Amph ***OFFICIAL*** Comics Thread

That’s because Denny O’Neill was good at his job.

Well, that and because with the exception of a certain combative Nightwing-hater I think DC tries to keep their editors a bit invisible compared to how Marvel always put a certain amount of emphasis on them. There are some absolute horror stories about DC decision making in the 1960s and 1970s, but **** me if I can remember anybody aside from Julius Schwartz off the top of my head.

 

Julius! What memories your stalwart, wonderful editing invokes! Truly, one of a kind.

 

After saying I wouldn’t continue with the Defenders and Savage Avengers I actually did pick up the current issues.

Defenders had a lovely moment between the Silver Surfer

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and the baby alien who would become....Galactus. That was interesting.

Savage Avengers had a future forward bit here that results in

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Strange and almost every other Marvel hero dying by Kulan Gath’s hand -including Moon Knight whose prominent place in one panel may suggest that editorial nixed using him for this series even though he would have been perfect for SA- but I digress.

With Strange dead, Conan escapes, only to incur the wrath of Kang...I really loathe Kulan Gath, but quite enjoyed his draining of Shuma Gorath’s powers, and I hope that Kang destroys Gath.

 

I love Defenders, but I’m a fan of Al Ewing’s cosmic kool-aid, and here he has a whole mini to indulge in exploring some loose ends from his great and underrated Ultimates run.

 

I know very little about cosmic Marvel and what Al is touching on in this Mini, but Javier’s art and the Masked Raider are interesting.

 

All you need to know about cosmic Marvel is that this was a conversation that happened immediately after Civil War: (big image, spoilers for an event that was routinely used as a jumping-on point in like 2007 I guess but no one cares about that)

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Actually they probably need to stop going back to the Annihilation well, I loved that run but it was over a decade ago and it's time to move on.

 

^ Oh, right... Annihilus, actually the timelines in Al’s Defenders are breaking my brain but that’s okay.

 

Oh, this series is ultra-cosmic. Galactic wars? Feh! Our heroes are traveling back in time to the previous iterations of the universe. The regular Marvel universe is the Eighth Cosmos (Seventh before Hickman's Secret Wars), the previous one was the Sixth Cosmos where Galan of Taa (future Galactus) hailed from, and next issue will feature the never-seen-before Fifth Cosmos. I like this trippy stuff!

 

I understand that. Marvel cosmos for the uninformed, thank you.

I love the art. Javier does trippy like few other artists do. Javier’s work feels like something we might have seen at Marvel in the ‘60s in the art and the color palette.

 

Moon Knight 3

Was a nearly issue long fight between

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Moon Knight and Hunter’s Moon supposed to make me because it did, and I mean that as a huge compliment given how creepy and intense issue 2 was.

Two particularly funny moments:

1) Moon Knight wielding a bat so close to Batman day was hilarious. It also shows how much of a street brawler Moon Knight can be, calling back his boxing days more than his prodigious martial arts skills.

2) And the Egyptian mythological punchline may not make some laugh nearly as hard as I did, but as that myth is still very fresh in my mind after a recent reread, it hit me right where I needed it.

Now, the

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mysterious villain at the Daily Bugle trying to break Marc will not fully reveal themselves until December’s issue 6. As Jed has pulled up some obscure characters for this series there are at least two Daily Bugle employees who could fit the bill.

That said, Marc just told his therapist that he thinks he himself could be that enemy. Given Moon Knight's new power up and that we haven’t seen his civilian personalities yet who knows? If Jed goes there, I think it might be Jake Lockley given that Lockley used the streets and the cab driver persona to dig up dirt on adversaries. Jake and Marc have not gotten along in the past.

And a thought regarding Hunter’s Moon

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He went down very easily here, but Moon Knight spared him for two reasons. The first, to remind Khonshu of Marc’s heroism and two, because Hunter’s Moon -and probably- Khonshu will come back looking for Moon Knight’s head now and they cannot kill off Badr that easily.

Another tangent that ties into Marc’s D.I.D., Marc can no longer be swayed by Khonshu’s influence as easily as in the past. Hunter’s Moon is easily influenced by Khonshu and the Fists who came before Badr and Spector.

This issue was a very quick read, but I like that Jed inserts little bits of dialogue that makes Moon Knight definitely come across like a warrior priest protecting his flock too.

 

I decided against posting this in the Moon Knight D+ Series thread, but if you’re on the fence about the character, this brilliant animated homage to the Lemire / Smallwood run is freaking gold.

I would not object to the series’ credit sequences being something like this.

