WHAT IS GOOD, EVERYBODY?
Welcome to this week’s review roundup!
Every week I tackle a stack of books and post small and large reviews all over the web. But you can always find each and every one right here. You can even subscribe if you want them delivered!
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What If…? Aliens #1
The brilliance of What If? Aliens #1 is that it doesn’t contradict anything that happened in the movies. The first two thirds of the issue tells a story that may well have happened behind the scenes in Aliens. In a way, these events feel as valid as the movies, and it’s surprising how much weight that gives the issue.
Poison Ivy #20
Though this arc is presenting Poison Ivy’s origin, it is essentially a cautionary tale about being taken in and manipulated by those in relative positions of authority. This specific tale involves sexual manipulation specifically, but its theme resonates across all forms of manipulation and exploitation by those in a higher position within a power dynamic.
Early in the issue Woodrue gets furious at Ivy over problems with his experiments. He storms off, saying he’ll see her tomorrow. Thinks Ivy: “He was lying, of course. I knew it even then, though I wouldn’t admit it to myself.” Combined with Takara’s art, the implication is that she knew she was being punished. When another smart, ambitious woman joins the team, Woodrue makes clear romantic and sexual overtures to pit the women against each other. When the two women eventually befriend each other and enter into a secret romantic relationship, Ivy admits to sleeping with Woodrue, commenting “It’s been going on for so long that I didn’t know how to stop it.” She then justifies giving in by saying that geniuses get to play by different rules.
This backstory certainly fits in with what the series earlier presented about Woodrue’s impact on Ivy’s transformation, and more character development is preferable to less. But frequently the issue is distractingly unartful.
Spectacular Spider-Men #1
Spectacular Spider-Men #1 is well-timed as a lighthearted follow-up to an idea introduced in Gang War: Peter hasn’t kept up a regular relationship with Miles. But this issue also has nothing whatsoever to do with Gang War or recent events in either characters’ series, so readers needn’t worry about the series beginning with baggage inherited from them. Instead Weisman delivers a straightforward coffee shop adventure for Peter and Miles and straightforward monster adventure for both Spider-Men.
X-Men #32
Painfully little happens in this issue. The general sense is that with Fall of the House X and Rise of the Powers of X carrying the major storylines, this series has no reason to continue to exist. The issue focuses on Lockheed and Magick’s return and their liberation of an Orchis gulag. They come across an Orchis scientist who is burning documents and lamenting the side he chose in this conflict. He might as well be saying he was just following orders for all the subtlety here.
Duggan once again tosses out the term fascists in an almost whimsical comment from Emma: “Get in. We’re killing fascists.” This is a critical problem of Duggan’s writing in recent issues. Orchis is committing genocide. They are carrying out utter acts of brutality and barbarism. Even as Duggan tries to infuse moments of levity, the weight of this storyline should be immense. But it’s not. It’s flimsy. It lacks any awareness of humanity’s darkest moments that it is thematically connected to. All Duggan wants to do is throw out “fascist” as many times as possible, seemingly because it’s a popular buzzword these days. At this point, this series could not be any more disappointing.
Noto’s art works better in this issue, largely because so much of it is close-up panels on Magick and far less action. It doesn’t have to carry the weight of major action sequences.
Blue Beetle #7
Giffen fans will do a lot of smiling during Blue Beetle #7. The issue isn’t a cameo-a-thon, nor does it visit a different setting for a different Giffen series on every page. Trujillo picks and chooses what he uses, and ultimately less is more. The tribute elements don’t totally steal the spotlight from the regular story until the final pages when Trujillo does his best to directly channel Giffen’s more off-the-wall humor. And in the end, Trujillo does a pretty decent job.
Sensational She-Hulk #6
Rowell has done a very good job tracking the everyday consequences to Jen after her fight with Hulk and now the fight in the nightclub in the previous issue. This twist on the ordinary is so often what makes this series shine. And Jen’s repeated exasperation at what feels like life’s pile on is good for a chuckle.
This issue swings back heavily to the Jen and Jack storyline as the pair take a vacation to a space resort near the sun. The dramedy aspects come entirely to the fore here, and it makes for fun, easy reading. Jack is more assertive here. One of the reasons that he works so well as a character is his complexity. He ranges from assertive to shy to worried to a host of other emotions, and Rowell is very good at keeping them consistent. He is a surprisingly well-realized character, especially as he’s fallen a little more to the background in the current series.
Rowell looks to be setting up a new arc that is more than just a vacation, though, as Jen befriends an alien who feels like she has lost her purpose in life. Genolet draws Jen in a kind of middle ground between trying to be comforting while also regretting getting into a conversation with the alien.
The Devil That Wears My Face #5
The Devil That Wears My Face #5 revisits demonic imagery the likes of which we haven’t seen since the first issue. Vieri’s struggle to defeat Legion and reclaim his body (and in the process save Santiago whose body Vieri currently occupies) became largely a physical struggle. There was some mysticism attached to the knife that Vieri intended to use to drive Legion out, but for a battle against a demon it lacked scope. This issue is a good answer for readers looking for that scope.
What is good, everybody?
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