Justice League of America Sanctuary Review

Posted on October 17, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for a classic (Pre 52 anyway) Justice League story. This isn’t an iconic event and it’s not even the climax to an arc. No, this is just an installment in the middle of the Justice League of America’s run back in the day so this is a perfect way to see how it holds up. Is it new reader friendly? Is it action packed? Luckily, I can say yes to both of those questions.

The title actually hints at the plot as many villains are on the run since they are being targeted by the Suicide Squad. You would think that the villains would have a clear edge, but the Squad has grown tougher over the years. They have a man who has the strength of a wild animal, The Sargent/General (DC’s version of Red Hulk) and several other members, but I’ll admit that none of them left a lasting impression. They have already gotten some of the big guns like the Joker, Lex Luthor, and Grodd so the final villains realize what they have to do…..they have to turn themselves in to the Justice League! This starts a pretty interesting plot as the League does tend to be at odds with the government on several occasions. Has Amanda Waller overstepped her boundaries?

The other half of the comic deals with what the heroes find when they try to track down the mission villains and we also get a long discussion with Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. They talk about the team and there are a few hidden insults as well as the three of them try to out think the other two members.

Cliffhanger wise, I can’t say that it was an amazing one, but it was what I would consider solid. The villains have plans of their own and this makes them look a lot better since you may have assumed the worst when we heard that they had all been beaten by the government. As Luthor basically states, this particular twist has been done a few times already though so it’s not shocking, but it does have the potential to give us a lot of great fights. The Martian Manhunter is also dealing with troubles of his own. (By the way, this graphic novel apparently leads into Final Crisis so I guess it was sort of related to an event after all!)

This collection deals with a lot of government intrigue and political talk as we have to decide whether it’s a good thing that the government is capturing all of the thugs or not. Naturally, I agreed with Batman that when nobody can see what the government is doing, they start to cross the law. As always, the government looks shady to the point where you can say that Waller and her group are just as evil as some of the villains. They just want to eliminate the villains for good. It would save hundreds if not thousands of lives, but resorting to destroying the villains is just as bad. Their prison is basically a death sentence after all.

Batman’s portrayal plays out as you would hope. He doesn’t get a lot of action, but he’s always a step ahead of Waller. Instead of making threats, he’s busy finding out where the prison is and alerting his teammates to Waller’s assault on the Watchtower. (You have to admit…it would have been Awesome if that had happened during the TV show. Her gang wouldn’t have stood a chance if Superman and the others had shown up) The Dark Knight doesn’t really get much better than this and he was a highlight of the collection!

Superman also looks pretty sharp. There seems to be an event that happened with Vixen a while back, but it evidently wasn’t Superman’s fault (Too much) although he should have been able to dodge. He has the speed and that must have been a character plot hole. Regardless, he’s still the heart of the team and he likes to take an optimistic look at what the team is doing..even if it’s shady. He’s probably the only hero who keeps up a polite pre tense with Amanda Waller.

From the big three, Wonder Woman definitely gets the smallest role or at least it felt that way. Technically, she does get a team up issue with the Flash that helps to even things out. You can even argue that technically she appears the most and it just feels like she didn’t appear as much because she didn’t get as many memorable scenes. She looked pretty good in the team up although I was mostly busy feeling sympathetic for the Flash. You can definitely tell that she’s one of the big leaguers.

The Flash only gets a brief appearance in his team up issue, but he seems like a nice guy. The Flash has easily been one of my favorite leaguers, but I’m usually talking about Barry Allen. I like Wally West, but I can’t say that I find him as likable as Barry…usually. He was definitely very good here and he may have been blowing the league off, but I’m sure that he has his reasons. His super speed always comes in handy and personality wise, he’s a pretty complete hero. (Like Mega Man) Hopefully we will see more of him in future issues.

Vixen gets a rather large role in this graphic novel due to a side plot that revolves around her. She used to harness the powers of animals through her amulet, but now she has been able to absorb the powers of heroes around her. This means that she can have the strength of Superman and she can even use Green Lantern’s energy blasts. It’s pretty surreal and it’s definitely something that is useful to have. Because of this, you could say that she’s one of the League’s power hitters although she only gets into a brief skirmish with one of the Suicide Squad’s members. It’s a pretty interesting plot and I’ll be sure to stay tuned.

Red Arrow doesn’t look very good though and his plot isn’t very interesting either. He is pretty desperate in his search for Cheshire and it doesn’t do his team any favors. The last thing they need is for him to start falling into traps. He usually has a pretty cool air about him, but he’s not very likable here. Hopefully he gets over that situation pretty soon.

We also can’t forget the surprise villain at the end. I guess I won’t spoil who it is, but he’s usually not a fighter. Luckily, he stumbled onto a piece of tech (Or something or magical origin) that allows him to give the Justice League a decent challenge. Even Superman can’t snap these blue threads, which was a little of a stretch to be honest. You can tell from his design that this villain isn’t going to be taken seriously very often, but his plan was decent and pretty well thought out. I’m not a fan and I don’t find him terribly interesting, but I’ll give him some props for the attempt. Think of it as a little filler before the real battles.

Amanda Waller makes for a pretty interesting villain as per usual. I don’t like her methods as a hero, but she does usually make for a fun antagonist. She gets to trade hidden insults with Batman and their mind games always tend to be pretty intense. I’m sure that we’ll see a lot more of her in the future, although I have to say that she really didn’t think through her plan that much here. Sending the villains away to the “prison” is good (for her) and all, but she should at least check to see what’s happening once and a while. In the DC universe, you never know what’s going to happen with a situation like that.

I’ll admit that I liked the Key’s confidence. With a power like his, it’s easy to see why he’s like that. I like to think that the villains still could have put up a decent fight against the Suicide Squad, but I guess it does pay off to play it safe sometimes. It gave the beginning an event feel as the group is on the run and we have to hope that the villains make it out…unless we just wait for the League to take them all down.

The art is pretty solid. It’s admittedly not as sleek as the New 52 comics, but that also allows the heroes to look a little more built as well. Superman is definitely pretty muscular here and I like how he takes charge. (Unlike the Avengers) Superman stands up to Waller’s cronies and he doesn’t give an inch. This is why he’s Superman! Whoops, I diverged from the art a bit. Needless to say, the art is pretty good.

One thing to note is that there is not a whole lot of action to be found here. There are a few skirmishes and a small battle with Queen Bee, but that’s about it. This collection is mostly plot based, but The Justice League of America manages to pull this off pretty well. More action is almost always better, but I can deal with a break from it if everything else is top notch. It’s also heavily implied that the next volume will have a lot more action since the plot is really getting close to the climax.

Overall, This is a fun Justice League comic. Unfortunately, we don’t really get to see the big 3 get a lot of action, but their meeting helps since they still get a decent amount of screen time. Superman gets to stand up to Waller and Batman quickly uncovers the enemy plans. It’s really everything that you could want in a Justice League comic and naturally, we have some fight scenes ready as well. It’s a title that I recommend to any comic fan, whether you are reading it for the action or the plot. Either way, it is just an interesting read from start to finish and you can tell that this is the calm before the storm.

Overall 8/10

Mega Man Volume 6 Breaking Point Review

Posted on October 17, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for the latest volume of Mega Man! The title could really have several meanings, but I’m aiming for either the very ending or the Break Man appearance This collection brings four stories and aside from one of them, they were all pretty solid. The story that I didn’t really care for had a pretty fun side plot though so it all evens out into a win!

In the first comic, the year has almost ended. Everyone had been hoping for a peaceful New Year’s Eve, but it turns out that a group of terrorists want to spoil the festivities. These guys mean business and Mega Man is put on the case along with Agent Stern. Will Stern be able to prove that robots can never be better than cops because of his instincts or will Mega Man’s robotic enhancements prove superior? That’s the question that must be asked as the race against time begins.

It was a pretty fun start although the stakes were low. It’s really a holiday comic with a little action to keep you ready for the future issues. It should be noted that the villains have a connection to the Agent’s partner and they may end up becoming a real threat in the future. Maybe….it’s hard to see them ever getting a huge role, but it’s always possible.

The second comic is the weak link of the bunch as Roll decides to play matchmaker for Splash Woman and Mega Man while they are at the Arctic. (Or Antarctica….one of those places!) Mega Man is a little too cool for that though, but it does result in some unnecessary tensions. The moral at the end basically proves that they are too young for that and they should just stay as friends anyway. The side plot is a lot more interesting as Agent Stern debates against Dr Light about whether or not robots are actually good for society. I found myself agreeing with Agent Stern a whole lot and basically shaking my head at everything Dr Light said. I really don’t like Dr Light and this reminded me why. He must be one of the worst characters in the Mega Man series! The story also showed us that Agent Stern may be strict, but he’s also a good guy deep down.

Things really start to heat up in the third comic as Break Man launches his big offensive against Mega Man. It was the Blue Bomber’s Birthday, but he won’t get to celebrate because of the chaos. Break Man easily manhandles Mega Man’s allies so the hero is forced to get serious. He still doesn’t like to fight, but he always puts his friends first. Break Man better be ready for the toughest brawl yet!