 

I have not really been following the current Shang-Chi run but what I have seen of it do it seems to be working on retaining lots of things that was established in Shang-Chi's earlier year. Just saw that a coming Shang-Chi comic had as part of its blurb "Who was Shang-Chi's mother? And how did someone so virtuous and heroic fall for an evil warlord like Zheng Zu?" and that description don't really seems to fit with what (the little) we saw of his mother in Deadly Hands of Kung-Fu.

Not complaing, just making observations

 

Saga returns

This January.

 

DC makes a change to Superman's motto and some people are probably going to lose their ****.

 

^Not me… Though when I hear

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A Better Tomorrow…I think of John Woo’s Hong Kong crime film.

Bring on The Human Target maxi series. I want more of Greg Smallwood’s retro comic art stat (Hopefully, Marvel will hire him to do more ‘60s Nick Fury or Doctor Strange etc… after THT wraps.)

Hmmm…Will Jed MacKay make want to read to The Death of Doctor Strange after all?!?

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Maybe, if it turns out the Year One Doctor Strange takes his place. That is being hinted all over the place…and if that’s what he’s doing, I’m fine with a reboot of Stephen going through his mystical paces. I’ll keep reading the spoilers.

 

Early Moon Knight 4 preview (Not out until 10-27 now).

Love that first page

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So Marc sleeps in a sarcophagus during the day now...

https://comicbookdispatch.com/moon-knight-4-preview/

 

Realise I haven't done any reviews for a while despite reading stuff.

Shadowman Diggle OHC

This is a Valiant character I haven't previously looked at despite it having a couple of creative runs. As a starting point, this works pretty well and, like most of Valiant's OHC collections, concludes well.

Livewire OHC

In contrast, this collection ties off the story started in Secret Weapons, that ran into Harbinger Wars II and cropped up in Ninjak. It works well enough for what it is, which is a reset story for the character in effect.

The Collected Toppi: Volume 6: Japan

There should be more to say about this except there isn't because it's just that excellent. I won't be getting the last volume, Sharaz-De, as I alreadsy own in a slightly smaller OHC format, but that edition came out years ago. If you like superb comic narratives, this volume - and all the others - are a masterclass in how to do it.

Radiant Black: Volume 1

What initially sets this apart is that it's not a kid getting powers, but a washed-up mid 30s guy. Higgins does throw a rather interesting curveball later one, but the follow-through on it is rather weird and I'm not sure it works. 50-50 on continuing, despite the cliffhanger.

Two Moons: Volume 1

In contrast, this is a more conventional supernatural western that benefits from superb art. Will be nabbing Volume 2 next year.

Hershey: Disease: Volume 1

This is a good opening shot, with 2000AD doing loads with the space they have. Oh and Dirty Frank.

Fall of Deadworld OHC3

Not sure about this, fell a bit flat, might have been too long since the last volume.

Star Wars: High Republic: Volume 1

This entire project has been hugely fun and this is a well-executed starting volume for the comics, both from Marvel and IDW.

James Bond: Big Things HC

There's not a lot of surprises here but the book really doesn't need it. The foundation concept of Bond having to work with others is well done too. It's another good Bond tale from Dynamite.

Old Haunts

Decided to give a load of AWA trades a go. Bought this one as it has Laurence Campbell art and he rarely ever supplies duff visuals. The story from Masters and Williams is quite good too - weaving the idea of a ghost story through aging mobsters being haunted by their past acts and kills.

Devil's Highway:Volume 1

I really hope the creative team return to this, as while it's a good opening shot, there's fuel enough to keep this going.

Bad Mother

Yeah, it says Volume 1, but I'm not seeing the continuation for it. And that's not a bad thing.

When's thelast time you saw a story with a middle-aged female lead, who's not in perfect physical condition, doesn't possess "a special set of skills" and gets treated like crap by just about everyone? The correct answer is you haven't seen a story like this. This isn't either Kick Ass or Jennifer Blood and its far better for it.

Redemption

Another Faust-Deodato Jr team-up, this one is future dystopia western,with another majority female cast, in roles rarely occupied by women characters.

It's a very well executed tale that spins a lot of established ideas into new form. Not really seeing how they can do a Volume 2 though.

 

Nice. I was on the fence about this one, but I’ll pick up a copy if Dirty Frank’s involved. I’ve ordered volume one of Megatropolis which looks interesting, but I’m most looking forward to the release of Dreadnoughts next month.

 

That one isn't far away either.

 

Wolverine 17 preview link of the first two pages.

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https://comicbookdispatch.com/wolverine-17-preview/

Think I’m as psyched to see Lan Medina’s Maverick here as I am for Moon Knight #4.

Speaking of Moon Knight,
I already figured out something about Marc and his civilian and costumed personas - have a strong feeling that we’re going to see

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Moon Knight and/or Mr. Knight “die”.

Also, spit-balling the mystery Daily Bugle blackmailer could be:

1) The Profile: possibly under Khonshu’s influence (Profile can be against or for MK).

