Marvel Comics General

no acts of vengence 2 is right now.

I figure they're going for a big time collapse event that's going to take place once Time Runs Out - the Avengers comics have been pimping this for a while now - which acts as the conclusion of the Multiverse collapse and also the broken time plot threads.

I've got my fingers crossed that it's not going to be a massive Reset Button like DC loves doing where they throw out all of the past continuity and create a brand new universe where everything is different, but the repeated advertising of old events makes me suspect that's exactly where they're going, and these revisits to the events are going to be "This is how X went down in THE NEW UNIVERSE."

I expect Time Runs Out will be a bigger middle finger to established continuity than One More Day.

edited 21st Oct '14 9:57:53 PM by TobiasDrake

You're thinking reboot? I highly doubt it.

2015 is the 30th anniversary of the original Secret Wars. Probably why they're doing this.

edited 21st Oct '14 10:03:31 PM by HamburgerTime

Time Runs Out will probably reset everything, so they're throwing whatever bullshit they want at the wall because consequences are for basic bitches.

Which is probably why Spider-Verse can get away with slaughtering beloved alternate-universe Spider-Men like the Amazing Friends one.

All the Spider-Men are going to die when their universes cease to exist anyway, so they might as well make a bloodbath out of it.

edited 21st Oct '14 10:08:34 PM by TobiasDrake

I don't think Marvel's going to destroy the Multiverse, or do a total reboot, or any shit like that. The multiverse will probably be smaller than it used to be, technically, but it's not like it'll make a big difference. If there's a reboot, it'll likely be a very limited one, going back to the start of Hickman's Avengers run or something like that. But I don't see Marvel doing the DC reboot approach. Why would they? New 52 got a temporary sales boost, but they're not much higher than they were before the reboot. Marvel risks pissing off a lot of long-time fans with a complete reboot, with little chance of picking up enough new readers to really offset that loss, especially in the long term. If they want to create a new universe with easy access for new readers, they can relaunch the Ultimate Universe (probably under a new name).

A total reboot is, I think, too great a risk for Marvel to be inclined to do it.

Picking up the new issue of She-Hulk after I return from my class.

Man, Carol's outfit looks bad in grey on that cover. What's next, Jessica also going grey? Why is grey suddenly the colour of choice?

edited 22nd Oct '14 10:02:36 AM by LordofLore

At least he appears to have found lurve.

Oh awesome I had no idea they were continuing the Sauron thing. I might have to check it out now.

Loved the Z-list hero cameos in Hobgoblin.

I suppose Carol's costume has been greyscaled because it's the future and now fucking everything is just grey. Just fucking grey, everywhere. But yeah, that is a hideous cover, and it's entirely because why the fuck is her costume so fucking grey why why whyyyyyyy???

Then she was barely in the issue at all. Bleh. Blehhh! Dammit, Hickman, do something big with her. Let her be a big player. She's Captain fucking Marvel. She should be a major character, and you've got her giving reports to Old Man Steve Rogers? Fuck that noise. Also? Let her have her colours back!

As for the other comics: She-Hulk was great. Really neat story, and it has me very intrigued for the next issue. I'm loving the law stuff. And still plenty of great humour.

All-New Ghost Rider was fantastic. Just a great issue. This series keeps getting better. More people should be buying it. But, of course, older Ghost Rider fans are pissy that the book isn't about Blaze or Ketch. Because comic book fans are defensive of their favourite characters, and especially hate seeing their white guys replaced by Latinos, as shown with the outrage at the half-Latino Sam Alexander replacing the white Richard Rider.

Axis was good. But the ending is starting to bring in more cynicism, which is disappointing. Going by history, the rest of the event is going to be shit.

Axis: Hobgoblin. I love him saying his book has a chapter on tipping. That's a real hero, right there!

Logan Legacy had an old Alpha Flight member, and an old Alpha Flight villain. Windshear has reinvented himself as Chinook, and Pink Pearl is up to no good. I always love seeing Canadian characters showing up, so that made me happy.

Secret Avengers continues to be batshit insane.

You're joking about being excited about the Sauron thing, right? Because that was stupid. Jason Aaron randomly turning Sauron into a scientist was stupid. Jason Aaron was stupid for doing it.

edited 22nd Oct '14 3:16:42 PM by Tiamatty

"and especially hate seeing their white guys replaced by Latinos, as shown with the outrage at the half-Latino Sam Alexander replacing the white Richard Rider."

more outrage of loeb making a blatent version of his dead son into the new nova who had a really bad introduction.

also sauron was introduced as a physician, geneticist, and hypnotherapist who stole energy while hypnotizing people in therapy.

edited 22nd Oct '14 4:11:04 PM by deadpoolrocks

He was originally a psychiatrist, yes? So definitely smart, but not a genius.

also geneticist. that seems pretty smart

edited 22nd Oct '14 4:17:49 PM by deadpoolrocks

I think Rich's fans were more pissed off that both Thanos AND Peter survived while Rich just disappeared. If they blame Sam for filling in a spot that was empty they are kind of dicks.

(Did Got G actually say what happened to Dick in the issue Marvel was hyping as "Find out what happened to the old Nova!" or did they just dance around it?)