The 4th comic takes place immediately after the third….and yet it doesn’t. The big crossover with Sonic and Mega Man took place during this break, but they don’t remember what happened to it was more like a brief pause with the fight. Mega Man is about to continue when Roll makes the mistake of jumping onto the field. Break Man defeats her and the injury appears to be severe. Mega Man may have to do the breaking this time.

As stated earlier, I really don’t like Dr Light. He’s way too optimistic to the point where it seems like he’s just denying reality. He knows that robots have been corrupted in the past and they have even hurt civilians and damaged property. Knowing this, Dr Light still acts as if the robots are completely safe and he just wants them to basically run the world. There will be a robot for just about everything and if they ever went rogue, they would basically put number the humans. I think Dr Light really needs to step back and think about what he’s doing. Robots can help make the world more convenient, but the danger really outweighs the reward.

Mega Man is a pretty great hero. I’m glad that he easily avoided the romance trap and he handled the terrorist threat pretty efficiently. I would have liked him to take out Break Man with ease once he entered into his rage mode, but at least he didn’t joke about it as you would expect from other heroes. Mega Man is basically the perfect main character as he’s a good fighter and he doesn’t shy away from the arena, but he still tries his best to diplomatically end all hostilities. I’m sure that Roll’s situation is going to affect his mindset going into future battles, but he will likely do a good job of handling it.

This definitely wasn’t Roll’s best appearance though. First we had the matchmaking comic and then she interfered with Mega Man’s battle. It’s good to tell him the truth about Break Man, but she definitely should not have jumped in without being prepared for a fight. She should have disclosed the information to Mega Man after the fight was over. Let’s face it, Mega Man rarely does permanent damage to his opponents and I’m sure that Break Man would have been just fine. A few more minutes of deliberation would have saver her a lot of trouble here.

Some of the other Robot Masters like Cut Man and Ice Man appear, but their roles are minimal. I highly doubt that any of them will be integral to the plot ever again either. Their times have gone and passed at this point. Splash Woman got a bit of a role in the second comic, but she doesn’t get to fight. I’m not really a fan of any of the current Robot Masters that appeared in this volume aside from cameos. They also look very weak power wise as Break Man didn’t even have to try to defeat them.

Break Man is a decent villain, but I don’t think that his reason for vengeance on Mega Man was handled that well. The misunderstanding in his origin was already pretty drastic since he knew Dr Light pretty well and a quick visit would have cleared things up. Unfortunately, Break Man hasn’t forgotten that and now he just wants to wreck Mega Man’s day so that the hero will be sad. It’s not the greatest reason to join the fray and no matter how many hardcore lines he gets, it’s just petty in the end. I’m sure that he is going to become a full fledged hero soon and we already got a glimpse of that a few comics ago. By that point, I’ll likely become a fan once again, but he’s definitely fallen for now. At least his power was very accurately represented since he is close to Mega Man in overall ability, but he should ultimately be inferior. I’ll be very skeptical if he manages to beat Mega Man at some point….verrrrry skeptical.

As cool as the robot plots are, I mainly just enjoy them for Mega Man and the action. The humans may actually be more interesting on average since I really don’t like Dr Light, but I enjoy Agent Stern’s speeches. Whenever he debates Dr Light, it’s something to remember and I hope that he sticks around as a main character. Dr Wily only gets two brief appearances and nothing really happens with him except for his hasty retreat. I can’t say that he looked very good at all here, but I’m sure that things will look up for him at some point. Maybe he’ll have a fight with Agent Stern at some point.

The cliffhanger for the volume is pretty epic for several reasons though. We know that Mega Man is going to want to smash something once he is able to move so Break Man has to be careful about his next moves here. Of course, he’ll want to think fast since Ra Moon is making his move and the entire planet may be forfeit. With Mega Man out of the fight and Break Man decently fatigued…this could be the end for the heroes!

The art is pretty good as expected. The color scheme really works for the character designs and the energy blasts. That really pertains to the robots though since the humans don’t always look very sharp. I think they can maybe look a little stretched at some points, but overall it looks pretty good. The art definitely doesn’t hold the series back.

Overall, This Mega Man volume brings the series back to its core. The plot has returned and the stakes in the final comic have risen to the highest yet. I thought that the last volume or two was pretty slow, but that’s certainly not the case here. This is a must read for any Mega Man fan and it’s also a title that’s easy to just pick up and read at any time. Everything about the comic just makes it easy to get into and you’re sure to have a quality experience. Now, all we need is for Bass to appear and the series will have really reached its peak!

Overall 8/10

Transformers Beast Wars The Gathering Review

Posted on September 30, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for a Transformers review! This comic takes place during the Beast Wars saga, which is pretty interesting. The one downside is that I don’t know most of the characters and one comic isn’t enough to really learn all of their names to a great extent. Luckily, the wiki for Transformers is one of the best in the biz so they have my back. It’s a pretty fun comic and there’s a lot of action. It’s basically a collection that is made for popcorn fun!

The plot involves a new threat to the global peace that has enveloped the universe. His name is Magmatron and his power levels are pretty high. The Autobots and Decepticons have finally made peace and they are now known as Maximals and Predacons. They have a treaty and things are actually looking up for the heroes. The Predacons are too worried to actually launch an attack on the moment. Still, the Maximal leader suspects that Magmatron is up to something so he sends Razorbeast to be his spy on the inside. Razorbeast prevents Magmatron from turning every robot in the past into Predacons, but now the two groups are stuck in the past. They can watch the events of Beast Wars transpire, but those inhabitants cannot see or feel them unless these fighters wish it. The Predacons want to bring Megatron in and the Maximal group needs to stop them. Does Razorbeast really have what it takes to lead a group of newly formed heroes?

The premise of the story is interesting, but I don’t see how it could last a very long time. The villains and heroes can still mess around with the current Maximals and Predacons so all it would take is a single energy blast to rewrite time. Magmatron actually fights Megatron, which should affect the timeline a bit, even if nothing really major happened. That’s why working with time travel can be very risky. There are a lot of ways that you can definitely mess it up, but it also pays off in a big way when it works.

Magmatron is the main villain and he’s a pretty fun addition to the cast. This guy definitely looks very powerful and you get the feeling that he has the physical strength to back up his looks. He doesn’t get a lot of fights here, but he looks impressive for the most part. He takes on one of the legendary heroes and also puts up a good fight against Megatron. He definitely didn’t have the upper hand in that fight, but maybe he could have pulled out some kind of win. It would have been a pretty good fight. I hope he returns someday and I like to think that I’ll remember his design for a while. Maybe Transformers 5 will add him in for fun.

Razorbeast is basically the main character since it’s all up to him now. He’s the robot who quickly sabotages Magmatron’s plan and then scampers off to find the new Maximals. He’s not the strongest fighter and he’s more of a hit and run kind of guy. That’s still pretty handy in itself and I’m sure that the heroes were glad to have him. He has a pretty climatic fight towards the end and he definitely doesn’t back down from a fight. He’s all right and Razorbeast definitely beats the average side character, but I wouldn’t be adding him to my top 10 anytime soon. It’s pretty tough to get up there I suppose.

Grimlock is one of the few G1 characters to appear and it’s great to have him back in the ranks. He talks as tough as you may have expected and he puts up a pretty good fight. It’s a little disappointing to see him on the losing side, but it makes sense thanks to Grimlock’s fighting strategy. He launches into the brawl and that’s not a good idea against Magmatron. Magmatron’s body comes equipped with a dinosaur and a snake so it’s like fighting three opponents at once. That definitely gives close combat fighters a disadvantage. His role here is small, but I’m confident that he would appear more in the sequel. I hope they are able to squeeze in more G1 fighters.

Ravage is another fighter from the original series who is ready for some action. He also appeared in the TV show, which was pretty cool. He’s definitely powerful and he is a lot more experienced than most of the other villains. He doesn’t really feel like the real Ravage, but it has been a long time since the original series. As long as he’s still able to take out dozens of opponents in a short period of time, Ravage is good enough for me!

Megatron (The one from the show of course) looks pretty good since he takes the situation in stride. When Magmatron attacks, Megatron doesn’t miss a beat as he counters. He actually does very well against Magmatron and he seems to have the overwhelming advantage until he gets ganged up on by the other Predacons. This Megatron is the robot responsible for keeping up the Megatron name so you almost can’t help but root for him. It’s better that Megatron wins instead of Magmatron right? It also works as a nice guest star appearance for him as a Beast Wars TV show character.

There are other characters, but most of them are still waiting for their character development arcs to start. The shows come in handy for Transformers because it’s really hard to get to know them through comics. There are simply too many of them and you just end up losing track. Especially since the names are usually two words squeezed together. The names may not even make any sense until you see the character appear some more.

