avengers" have been around in one way or another for ~15 years or so, assuming that Rick Jones was not an early adopter of the internet, which means that one year of real time is about 3 or 4 months of comic time.
Grade: B
Batman 701 and 702:
Ah, Grant Morrison. If "Final Crisis" was not intended to be a parody of, (or piece of performance art about), bad things in the comics industry, the lost chapter of "Batman RIP" is just one more piece of wholly circumstancial evidence. There is no small amount of thematic consistency and expansion, (mostly focusing on the bullet), between this store and "Final Crisis". Issue 702 continues into an upcoming issue of "Batman and Robin" and "The Return of Bruce Wayne". I will probably pick up both, but will not lose much sleep if I miss them.
Grade: C Performance art or not, DC needs to stop milking the event to end all events.
Ironman (Demon in a Bottle):
Because I apparently have no shortage of money or time, I just picked this up at random a few weeks ago. This is the notable, (for good or ill), "Ironman is a drunkard" story from Michalinie's defining run on "Ironman" in the 80s. Even making allowances for the conventions of the time that "Demon in a Bottle" was originally published, there are some jaw clenchingly bad moments that are made worse by the the fact I know how good Michelinie eventually became and how much praise this story still gets. It does not sink to the same level as the O'Neil/Adams run on "Green Lanter/Green Arrow" in the 70s. But, reading the whole story as an adult has done nothing to make me revise my low opinion of it. This story is worth reading if one is a fan of Iron Man, (as I am), or simply likes to read key arcs from a defining run (as I also do). But, as a piece of character defining fiction, it leaves much to be desired and (in my admittedly minority view), damaged the title character.
Grade: C/D
NEFX 2010:
I am unsure what to call this actually. I cannot very well review a convention that has not happened yet. And, it is impossible to make any predictions when there is so little information to work with.
Ah, screw it. This is an update.
I have spent the last several weeks attemping, (without any real success), to contact the organizers of New England Fan Experience.
Aside from information about the time and venue, (more or less the same as last year, making alllowances push the days back), there is little if any information that I can find.
Here is the registration page:
http://www.nefanx.com/experience/pages.php?cID=3
It is....less than helpful. I volunteered for 4 panels last year, and am owed a free convention. I would be willing to volunteer this year as well. Hell, if I went to last year's show as an attendee, I would happily pay to go again. But, damn if there is any information on what is happening this year. As a point of contrast, in mid-summer of 2009, we knew who at least a few of the guests would be. As of today, (August 31, 2010), there is no information about this year's guests.
I am not ruling out going to this year's NEFX. But, I also admit that the decision to go, (even if I have to pay), will be influenced more by morbid curiosity and the fact that I live fairly close to the venue than anything else.
And, before anyone writes in to suggest it, I have emailed and called the organizers. Dammit, I hunted down a phone number. Hell, I even got an email from a friend who knows the organizer personally. And....not so much as burp in reply.
I might also just say the hell with NEFX and go to Wizard World. (The Hevert Brothers and Kenny will be there.)
Dom
-reposted this from MySpace.