That's why I can never take them seriously. They keep whining about Loeb or Bendis "screwing" Rich when he was for all intents and purposes killed by D&A.

not yet. its bendis so in about 5 months expect a resolution.

they screwed him over by not bringing him back like the others, not mentioning what really happened to him for 2 years, and spelling his name wrong

edited 22nd Oct '14 4:22:14 PM by deadpoolrocks

Sam also has the stigma of technically making his debut as the most annoying character in a widely-reviled TV series.

And, again, being an expy of Loeb's dead son.

D&A may have killed Richard Rider, but they also killed Thanos, Drax, and Peter Quill.

Thanos, Drax, and Peter Quill have all since shown up in the comics again and aside from the very recent story that is supposedly telling us what happened, the events that resulted in the death of all four of them have all but been ignored. Bendis seemingly retconned major plot points of one of the few actually good Marvel event comics in recent history by writing all three of them as if they were alive the whole time.

Richard Rider, on the other hand, has gotten the shaft by being replaced when the other three have been all but treated like they were never dead in the first place.

One thing I would point out is that, of the four, Nova was easiest to replace. Thanos is a major villain - of course he was going to be back. He was never going to stay dead. If Thanos is alive, Drax is alive. Quill and Drax were also going to be in the Guardians of the Galaxy movie that, at the time they returned, was very heavily rumoured.

Rider? Rider had nothing. Plus, the whole Nova concept is one that's kinda set up to allow for easy replacements. They're Marvel's version of the Green Lanterns - slap a helmet on them and call it a day.

This also means that Nova is a character who's easy to use for diversity. In this case, they used a half-Latino character, as opposed to continuing another in the endless list of white characters they already have running around.

I do think the hatred that Sam's gotten is absolutely ridiculous. It's way too over-the-top. Yeah yeah, it sucks when a character you like is replaced, but honestly, the sheer level of vitriol towards him goes, I think, way beyond what's reasonable. He's not a bad character. He's an Expy of Sam Loeb? So what? That initial arc was the best work Jeph Loeb's done in a decade, since Sam died. Frankly, if it helped him deal with his grief a little bit, then that's great, and we should all be happy for that. The series has been solid under Gerry Duggan, too. It's not the best book on the stands, but there's a lot of amazing books on the stands, and it's definitely a good book.

The fact that the Rider fans still won't just shut the fuck up about it also gets tiring. Yeah, you miss a character you like, I get it. But honestly, they need to give it a rest already.

People hate Sam? But he's so fun!

I love Dick Rider as much as the next Nova fan, but not having Richard doesn't make Sam bad. Richard is "dead" and will remain so until whatever event is scheduled to bring him back. It's not a choice between Sam and Rich, it's a choice between Sam or No Sam.

Axis has, after three issues, finally ended the one fight scene that the entire first act of the event has been, so now we're at the interesting part of the event. Seriously, the entire first act could have been the first issue and then I would be a happy dragon.

I agree with what Tiamatty said about Axis: Hobgoblin, and will add that I kind of want Kingsley to stay on the side of angels at this point, he's like the Iron Man of the iPhone generation. He's like the Morgan Freeman of superheroes, any time he is speaking, the world turns into a utopian paradise of audible bliss.

I thought this whole "Villains become heroes and heroes become villains" thing sounded pretty stupid, but Axis: Hobgoblin has totally hooked me.

edited 23rd Oct '14 8:58:00 AM by TobiasDrake

I'm kinda behind on Axis, having only recently gotten my hands on the first issue. It's some of the goofiest shit I've ever read, and I came home from NYCC with Batman fucking Odyssey.

Seriously, I know "Red Onslaught" is supposed to be a menacing threat, but his design is too stupid. It's literally just a giant Red Skull head slapped on Onslaught's body willy-nilly. He looks so derpy every time someone punches him in the face and I know this is supposed to be a super-serious event but I just can't stop laughing. I know we're in a "let's redo everything we've done before" phase but come on.

The dialogue isn't helping either. Maybe I just haven't been paying attention to Remender's writing, but has it always been this snarky? Like, this is way too much snark, and this is coming from a Bendis fan. Like, the stupid shared circus banter from the X-Men completely killed for me what was supposed to be their Big Damn Heroes moment.

I do dig the concept of a swap between heroes and villains, but I'm almost nervous to see the other issues. Doesn't help that I see it's just more of this one fight scene.

Yeah, Remender isn't usually so prone to snark in his comics. On the one hand, I like that he included some humour. Given his work is usually very cynical and very doom'n'gloomy, I liked that there was some humour, giving it more sense of optimism.

On the other hand . . . that circus bit was really fucking stupid. So Remender definitely still needs to work on his humour. He's still not very good at it.

Edit: "I agree with what Tiamatty said about Axis: Hobgoblin" That anyone who teaches proper tipping is a real hero? (For the record, I normally do 20% at restaurants.)

edited 23rd Oct '14 1:19:26 PM by Tiamatty

remender can be hilarious when he needs to like ua annual.

Yes. My first job was as a waiter. People need to learn how to f*cking tip.

edited 23rd Oct '14 4:04:49 PM by TobiasDrake

With regards to Sam Alexander being an Expy of Sam Loeb, I'm with Tiamatty. If creating this character helped Loeb get over his Creator Breakdown and legitimately improved both his writing and, more importantly, his personal life, I think he should be applauded.