Luckily, this comic basically had everything that I could have wanted from Transformers. It’s a simple action story that has a lot of heart and it makes for a good read. I can’t say that I really had any negatives for it. Naturally, the comic didn’t exactly get a 10, but that just speaks to how difficult it is to get such a high rating. I think a 7 is fair for the collection because it didn’t make any mistakes, but it didn’t do anything so spectacular that I could give it anything higher. It’s pretty standard. That being said, it is still fairly difficult to make a comic without any real mistakes.

Longtime Transformer fans can probably appreciate a nice twist in the story. The Maximals finally have the overwhelming advantage in the present since the Dece-Predacons have basically given up. Of course, that becomes moot since the Maximals are on the run in the past, but it’s still pretty fun to see. It’s always the reverse in the other shows and movies as the Decepticons always outnumber the heroes.

We can’t forget that one of the big positives for the collection is the great artwork. It really shines in just about every page and especially for the character designs. Everyone looks like they’re ready to fight. It makes it tougher to discern who is an expendable character and who isn’t. These guys really look like brawlers and the fight scenes are pretty great as well.

Overall, This was a pretty fun comic for Beast Wars. The Gathering is an intriguing title and you’ll certainly get why it’s called that once you read the comic. Any Transformer fan should get a kick out of this title and I’d say the same thing about any action fan. Even if you don’t know the characters, you should still enjoy the fight scenes and the art. It’s a fairly engaging piece from start to finish and maybe it will make you a fan of the franchise if you aren’t already one. It’s time to step into the Beast Wars!

Overall 7/10

Transformers Regeneration Volume 2 Review

Posted on September 17, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for a classic Transformers review. I figured that it would be fitting to release it today since it’s the big 30th Anniversary for the series. Transformers Regeneration is really a homage to the original generation as they throw in a few modern twists. So far, the series has been pretty enjoyable and this is a pretty solid addition to the series. I would go as far as to say that this is really the definitive Transformers series right now since it really has everything. All of the main characters are here with tributes to various segments of the franchise. (I guess it’s still too early to say that it may surpass the original series, but it’s a very good modern adaption)

The plot mainly centers around Grimlock in this collection. He has been kidnapped by Scorponok to further the evil robot’s agenda. He agrees to release Grimlock if he helps him gain access to Cybertron to use a program that will switch the factions for all of the robots into the Decepticons. Grimlock’s part of the deal ensures that the other Dinobots will be healed and allowed to function normally again. Essentially, it’ll come down to sacrificing the planet in order to save 4-5 robots, but they are Grimlock’s friends so it’s a tough call. We also have two subplots. One of them follows Optimus Prime as he decides to stay on Earth to help with the rebuilding effort. His plot is mostly untouched, but it appears to be getting a bigger focus in the next volume.

We also have Rodimus Prime’s plot as he decides to find out what lurks in the depths of the planet. Actually, we have a third subplot in the form of Galvatron. Starscream leads him to an abandoned area where they notice that Shockwave has been sealed in there. Now, Galvatron has all that he needs in order to conquer Cybertron, but Starscream may have a hidden agenda. When doesn’t he have a hidden agenda right? So, a lot of things are definitely happening here, but the comic is mostly taking it one plot at a time.

As mentioned earlier, this was a pretty good way to continue the Regeneration series. It was definitely not quite as good as volume 1, but it was going to be extremely difficult to match that one. You have to realize that volume one was the climatic showdown between Megatron and Optimus Prime with only one of them walking away. This volume’s big fight is between Scorponok and Grimlock. It’s a great fight as well, but it would be impossible for that one to be quite as interesting. Prime and Megatron basically represent the Transformers franchise at this point and there fights are always incredible.

Luckily, this volume still holds its own. I really like the art in this series and it never lets me down. All of the character designs are very sleek and well drawn. They hold up for the action scenes and a lot of detail is added to the backgrounds. The art is easily some of the best in the biz and it may be second only to a few of the current DC comics in the market. (Superman Unbound, Justice League, etc. No Marvel comics come close right now I’m afraid) The art is just about perfect here and that always helps to give the comic and extra kick.

A true test of art is when the action scenes materialize and they all look very good. The action goes from page to page without error or delay and the actions are smoothly drawn. These are comic fights that you can get behind and the artist did a good job with Grimlock’s battle against Scorponok. We also get a lot of action in the comic that doesn’t necessarily have to be a one on one battle. Cybertron is under siege so there are a lot of explosions and beams that are flying around.

Grimlock definitely has it pretty tough in this volume. He gets kidnapped and then he is given a tough choice. Now, should Grimlock have decided to betray literally every Autobot on Cybertron to help the other Dinobots? Usually, I may be okay with that depending on the circumstances…maybe, but not really in this case. The Dinobots weren’t doing well, but Grimlock needs to trust that there is at least one Autobot doctor who can do what Scorponok can do. The Autobots medical knowledge is pretty embarrassing, but then it’s just time to search the solar system for a cure. It’s definitely out there somewhere and I’m confident that Grimlock could find it. Other than that, he’s a pretty good character and he makes sure to clean up after his mistakes. I’m not sure if I would want him to be the main character for too many comics, but once in a while is okay.

Scorponok is the main villain and it’s definitely a pretty big change of pace from Megatron and the others. His master plan is also pretty unique, but I’m sure that he would have been betrayed by one of the new Decepticons at some point anyway. He didn’t seem to really have complete control over them all and explosive switches at the ready can only help him so much. He likely trusted his power to keep him secure anyway, which isn’t a terrible plan. He is technically a lot stronger than most of the fighters who are still around. He makes for a pretty good villain and he is really trying to keep up his calm demeanor.

Soundwave only gets a quick scene where he is negotiating with another villain. Did I forget to mention this subplot? Well, Soundwave is gathering an army to destroy the Autobots once and for all! Galvatron and Starscream are in character for their cameos and likewise for Optimus Prime. Rodimus Prime has a brief journey into a secret room where he has to choose between the sword and the shield. It’s a classic symbolic choice and he also learns that his ancestors may have actually been pretty villainous as opposed to heroic. Rodimus makes the right call in sparing the inhabitants and defying the orders of the high above Transformer beings. Deciding to go on an adventure at such a bad time was a little tricky, but it’s technically not his fault. He still makes for a pretty good character, but he’s maybe a little one dimensional at the moment. We’ll see how he fares in the next volume. Most of the other characters don’t get a particularly large role so the main cast is rather small. Of course, a comic like Transformers always has a bunch of characters who are around. They just don’t get a huge role in this story.

There are two groups in this comic who respond to big acts with ungratefulness. I agreed with one of them and not with the other. The Dinobots were pretty bad at Grimlock for betraying Cybertron and attack him. I’m cool with that since it definitely looks very bad from their point of view. Should they have given him a chance to explain himself? Yes, I think they definitely could have been a little reasonable, but I can still understand why they are pretty upset. The humans…they’re a different story.

They’re mad because Earth has basically been wiped out and it’s really because the Autobots left Earth for so long like in the show. I never agreed with the Autobots’ decision to leave the planet to vulnerable and it was a big tactical error in judgment. Still, the Autobots did save them and now there are at least 50-500000 humans left on the Earth. If the Autobots had not shown up, the humans would have been completely decimated or converted into slaves. The humans respond by threatening the Autobots to leave peacefully or to be eradicated. Do the humans really think that they will be able to defeat the Decepticons without the heroes? Spike may have gotten some thunder abilities, but they would never be enough to take out any of the stronger fighters. He can beat the average Decepticon, but none of the named ones. The humans are upset, but they really need to think this through a little more.

The cliffhanger for the volume is pretty great! Let’s just say that Prime’s brief stint on Earth is likely over as he will have to join the fray once again. I’m hoping that his battle starts up quickly, but I wouldn’t mind if it ended up being the next arc. Prime’s already defeated one of the strongest Decepticons in the first volume so I’m ready for round 2!

If I had a slight negative, it would be the pacing of the volume. Usually I say that the pacing was too slow, but I would actually say that it’s too fast in this case. Cybertron is basically enslaved in the span of 2-3 pages and we are already jumped to the resistance movement. I would have liked to see the actual invasion a little more since that could have been really interesting. It’s not a big deal, but I think that part happened way too fast. Maybe everyone was just too hyped for the next arc.

Overall, Regeneration volume 2 continues to keep the series interesting and fun to read. It’s nice to see all of the old characters back and we have characters who are relevant to the original series and to Headmasters. I hope that Star Saber or God Ginrai appears at some point, but I know that they aren’t exactly the most popular characters in the shuffle so I can wait for a while. It could be a while until Regeneration Volume 3, but it’s safe to say that my expectations for it are pretty high. Now that the Grimlock plot is basically gone it’ll be interesting to see which one comes next. Galvatron’s, Soundwave’s, or Rodimus Prime’s. I’m personally hoping for Galvatron’s, but I guess we shall see. This is still The Transformers comic series to read if you want to become a fan of the franchise and it’s pretty new reader friendly since the designs are all pretty unique for the characters. You’ll have their names memorized in no time!