2) Jake Lockley: Marc’s street-wise cabbie alter who digs up dirt on criminals. It’s obvious he could get Steven Grant’s financials and disapproves of the Midnight Mission. Jake and Marc have rarely seen eye-to-eye.

3) Daily Bugle reporter Chuck Self: He tried to blackmail Frank Castle into giving him an interview. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s Self as Jed loves to dive deep into Marvel continuity and use obscure characters. That’s what he did with Hawley in Moon Knight 2.

Or it could be a new character.

I am really hoping it’s Jake Lockley for a couple of reasons 1) If so, have Marc’s alters physically manifested outside of Marc as a result of Khonshu messing with Marc’s brain? We’re shown (in MK 2)that the Jake and Steven alters are “scars” who became weapons for MK to use.

2) This would sort of mirror what writer Jed MacKay is doing with the Death of Doctor Strange (a earlier incarnation of Stephen has appeared on the scene for one week). So if the Jake and Steven Grant alters are now separate physical manifestations, what does that mean for Marc?

It’s pretty clear there is a line drawn between Moon Knight’s civilian and costumed alters. Jed is going to disrupt that something serious.

Whatever the case, Jed liked my guesstimation that Mr. Knight ragging on Marc Spector being a nobody and unwanted will blow up in Mr. Knight’s face.

 

Moon Knight #4

Well, this issue ended predictably, insofar as Marc anyway. May the line addressing the Bemis run remain a throwaway line. Though the dialogue ripping on Bendis & Maleev run was fun.

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Marc finally unmasks himself. It’s here when Alessandro’s art finally dips a bit: the severe, anime angles aren’t the best look for MK unmasked, but you can see why Marc hates looking at himself (Still wearing the wounds from issue three’s fight too.) This answer about why Marc wears the mask is very predictable, but Jed finally shows us some vulnerability in Spector after the bravado we’ve seen for almost four issues.

And kudos for the nesting doll villains here, another obscure flunky outed…apparently the big bad will be revealed with issue 5. It’s nice to see Tigra too, there’s one panel toward the end of the issue that plays up on her feline genetics that is very sweet. This was the first issue that felt something like a filler issue to me, but that’s okay. Every run has those. I understand something breathing room has to be established. I do enjoy when Moon Knight shows Marc’s vulnerabilities though that’s one of many reasons why I love the character.

The real winner of the week and Arrrgh! WTF went to Wolverine 17 though.

Benjamin Percy hinted that something rotten could be up with

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Christoph Nord, a.k.a. Maverick in his earlier appearance (Wolverine 8-10)

and this issue follows through on that. I have a strong feeling we won’t know why

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Maverick is living up his code name in the worst of ways with next month’s issue 18 either. He appears every so often in this current run. I think Percy is going to string this subplot along for awhile and make me wince in the process.

Lan Medina’s art brings it.

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Nord doing karaoke on Krakoa, I mean …still the stinger reveal made me

I’m not going to pretend I know what’s going on with the whole Krakoa thing, but Lan’s art is excellent and completely different from his work on Fables and my in-process commission. His lines are superbly strong, but the lush shading and extra details are omitted. I like Wolverine’s government friend Jeff Bannister, and Logan & Maverick are excellent. I am delighted to see

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Maverick back in play, though I do hope Percy will surprise me with where Maverick’s story

will go. There’s a fun callback to Three Days Of The Condor in this issue too.

 

Recent reads:

Helm Greycastle Volume 1

This was an interesting take on the mythology of Mexico. It was a little confusing at first as it's more fantasy alternate history than alternate history, which takes a bit of getting used to.

Hope they continue it.

Time After Time Volume 1

This was a surprisingly refreshing take on time travel from the Write It In Blood team. It's trump card is not getting bogged in the mechanics of how time travel works, it simply says it does and asks what happens them. The answer is cross-time crime syndicates!

American Vampire: 1976

For a long time I really thought this series was fated to join the long, long list of comic serial stories forgotten or abandomed by their creators, doomed to remain unfinished.

Fortunately, it proved not to be so and this is an excellent conclusion. Though, it probably works better when you can pick up the dizzying array of references to preceding tales that are scattered across it - I had a, at best, hazy recall as it had been so long.

This worked really well, both as a conclusion and a final musing on the nature of the US.

Hopefully, there will eventually be a second omnibus to accomany the first.

Nocterra Volume 1

This was a fun ride and quite distinct from Snyder's other works. Some excellent art from Daniel, backed up with colours to match made for a great opening shot.

It's also neatly done in the end pages how future arcs are set up and alluded to.

 

Speaking of abandoned serial stories, I've always been bummed that Hickman never continued The Manhattan Projects.