Overall 7/10

Inhumans The Origin of the Inhumans Review

Posted on September 9, 2014 by dreager1

The Inhumans have been getting a pretty big push over at Marvel so it’s a pretty good time to check out some of their first comics. It’s mostly Fantastic Four adventures where the Inhumans just happen to be present, but I’ll take it. I’ve always found the Inhumans to be rather unnecessary, but maybe this collection could change my mind…maybe! It was a pretty good collection, but it was just lacking something.

Naturally, there are a lot of plots within this collection, but most of them are stand alone stories. We see the Frightful Four arrive to challenge the Fantastic Four on more than one occasion. Medusa is one of their members, which leads to inevitable battles with the Inhumans. (Johnny’s friendship with Crystal also complicates matters) The final part of the collection is dedicated to mini adventures with the Inhumans during the Thor comics. Thor’s part is cut out unfortunately and the stakes are noticably lower, but they’re decently fun short stories.

It should be noted that the Fantastic Four comics are typically pretty solid. They don’t tend to be quite as interesting as the other big hitters like Spider-Man, the X Men, or the Avengers, but their adventures can be pretty fun. What limits them is their small roster of 4 and the fact that they typically don’t open their ranks up to the public. So, you know what to expect in each issue and the actual story will need to be interesting to help you not mind the lack of character development. Well, this collection gives three of the members some character development due to some intriguing circumstances that change them so it’s an interesting time for the Inhumans to appear.

Mr Fantastic’s personality has definitely changed a lot during his encounters with Invisible Woman. He is typically the intelligent leader that we’ve all come to know, but he can be very testy with her. “Not now woman” is the kind of line that you can expect to hear from him. I know that this used to be something that was generally accepted back in the day, but I’m certainly glad that people don’t talk like that nowadays! There are two main reasons as to why Reed and Sue’s relationship is so strained. Reed Richards doesn’t see her as a Fantastic Four member anymore as he can only look at her as his wife and Sue keeps trying too hard to be helpful while also pulling pranks on Reed to get him to notice her. This doesn’t go very well for either of them, which causes a lot of arguments.

Both of them are to blame depending on the circumstances. Sue pretended to be dead at one point to get back at Reed and she also continues to bring up their honey moon when Reed is more worried about Johnny’s troubles and what’s going to happen to them. It doesn’t really seem like the time to think about those things. On the other hand, Reed tends to blow up at just about anything that Sue says and he continues to treat her as an underling. His orders are basically absolute and they must be followed!

Despite this, Mr Fantastic and Invisible Woman are still pretty close throughout the collection. They have their differences, but they start to work through them in their final appearances in this collection. They finally manage to go on the honey moon and they are able to keep their personal lives separate from the superhero biz. Once things are back to normal, they’re back to being good characters.

Mr Fantastic is still one of my favorite Marvel characters and he gets a lot of action in this collection. “Now you see why they call me Mr Fantastic!” is one of his big lines as he charges into powerful foes. He never backs down and he’s a very sensible leader. I dare say that he’s better at leading a team than Captain America or Cyclops! Invisible Woman is also closer to mastering her abilities in this batch and they come in handy many times. She shields the Fantastic Four from large explosions, tidal waves, and many other things. Being able to make her teammates invisible is very handy for just about any mission and her force abilities can affect any foe. She may not have realized that she’s potentially the most dangerous member of the team yet, but she’s definitely getting there.

The Human Torch can be a little annoying in this batch. This is during the time where he became distracted by Crystal and she was the only person that he would talk about. He kept on trying to shatter the barrier during a mini arc that felt like it would drag on forever with his college roommate. Teleporting from place to place was a decent plan, but it didn’t really work out very well. Reed Richards kept commenting that the Human Torch was finally a man because of this, but I wouldn’t say that the situation made the Human Torch more manly at all. He still pitched in to help whenever the need arose, but the Thing still does most of the work. Most of the villains have some excuse for why the Human Torch can’t burn them and it can be pretty sad for the guy. Technically, the Human Torch is still a pretty dangerous fighter, but he just tends to be out of his league. This was not his best appearance to say the least. (And he insulted Lockjaw, which isn’t cool)

The Thing is definitely in character since he’s constantly insulting himself and reminding the team that he is a monster. He definitely doesn’t like how he looks, but it could be a whole lot worse. Power wise, this could be the Thing’s most impressive outing. He’s able to defeat Black Bolt in a fist fight and he was also holding his own against Gorgon and Dragon Man. Whenever a strong opponent appears, you can bet that the Thing will be the last one standing. His personality can be a little too mopey for me, but he also has his moments where he can be likable so it really depends. It’s always good to see how determined he is and the Thing never goes down quickly. I like different aspects of his character while I don’t care for others. At least I can say that he’s a complex character!

Black Bolt is the legendary leader of the Inhumans and you can be sure that he’ll get a huge role in the upcoming Inhumans film. I’m not really a fan of the character and I blame the recent Fantastic Four run where things got cosmic and epic. The overall arc was great and I really enjoyed the series, but it contained all of the worst traits from Black Bolt. He was very proud and full of himself the whole time and he acted more like a villain than a hero. “It’s because he’s King” but that’s not a good enough excuse. Kings have to make the tough calls sometimes, but other characters have handled their royalty better. (Yu-Gi-Oh for example)

Luckily, this is before that era and maybe it was just that series since Black Bolt looked good in Infinity. (From what I saw) Black Bolt is a pretty heroic leader in these comics. Of course, most leaders were pretty heroic back in these days, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that Black Bolt is pretty likable here. He risks life and limb to help the Inhumans escape their (basically anyway) prison. He’s also acknowledged as one of the stronger fighters and he’s likely the strongest fighter here aside from the Thing and maybe Gorgon. (He could take out the Thing and Gorgon if he yelled though) I definitely have no qualms with him here and maybe this is a good sign for the fearless leader.

The elemental master Crystal gets a large role and hers is probably the largest aside from Medusa. I can’t say that her role was too great though. She was a little more reasonable than the Human Torch, but she gets a little too caught up in the romance of it all. She should be trying to help her comrades find an island to stay at while the humans go away. Heading for Johnny does allow her to save Mr Fantastic and play a critical role in several other dangerous situations though, so there is always a good silver lining. Unfortunately, Crystal doesn’t really get to fight that much here, but we do see that she at least has the potential to be very powerful.

Medusa gets the largest role from all of the Inhumans (arguably I suppose), but it’s mainly because her first few appearances come before the Inhumans appear. Before the Inhumans ~~were invented~~ appeared, she was a member of the Frightful Four and she challenged the Fantastic Four with these allies. She always met with defeat, but the Frightful Four did give the Fantastic Four a run for their money on quite a few occasions. She eventually started to change into a nicer person and then the Inhumans arrived to claim her. By that point, any shred of toughness was basically gone since an arranged marriage was coming. Luckily, the Fantastic Four don’t let this kind of thing slide and that’s how they jumped in to fight the Inhumans. I think Medusa could have put up more of a fight when she was taken and I can’t really accept how she went from total villain to possible hero so quickly. As such, I can’t say that I’m a big fan of hers. She was better as a villain.

Maximus is the most popular Inhumans villain, but he doesn’t really have that much strength. He doesn’t even really have a super power, which is always a disadvantage in this kind of comic. He goes insane for most of the collection and his only cohesive thoughts aren’t that good. He’s as petty as a villain can be and I doubt that anyone will be rooting for him at any point. He wants to be King, but he doesn’t even know what to do when he is King. He had his chances, but he was doomed from the start. I will admit that it was a little annoying to see the Inhumans following him at the beginning of the collection. They must have thought that they had joined the Shiar for a second there! Trust me, you won’t miss Maximus when his appearances are over!

Gorgon is another Inhuman who had a decently large role in this volume and he was easily one of the better members. That’s not saying a whole lot and I definitely wouldn’t be putting him in any Top 10 Marvel character lists anytime soon, but his abilities are definitely impressive. With a single stomp he can take out a city and that probably makes him the second strongest Inhuman behind Black Bolt. His fight against the Thing was intense and it’s a shame that he didn’t really get to use his abilities after that comic. I suppose that the fights would be over a little too quickly if he got to fight.

Karnak knows advanced martial art skills and he can find the weak point in any object. Essentially, this means that the writers can have him break whatever he wants whenever he wants. He’s not very likable though and I dare say that he’s the worst member of the Inhumans. He’s seriously out of his league in every fight because he’s still a human physically. Having advanced martial arts is cool, but I’m sure that Ironfist or Spiderman could still outfight him.

Triton is the water member of the group and he’s not that powerful physically, but he’s good underwater. (Who would have guessed right?) He does have a key moment where he ends up saving Reed Richards, but he mostly spends the collection getting knocked out or just being a non factor in the fights. He’s a pretty bland character compared to the others, but I would still say that he is better than Karnak.

Blastaar is only around for a quick issue, but he is definitely a formidable opponent. He gets a whole lot of feats during his trip in the negative zone and even the Sandman is intimidated by him. The Sandman was decently good in this collection since he fears no one and he talks tough to the end, but I still prefer him in later issues. Paste Pot Pete and the Wizard are so forgettable that I don’t even need to mention them. (The Wizard will always be one of my least favorite FF villains. At least Paste Pot Pete is good in the Spiderman series.) Blastaar really gives the Fantastic Four a tough time and it’s similar to Darkseid in that the heroes seem to be outmatched. (When Superman isn’t around of course) It makes for a solid stand alone comic.

Dragon Man and Black Panther get small roles as they aid the Fantastic Four. Dragon Man is in over his head as he faces Gorgon, but his heart’s in the right place. He’s pretty heroic and he thinks that Crystal is in danger so he attacks. He definitely gets the short end of the stick here though and his ending is downright tragic. You really feel bad for the poor guy. The Black Panther gets to appear briefly for his daily page filled with hype and his wise words of wisdom. He attacks the Inhumans and he naturally overwhelms them until Black Bolt arrives. Black Panther implies that Black Bolt would give him a good fight, which made me smirk a little. I have nothing against Black Panther, but if I had to name a character that I felt was the most overhyped in Marvel…he may actually be at the top of the list! He’s still a good character though and he ends up helping out in the big battle.

Most of the villains in this collection were pretty good, but Psycho Man was definitely not one of them. I’ve always found him to be pretty dull and his arc in a recent Spiderman collection was one of the only downers to be found. He relies on his minions to fight and he really has no distinct characteristics. I really hope that he never appears in the cinematic universe and he should be fazed out. He’s just too weak to be a real threat to the Fantastic Four.

Ronan is one of the final villains to appear in this collection. I still can’t say that I find him to be too impressive in the comics, but that’s mostly because he wasn’t established as Thor level until the more modern days. That’s not to say that he doesn’t get his props here though. It’s safe to say that he could also take the Fantastic Four down depending on the circumstances and it’s heavily implied that he is much stronger than the Sentry 459. (Who gave the Fantastic Four a beating)

The Sentry 459 was a solid guardian and he actually got some character development. He technically feels no emotions, but he sure acted like he had them in his flashback with the Inhumans. He doesn’t bare any ill will towards the heroes, but they invaded his island so they have to pay the price. He’s pretty impressive looking and I wish that EMH had kept this design. (Although he still looked cool there) For a one shot villain, he makes for a nice opponent.

The artwork for the comics is pretty good. It’s what you would expect from the classic Marvel days and I always enjoyed this style. It has its advantages and while it may not look quite as sleek as some of the newer comics from the current days, you can’t underestimate the fact that it was a lot of work. No fancy computers back in those days so they drew the comics as best as they could. A good amount of work was put in and you can tell from the backgrounds and the emotions of the characters.

The fight scenes in this volume are pretty solid. They involve more strategy than the other teams because the Fantastic Four aren’t quite as powerful as the Avengers or the X Men. That being said, the Thing is always ready to slug it out and he has three really good fights against Gorgon, Black Bolt, and Dragon Man. He fights several others as well and he puts up an admirable fight against the Psycho Man. The rest of the team also get their share of action and Reed really tries to show just how powerful he can be by thinking of advanced tricks that he can perform with his stretching abilities. The action scenes definitely hold up well against the other comic book brawls that you may be used too.

There really aren’t any negatives in this collection. I guess you could say that the romance was a bit much and it could start to drag on, but it’s not as bad as it would have been if it was a modern comic. One thing that keeps this comic from getting a higher score is that there was no story that really blew me away. The fights were great and we got several story arcs, but there weren’t any moments that would make me take a step back or go high five my dog. The team fight between the Frightful Four and the Fantastic Four as well as Black Bolt vs Thing would be the highlights for the collection though. The short stories about the Inhumans were definitely a little lacking in excitement since nothing really happened in those. I would say that this could be a negative, but the mini comics are so short that they can’t really hurt and the collection Did have well over 300 pages in it so it can afford to have some moments that didn’t have action.

Overall, This was a solid collection of Marvel comics. It was really a Fantastic Four collection, but I suppose that the Inhuman mini comics as the end help it live up to the title. They don’t even appear for the first few comics, which was intriguing. I definitely recommend this to any Marvel fan who wants to be introduced to the Inhumans. If you’re a Fantastic Four fan, then you’ll definitely like this one as well. This bundle definitely has some fun issues and it’ll never get boring since the writing was really good back in those days. You won’t regret picking this title up and it takes a while to finish the volume since it’s so long. Length is always an important part of any media! This may be the last Fantastic Four adventure that I read for a while so I tried to make this one count!

Overall 7/10

Sonic Genesis Review

Posted on September 8, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for a Sonic arc that is a little more recent than the last pair of archives that I reviewed. Sonic Genesis takes us back to the good ole days where all we needed to see was Sonic defeat Eggman. No side plots, No Sonic clones, just good ole fashioned speed. It’s ironic since this is basically a tribute to the original Sonic comics that I am currently reading. As always, Sonic Genesis makes for a pretty fun read and Sonic is as intense as you would expect from the hero.

The arc starts off with a big battle between Sonic and the latest Silver Sonic robot while Sally tries to deactivate Eggman’s ultimate weapon. The battle is going well, but they are unprepared for Eggman’s plan. Let’s just say that Eggman basically takes the decisive victory and Sonic is thrown into a whole new world and his memories have been taken along with everyone else’s. Can Sonic defeat Eggman in this new timeline and what has changed with the time shift? The only way to find out is to take Eggman down once and for all.

The art is pretty solid as you would expect from the Sonic comics. The opening and ending are particularly good since it really has a modern feeling to it and the fight scenes are intense. The majority of the comic still looks great, but it’s a homage to the classic comics so it’s not quite as intense. It’s a lot brighter and more colorful though and witnessing the old designs is cool. I definitely have no complaints on this end.

The comics continue to show me why Eggman is a much better villain in this continuity than in the games. He had his moments in the video games, but they are all over and it could be a long time until he looks cool there. In the comics, he’s pretty serious when he wants to be and his victory in the beginning is easily one of his biggest ones. He actually murders one of the Freedom Fighters and let’s just say that the planet has seen better days after he’s done. This is basically the second time in a short period that he has brought Sonic onto the losing side and I’m sure that it won’t be the last occurrence. Eggman goes back to being a comic relief character in the new world so we may have to wait a bit until his next serious moment. (Or will we……)

Sonic is true to form in this arc. There’s not much more to say here than what I’ve said in past Sonic collections. He’s a great leader and he knows when it’s time to go in solo. He made the heroic choices when necessary and he was also careful to learn from his mistakes in the first issue. He did get a little distracted by romance at one part, but I’ll let it slide for now since nothing came of it. Sonic starts out the collection epicly and ends on a solid note as well since he managed to take Metal Sonic and Silver Sonic on at the same time. That’s a pretty impressive display if you ask me!

Sally gets a decently big role from the Freedom Fighters since she is the leader in the new world. (Although, she’s always the leader right?) I don’t know how the Freedom Fighters ever managed without Sonic, but she comes up with the plans and the others follow her. They figure that they will destroy Eggman’s facilities, which will take away his power and halt his plans. A good strategy to be sure, but it is time consuming so it’s good that Sonic split away from the group. Sally was all right here, but she really needs to keep her guard up. There were a few times where she would have been doomed if not for Sonic.

Antoine isn’t a good character in this collection. His accent is still hard to read, but the real problem is that he never actually helps out when the going gets tough. He’s just there to remind the heroes that he’s still around and he typically gets in the way. He has his big moment, but he’s still comic relief during it. Unlike Eggman, he never turns serious, which certainly doesn’t help his case.

He still does have more of a role than Boomer/Rotor and Tails though. Boomer is really just there to remind the Freedom Fighters that they would do better if Sonic was around and Tails provides air support for Sonic. Keeping them as assist characters isn’t bad though since every team typically has a member or two who doesn’t appear all that much. We know that Tails gets some comics to himself and maybe Boomer will someday as well.

Silver Sonic looks pretty impressive and he’s definitely not someone to be trifled with. He gives Sonic a very good fight in the first round and the second one barely counts since Sonic knows what he will do ahead of time. Metal Sonic is given more of an expendable role this time since Sonic is able to deal with him as an afterthought. That’s the main problem with appearing so much. Eventually, the villain will just start to get weaker and weaker until he isn’t even a threat anymore.

It’s always fun to see teams forming so it was nice to see how Sonic and Tails met the Freedom Fighters. Sonic definitely showed them up right away and we even got to see his first meeting with Eggman and Snively. Sonic’s origin stories actually aren’t told very often so I didn’t mind seeing these new experiences. If only Sonic had a rival back in those days to spar with. Shadow is referenced, but it wouldn’t be fitting to have him in a homage to the old comics.

This Sonic comic goes back to its roots since there is a lot more humor while maintaining the tense feel of the new comics. It’s a tough blend to achieve, but the collection does it well. The bright levels and backgrounds really contrast with the present setting of the beginning and ending. The ending is pretty great as it ends with a pretty big cliffhanger that shows a brand new villain to the franchise. This villain is pretty tough and I’ve read an issue with her in the past. Let’s just say that she may be able to give some of the Metal Sonics a run for their money! The next volume will likely not be quite as cheerful since things are getting pretty personal for Sonic. Of course, it could be a while before I read that graphic novel.

I can’t really say that there are any weaknesses in this volume. It’s a blast to read and you’ll be stuck to it until you are done. The comic has no negatives and that’s pretty rare although not really for this series. The ultimate factor in a comic is how much fun it is and Sonic is never lacking in that area. The collection never drags on either. Even if you don’t understand the references and homages to the olden days, you will still enjoy this collection for its solid story and witty dialogue.

Overall, Sonic Genesis is yet another solid installment to the Sonic franchise. I haven’t met a bad Sonic comic yet and I don’t really see that happening at this rate. His comics are just too interesting and the artwork is too good. The writing is always well done and the characters all have the potential to be likable. (With a few exceptions) Eggman finally gets the respect that he deserves in these issues and the stakes continue to get higher and higher. I highly recommend this title to all Sonic fans and to all people that like a nice blend of comedy and action.

Overall 7/10

Sonic The Hedgehog Archives Volume 2 Review

Posted on September 6, 2014 by dreager1

Sonic’s comics continue to prove that they can hold their own against the competition with this volume. Eggman is ready with some more plans, but the Freedom Fighters shall never yield! The series was still a comedy with some action at the time, but the superb writing and spot on art make it work. It’s hard to have a main character who’s as cool as Sonic nowadays.

There are quite a few stories in this collection. One story adapts the famous Christmas Carol story and Eggman is visited by Snively and multiple Sonics. Will they be able to show Eggman the error of his ways or will everything be for naught? We also have an adaption of Sonic Spinball and things are definitely a little rough for Sonic to say the least. He may have finally met his match since Eggman’s booby traps are everywhere and even Sonic’s speed will have a tough time countering them. One of the highlights was probably the issue where Sonic had to fight off a bunch of robots based off of famous comic book characters. Let’s just say that Spawn is one of them and Sonic has to exploit the weakness that all superheroes have. The fact that they have to pose for the camera! Other stories have the Olympics where the Freedom Fighters must stop Eggman and his cronies, A search for Uncle Chuck’s treasure, and more. There are definitely a lot of tales to be told despite the small size of the collection.

Surprisingly, there are many people who refuse to believe that Sonic is faster than light. That’s why I posted a picture that confirms that he is. This is one of the many reasons why the old Sonic comics were awesome. They try to nerf him nowadays by making him only around supersonic in normal battle speed, but that’s not the Sonic that I grew up with. He casually moves at hypersonic speeds in this volume and as shown, Sonic can also reach lightspeed at will with no prep time. Does he need to start building up speed first like Superman? No! Sonic is just That good!

Sonic is as likable as ever. He’s the best fighter that the team has and he knows it! Sonic really flaunts his speed in the collection and this never gets old. We get all kinds of crazy feats and the other Freedom Fighters take it in stride. Eggman will land the occasional shot in, but Sonic is always grinning so you can tell that he’s not worried. Why would he be? Sonic does manage to defeat Eggman and his cronies whenever he feels like it so he definitely has every right to be immensely confident. Yup, it’s definitely hard for any of the other characters to match Sonic’s brilliance.

Eggman is also pretty solid in this collection. He does especially well in the Christmas Carol since he actually mails a bomb to the Freedom Fighters. You gotta admit that this is actually a great plan and it’s not even that risky. I also find it pretty awesome to see Eggman trash his subordinates with such ease. At one point, he’s tossing one of his minions in the dumpster when a Swatbot comes in to watch. He’s goading Eggman on and loving every second of it…until he’s thrown in as well. See, Eggman really doesn’t mess around and that’s why he’s so intense!

The rest of the characters are around. I mean, Sally is your typical leader and the Walrus is still decently smart as well. Snively is already on the losing side of things and Tails doesn’t appear for very long. I will say that I like the Swatbots more and more as they continue to appear in the comics. It’s just hard to make minions that cool anymore. They make puns and they even insult the heroes when necessary. As a certain commenter once said “Your insults are not necessary.” They may not be, but the Swatbot likes to throw them in anyway!

These are definitely the Sonic comics that I remember. I have to say that the Sonic comics from back in the day are easily better than the competition from DC and Marvel. The comics even address this as Sonic beats up all of your favorite mascots from the good ole days. I will admit that the old Superman comics do give this title some competition, but Sonic edges out. It’s consistently great! We’re still in the older days of the series and it’ll be fun to see how the series develops. One thing’s for sure, the Sonic comic series was awesome as a comedy and it’s awesome as a plot based series in the current issues. Either the author is that good or Sonic is a franchise that will always turn out okay. (Even Sonic Boom has its charm)

Overall, There really isn’t anything wrong with this Sonic collection. All of the comics are a lot of fun and it doesn’t fall into any holes. The art is great and the writing is just as solid. The adventures are all pretty amusing and the many references add extra replay value to the issues. We can’t forget the fact that this comic finally ends the debate of whether Sonic is lightspeed in his base form or not. It’s something that I’ve always figured and it’s good to have some confirmation of this. I highly recommend this collection and it’s a very light read. It won’t take you too long to breeze through it, but you’ll be reminded of why you liked the Sonic franchise in the first place. Sonic definitely has the most successful game based comic series of them all and I’m looking forward to reading the next volume! (Hopefully this title convinced you to buy Sonic Spinball!)

Overall 7/10

Marvel Epic Collection The Amazing Spider Man Cosmic Adventures Review

Posted on August 16, 2014 by dreager1

The Amazing Spider Man is considered by many to be one of the greatest comic book series to ever hit the shelves. I have always thought that it was pretty good as well. The sheer size of the series as well as the large continuity contained within is one of the reasons why it was so great. This collection deals with some of the later issues and it’s still as good as you may have expected. I can safely say that this was the best comic collection that I have read in a while.

One of the reasons why it is so good is the plot. The whole Cosmic Spider Man arc is pretty great. I was on the edge of my seat for each issue which is why I read the whole saga in one shot as well as a few of the after comics. Each issue had a great cliffhanger and all of the subplots were interesting as well. The Acts of Vengeance is a pretty great supervillain group and it makes me wonder how they fared in the other comic books at the time. We’ve got an angered Black Cat out to wreck Spider Man’s life and an obsessed stalker who is messing with Mary Jane. These are two of the subplots that are in the collection and they have yet to be resolved. Another interesting plot is the one with Puma and Jameson. Puma took over the newspaper to help Spiderman’s reputation, but the hero doesn’t want that since it’s really affecting some of his friends. Meanwhile, Jameson is trying to start his own newspaper to defeat Puma!

The final part of the collection is definitely not as interesting since it’s from the spinoff series. We have an adventure with Ant Man and a few others about Spider Man while he’s still shrunk down to size. It definitely doesn’t grab your attention the same way that the others did. Why would I want to see a few comics where Spider Man has to deal with being small? I can’t even say that there is a lot of potential to be found there. Aside from those two big arcs, there are also a few stand alone adventures. Spiderman has a two part team up with the Punisher and he has a two issue battle against Venom as well. Let’s take a look at some of the characters involved in this collection.

Spiderman (Spelling his name like this is so much better) is the main lead of course and he looks pretty good. This isn’t the modern Spiderman that you see in the new comics. This is from his classic days where he was a tough fighter. He isn’t used for comic relief all of the time and Spiderman is actually taken seriously. As Peter Parker he can definitely be a little too interested in the romance segment though. At least he’s only interested in Mary Jane compared to how he goes after everyone in the newer comics.

The important thing to remember is that Spiderman’s a pretty top tier opponent here. His cosmic abilities allow him to punch guys like the Hulk into space. That’s some pretty serious power at his beck and call. It’s part of why I liked the saga. Spiderman usually has to rely on his spider sense and wits to win fights, but now he can just go for some good ole strength tactics. Watching Spiderman crush everyone in his path is a nice change of pace and he’s an endearing main character. He just tends to overthink everything.

Mary Jane has gotten used to the fact that Peter is not usually around because of his heroic duties. She does a good job of just going with the flow and her acting career is back on track. There is one comic where she’s very out of character. She’s a little too dramatic and panicky after Spiderman is shrunk. Surely that is not such a shock where she should be talking about heart attacks and such. Naturally, this was in the spinoff so it’s to be expected. Overall, Mary Jane is a pretty decent main heroine. It would be good if she could fight a little more though since several threats are targeted at her. Spiderman better stay close since everything seems to be heading towards a climax.

Venom’s role isn’t very large, but he gets his own two part story. He breaks out of jail rather easily and resumes his attack on Spiderman. Knowing Peter’s secret identity is definitely a big advantage for Venom. Luckily for Peter, Venom has a strict set of morals that he abides by. One of them is the fact that he refuses to harm any innocents. So, Mary Jane and Aunt May are safe from him. He really just wants to destroy Spiderman. His big battle gets interrupted unfortunately, but he easily crushed Spiderman in their first encounter. His return was brief, but it was good to see him return.

Dr Doom is actually one of the main villains of the Cosmic Spiderman arc. He’s the one who goads on a lot of the other villains and he makes a lot of preparations behind the scenes. He’s the only one of the big villains who has his own plans at the ready and he’s pretty rebellious. It’s one of the reasons why Dr Doom is one of the more intense villains. His plot likely resumes in the Fantastic Four series, but it was good to see him match wits with Spiderman.

Magneto’s battle against Spiderman is pretty fun. I definitely did not expect the Master of Magnetism to challenge Spiderman. Magneto is always confident and that’s one of the reasons why he is a good villain. He decides to just relax at the park until Spiderman appears. He’s also a more sympathetic villain than the others since he always wants to help the mutants. Recruiting Spiderman to the cause definitely would have tipped the scales a lot. He was a fun guest star to have.

Graviton gets a minor role in this collection, but it’s a pretty good one. He arrives just before the Cosmic Spiderman arc and he also gets to appear during it. He crushes Spiderman during their first battle, which is very accurate. He doesn’t do quite so well against Cosmic Spiderman, but who could really hope to stop such a powerful threat? It’s just impressive that he was able to go up against him at all. Graviton even admits that Spiderman’s power surpassed that of Galactus’ at that point. Graviton is definitely a cool villain and his design is pretty solid as well. It was good to see him make an appearance!

Paste Pot Pete is not a very notable villain, but he was the final guy to fight Spiderman before the hero’s big transformation. He humiliated him in front of a large crowd and even Spiderman was surprised at how easily he was taken out. This is Paste Pot Pete after all! It’s pretty inexcusable that Spiderman would lose to him at all. It never should have happened, but I guess even heroes have their off days. Spiderman got to return the favor after his big power up. Paste Pot Pete also overrates himself as he actually thought that he could defeat Sandman!

Flash Thompson’s character arc continues in this collection. He really wants to be a better person now and to use his strength for good. He has turned his attention to boxing and he seems to be decently good. It’s hard to tell whether he really is very good or if his friends are just trying to cheer him up. Unfortunately, he has fallen into the trap of romance and that is hurting his character. It’s definitely good that he’s not a bully anymore and Flash has definitely come a long way. His character development has survived to this day as he’s a full fledged hero in the modern comics. It’s good to see the beginning of his journey and hopefully he can realize that Black Cat is just using him.

Black Cat barely appears in this collection, but her plot is just getting started. Evidently, she wants revenge on Spider Man for some reason and she wants to get back at him by messing with Mary Jane and Flash Thompson. Unfortunately, it’s quite easy for her to do this thanks to her super strength and the fact that Flash is oblivious to her true identity. Naturally, I can’t say that I cared for her in this comic. I can’t really think of a time where I actually did like Black Cat anyway! She’s definitely not one of the better Spiderman villains/sometimes allies.

Aunt May is always around for support and that doesn’t change here. She looks after Nathan for most of the collection and she has to stay strong for Peter. She does get a bonus story where she helps the Punisher stop a bunch of terrorists. That was definitely impressive for her, but her narration could have been a little better. She’s still a good character though and Aunt May’s personality is pretty consistent through the years.

Antman only appears for a quick issue and it isn’t very flattering. Well, he appeared in a mini comic, but he looked even worse there. He ignored the call of the ants and he was forced into a battle with a pretty large creature. He’s basically beaten up and they bring him back to his bed. Antman actually figures that the whole thing was a dream until he notices the holes in his clothes. In the main story, he basically just deserts Spiderman when the hero shrinks down to size. You would hope that he would take a little responsibility for that mess. Antman still needs to work on his heroics!

Sandman gets his own mini comic where he is forced to choose between his ex friends and the law. He makes the right choice and it’s good to see how Sandman has turned over a new leaf. Hanging out with the Thing at the ballpark is probably a lot of fun and it’s one of the perks of being a hero. With his abilities, the Sandman can definitely be a powerful force for good. Unfortunately, it will likely take a while for the rest of the world to get on board and some new writers will likely turn him back into a villain soon. It’s the unfortunate, but inevitable fate for most big villains who turn good.

Jameson is pretty good as expected. It’s definitely been rough for him since his newspaper was forcibly taken. He’s handled it pretty well though and he hasn’t used any underhanded methods to try and regain control of it. Far from it! He’s just going to build another newspaper and he even welcomed Peter Parker into the crew. Jameson also invests in a good lawyer to help his friend out of a tough court case. It’ll still be tough, but Jameson’s done his part. He’s definitely one of the better Spiderman characters.

Styx and Stone team up to take on Spiderman in one adventure. Styx is definitely powerful since one touch can destroy the average opponent. Stone is less impressive since he’s basically your average joe. Together, they definitely represent a decent threat to the wallcrawler. I just can’t get over the fact that they’re really generic villains. At least Venom was in the issue so it was still good. It’s a little hard to buy just how well they did though. Venom is usually more careful than how he was portrayed in the issue.

The Punisher’s role is what you would expect from him. He takes out a few more drug dealers and Spiderman crosses paths with him for the biggest mission of them all. Finding out who is supplying all of the drugs was tricky, but now they have their source. At the very least, Punisher only turns his guns towards those who are evil. He does his best not to seriously injure any of the army guards or kids that he comes into contact with. You definitely can’t call him a hero as he strolls in and destroys everyone, but at least he has his morals. He’s always prepared as well and having a bullet proof vest is always a good thing.

This collection took place during the phase where the Hulk only came out at night and Bruce had control during the day. Bruce Banner looks really bad in this comic though since he has no clue on what is going on. The Hulk is only interested in money and he’s hired to take Spiderman down for the count. Little did he know that Spiderman was currently out of his league thanks to his cosmic abilities. I definitely didn’t like the Hulk in this appearance and he doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would be very interested in money anyway. I guess I overestimated him.

Aside from the main comics, we also got a few backup stories. The Sandman’s story was pretty good and I liked the Godzilla one, but the others were pretty lack luster. The one where a baby became Captain Universe was so interesting because of the Godzilla references. One of the characters mentions the infamous Godzilla meets The Brady Bunch TV special and the baby creates homages of King Kong and Godzilla to deal with the enemy monsters. It’s always good to see Godzilla get involved! The Sandman’s comic also had some decent action and it showed how much he has changed since the old days. He definitely made the right call. The other stories were pretty lackluster though. A superhero who rides a flying skateboard? I don’t think that this will hook the readers…

The art is pretty good as expected. There were a few issues from a spinoff series that didn’t look as good. Web of Spider Man I believe. The art really took a dip in those and everyone looked very out of proportion. The mini stories at the end of those also suffered from these issues, but they’re just mini stories. The main series continues to look pretty solid and that’s what counts.

As you can see, the collection had a bunch of major players involved. Who would have thought that guys like Magneto, Dr Doom, and the Red Skull would be in a Spiderman collection? It was definitely cool to see them test their might against Spiderman’s. (Although Magneto is the only one who directly confronted him) This Spiderman collection was very compelling and it really pushes all of the right buttons. I now have a greater understanding of why Spiderman became such a legend. His comics are a step ahead of most other solo series.

The one negative in this comic would probably be the romance. It has quite a lot of it between Peter Parker and Mary Jane. The rest of the characters are pretty safe, but those two get too many scenes together. It’s fine when they’re hosting party and hanging out with their friends, but we don’t really need the romance. In a Spiderman comic, you really just want to see the battles and all of the interesting storylines. Romance is unnecessary. I’m wondering if Mary Jane’s acting career is going to affect their relationship soon. This could get dicey and it’s not a plot point that I’d really be interested in reading.

Overall, This was a great comic collection! It was close to getting a 9 after the Cosmic saga, but it had to get bumped down a little from the Antman saga. It’s still a riveting read and I would recommend it to any comic book fan. You’re definitely missing out if you have not checked out this collection. This is the portrayal of Spiderman that you need to see to prove to yourself that he actually was a pretty great character. He’s also a lot more powerful than the new writers give him credit for. Either way, who can pass up on a collection where Magneto gets to fight Spiderman!? There’s also the fact that Venom makes his big return here. With over 500 pages of comics to read, you definitely get your money’s worth here. This collection is definitely full of victory!

Overall 8/10

Voltron Force Volume 2 Tournament of Lions Review

Posted on August 14, 2014 by dreager1

It’s been quite a while since I read a Voltron Force comic. Voltron has always seemed like a fun franchise, but let’s face it..it will never be able to reach the levels of popularity that Transformers and Gundam have achieved. I would say that it is almost impossible at this point. Still, the comic was pretty fun and it seems like a decent action series. Maybe the comics will one day be as long as the Sonic series. It will be tough, but this is a pretty strong second volume as we get a lot of action.

The Voltron crew fall into a trap when they listen to a fake distress signal. After fighting a lot of enemy spaceships, they land on a planet where the inhabitants deem the main characters to be unworthy of inheireting the Voltron. So, they shall have a tournament to decide who should pilot it. Keith objects, but he can’t really do anything about it. The games are on now and Daniel will have to prove that he has what it takes. Vince and Larmina are there to help too of course…

The series already has its identity, which is good. I will admit that it’s ultra generic as everyone fits nicely into their “character shells.” Most of their lines are pretty predictable and you almost know what they will say before they even say it. Luckily, this means that we don’t need to lose any time on explanations and backstory as we skip all of that. The whole volume is basically just the tournament as the heroes fight to survive. Our cast is pretty good for the most part.

Keith serves as the leader to the current Voltron force. He always knows what to do and he’s pretty tactical. He keeps up a tough front, but he actually believes in the new main characters and their will to succeed. He actually looks pretty bad in this volume when it comes to hand to hand fighting. He almost got to redeem himself, but someone else stole the glory. That being said, I wish he got to be the main character instead of Daniel. Lance is basically Keith’s rival. At least, I assume so from the one scene where they compete. Lance seems thoroughly outmatched, but he is a decent rival. He reminds me of a main character from the Transformers Rescue Bots TV show. (Kade) Maybe he’ll get some kind of power up soon.

The other members of the original team don’t really get a huge role. Hunk and Pidge are basically nonexistent as they always stay behind to tend to Voltron’s injuries. One of them is the timid tech guy and the other one is the guy who’s tough, but actually likes tech as well. They make a good team, but they aren’t terribly interesting. Allura is the tough princess who likes to show up the main characters. She takes out a whole squadron of opponents in an instant when Keith and Lance were debating about how to take them out. She’s definitely the muscle of the group and the best fighter as well. Her arrows are pretty similar to Uryu’s in design. Hopefully she gets some more action scenes like that!

Daniel is the main character and he’s one of the three kids who shall inherit the Voltron. I can’t say that he’s a great character, but he does talk pretty tough the whole itme. That can be a little frustrating too though since he continues to fire off the insults when he’s about to die. On the verge of death, I expect the main character to say something a little more heartwarming than a random insult. He lacks the skills needed to be the next leader so Daniel’s going to have to try a lot. Still, his endless enthusiasm will definitely make him a likable character. At the very least, Daniel never backs down from a fight.

Vince is the smart member of the group and he’s the one character from the trio who I really didn’t care for. It’s not entirely his fault I suppose, but he just looks so bad. It’s the price that comes with being the reasonable person in a group full of fighters who are eager to head to the next challenge. He doesn’t have the ability to make a weapon so he can just control technology. That should be almost as good though since he can just make a sword made out of tech. He gets a lot of props in this comic though so show that tech powers can actually be pretty cool someitmes. I can’t say that I’ve warmed up to him yet, but I’m sure that he’ll become better over time.

Larmina hasn’t really had a whole lot of character development yet, but she’s a pretty good fighter. She likely inherited this from her predecessor. She wields an energy sword and she was the first to realize that the heroes would have to fight to prove their superiority. While the other two members were sleeping, Larmina was already setting up plans. She’s definitely the muscle of the group and she holds her own for a while in the fight. She definitely seems like she’ll end up being another solid character.

The art is pretty good. It’s not going to be winning any awards anytime soon, but it works for the action scenes. The comic is pretty easy to read and it’s fairly colorful. Tie ins may not look so great in video games, but their artwork is usually pretty good in comics. Maybe it’s just easier to make things look good in a comic than in a video game.

You should be warned that this comic is very short. The actual plot takes a few pages to start and it’s over before you know it. It can really be read in a few minutes so breezing through it is a real possibility. It’s just how it goes I suppose, but it could be part of why the comic is so fun. They just dive straight into the action and there are no boring scenes to be found.

Voltron doesn’t look very good in this volume. He gets a lot of hype as the characters explain that he’s the strongest hero in the galaxy. Unfortunately, that’s still not enough to go up against an energy blast. I’m sure that the blast was tough, but that was a little humiliating. If only Voltron was just a little tougher right? Maybe he’ll get an upgrade in the next volume.

Overall, This is a pretty solid comic. You should definitely enjoy it if you like a good action scene or if you’re a fan of robots. Be warned that Voltron doesn’t appear a whole lot. This volume is more about the humans as they participate in the tournament. Their physical abilities should definitely not be underestimated. I’ll be looking forward to the next Voltron force since I can always count on it to deliver the action that I need!

Overall 7/10

Sonic The Hedgehog Archives Volume 1 Review

Posted on August 13, 2014 by dreager1

I’ve read a lot of the newer Sonic comics, but I’ll admit that I have not really experienced most of the classic ones. The first volume of the archives is a good start since it brings some of the first Sonic comics that were ever written! It’s an interesting change of pace from the modern issues and you can definitely tell that things have changed. Luckily, these issues still hold up pretty well.

Giving you a plot summary can be a little tricky though. It’s not as if these stories really had a whole lot of continuity back in the day and they’re all self contained stories. They are also really short stories. One of them features a battle between Super Sonic and the Universalmander, which was pretty cool. I can’t say that I expected to see any of them so early. Another story has Eggman hire a pretty powerful monkey with explosive coconuts to take out Sonic and the Freedom Fighters once and for all.

Sonic is as cool as you would expect. He’s always got a good pun at the ready and he doesn’t mind breaking the fourth wall when necessary. He’s ultimately confident and his personality actually hasn’t changed all that much when compared to the newest issues. He doesn’t have to worry about a lot of different dramas and side quests so he’s totally devoted to showing off and using his super speed to mess with Eggman. This is how you write a main character!

The Universalmander is probably the strongest enemy that Sonic has ever faced up to now. Sonic still defeated him with incredible ease as he just jumped right through the poor guy, but we can’t forget that Sonic did need to use the power of the Chaos Emeralds first. I don’t believe that anyone will give Sonic a real run for his money for a while, so this was good enough for this fighter. You gotta love the name though!

One of the enemies had explosive coconuts, but there isn’t much to say about him. I remember him from the games and even Sonic DX has a variation of this opponent. Throwing things is cool…but not very effective against an opponent as fast as Sonic. The other Freedom Fighters don’t get much of a role yet. Antoine is already starting to feel sorry for himself because the other never ask for his advice. (Little does he know that they always try, but he’s too lost in his thoughts to hear them) Sally is already the tactician of the group, but the plans are all fairly basic since Sonic likes to be direct. She’s not really a fighter yet. Tails is still in the kid phase. He doesn’t really seem to understand what’s happening and everything is a game to him. He gets the heroes into a pretty dicey spot by mistake. (And he gets mad at Sonic in 100 issues for treating him like a child!) I’m definitely glad that Sega severely changed his design later on since the brown just didn’t work for him.

Eggman is the main villain of course and he’s pretty solid. It was cool to see him literally feed his minions to the scrapper. This guy isn’t playing around. Naturally, Eggman mostly takes the brunt of every joke, but he takes them in stride. His minions always comment on his round shape, but he ignored them and just goes about his business. Of course, he did destroy some of his minions so I guess the insults may play a part in that. I’m don’t care for any of Eggman’s minions at this point so it’s good to see Eggman thinning out the ranks. He does get a good shot on Sonic when he throws him around through the pinball machine. Even then, Sonic is too busy making puns to really be in any danger, but at least the mad doctor got his kicks. This was definitely how his comic relief era started and I’m happy to say that it works better for him than his rivals in Wily and Bowser.

It’s pretty cool to see how the comics have changed. This same series is still going on today as the series nears its 300th issue. (In about 30 issues) These were definitely simpler days for the heroes and we don’t have any extra hedgehogs. I’m sure that Metal Sonic and the others join the crew soon, but the issues are still fun. There really isn’t a lot of action in it, but this one is really more of a fun comedy. Breaking the fourth wall becomes pretty regular after a while and the characters continue to trade insults and puns.

The art is a little rough around the edges, but it’s still pretty good. The attention to the details can really make some scenes have an extra punch and the action scenes that we do get are pretty great. Just one look at Sonic’s speed is enough to make you feel a little bad for the villains. They really don’t stand a chance at all.

Overall, This is a solid start to the Sonic comics. I doubt that the writers could have ever dreamed that it would get so popular. Archie has done a great job with Sonic throughout the years. This collection may not be quite as intriguing as the new Sonic Universe and Saga collections, but every good franchise must start from somewhere. The issues definitely hold up from the good ole days. They are more comedy based so that could be a turn off for some, but the humor is very well done. The collection is also very short so you are able to go through it rather quickly. I imagine that you can currently buy it for a very low price and it’s worth it. You can proudly say that you own the very first Sonic comic that started the epic comic franchise that we see today. It’ll be fun to see if the change to the modern times is very sudden or so subtle that I won’t even notice. We shall see!

Overall 7/10

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Category Archives: Comic Reviews

Justice League of America Sanctuary Review

Mega Man Volume 6 Breaking Point Review

Transformers Beast Wars The Gathering Review

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Inhumans The Origin of the Inhumans Review

Sonic Genesis Review

Sonic The Hedgehog Archives Volume 2 Review

Marvel Epic Collection The Amazing Spider Man Cosmic Adventures Review

Voltron Force Volume 2 Tournament of Lions Review

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