Tag Archives: paco diaz

Review: The 99: Sacrifice

Within the medium of comics, no one gets death as deftly as sequential art does. Books, can portray a death quite convincingly, describing every detail, as if you were in the room. Movies and tv shows, do it well too, as they show the viewer visually and sometimes not, what occurs. As the death of a beloved character, can make the audience gasp or cheer.

This last season of Game Of Thrones, saw the death of Littlefinger, a villain within the books and the TV show, who seemingly was behind every sea change within Westeros. Then in the recent storyline of Detective Comics, saw the death of Clayface, a once hated but now redeemed character, that divides Bat Family. Either way, much like in life, when one person is so attached to other’s lives, their fatality can be devastating. In this newest volume of The 99, every wielder of the Noor stones face a sacrifice or a demise of someone close.

Dr. Ramzi,  at the beginning of the book, asks every member what personal sacrifice each undertook before they discovered their powers. One of the wielders talks about how each got sold in to child slavery but got turned into a cold-blooded killer and receives the Noor stones this way. Another finds one of the heroes finding his powers through being bullied and almost killing someone. By book’s end, the giving up of something or someone in this book, shows the true measure of a hero.

Overall, this feels like the “After School Special” of the series, which can be good, but this team has told better stories. Stuart Moore and Fabian Nicieza feels seral in this book, which is not exemplary of the series. The art by the different artists is the one consistency from the rest of the series that is in this volume. Altogether, the series has done better than this volume, skip this one and find the rest.

Story: Stuart Moore and Fabian Nicieza
Art: Ron Wagner, Joe Rubinstein, Paco Diaz, Chris Schons, Steven Yeowell, Kevin Kobasic, Don Hudson, Mark Buckingham and Steve Buccelato
Story: 5.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read

You Are Deadpool In this Game Meets Comic

The fourth wall has been broken – by you, because this May, YOU can be Deadpool! The merc with the mouth is your guide as he takes you on a fantastic ride that doubles as a role playing adventure in this new five-part weekly miniseries where adventure…danger…and the future…all rests in YOUR hands!

Written by Al Ewing with art by Salva Espin and Paco Diaz, You Are Deadpool is an interactive narrative that lets readers control Deadpool’s story by rolling dice, keeping track of their scores, and making smart (or disastrous) decisions. And be prepared to meet some classic and unique guest stars as you travel through time as Deadpool in a whirlwind adventure!

You Are Deadpool is a five-part adventure gamebook, reviving the classic tradion. The reader, and the cut-out-and-keep Deadpool Die, control the action! Every week brings a COMPLETE single-player adventure — where you encounter glamorous guest-stars that form an epic quest. And there’s more! Fight END-OF-LEVEL BOSSES! Manage your inventory by STEALING background objects! Explore FIVE DIFFERENT TIME ZONES in NEARLY ANY ORDER! Play the TUTORIAL LEVEL! Enjoy UNIQUE MINIGAMES about BAR FIGHTS, BEAT POETRY and SNEAKING THROUGH LEVELS! LAUGH! CRY! CHEAT! It’s all waiting for YOU — because YOU ARE DEADPOOL!

It’s a series unlike anything Marvel Comics has ever done – new and seasoned readers alike will get their chance to play this May, when YOU ARE DEADPOOL hits your local comic shop!

You Are Deadpool is written by Al Ewing with issues #1, 3, and 5 featuring art by Salva Espin and issues #2 and 4 by Paco Diaz. Covers are by Rahzzah.

Preview: U.S.Avengers #11

U.S.Avengers #11

(W) Al Ewing (A) Paco Diaz (CA) David Nakayama
Rated T+
In Shops: Oct 25, 2017
SRP: $3.99

CANNONBALL RUN Part 1
The U.S. Avengers have a new mission-to find their missing teammate! Squirrel Girl, Red Hulk, Iron Patriot, and more head into outer space to find Cannonball! The search leads them to strangest planet of all…Glenbrook, U.S.A.! Home – and fiefdom – of Ritchie Redwood, America’s best loved teen! What shocking events will lead the U.S. Avengers to uncover the secrets of the seemingly idyllic planet of Glenbrook whose teenagers keep disappearing? And how will this lead them to Cannonball?

PLUS: Includes 3 bonus MARVEL PRIMER PAGES! Story by Robbie Thompson and a TBA artist!

Preview: U.S.Avengers #10

U.S.Avengers #10

(W) Al Ewing (A) Paco Diaz (CA) Paco Medina
Rated T+
In Shops: Sep 20, 2017
SRP: $3.99

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH!
• In the aftermath of SECRET EMPIRE, A.I.M. elects a brand-new Supreme Leader – but Roberto Da Costa has one last mission for the U.S.Avengers.
• No one ever found Cannonball’s body – and we all know what that means…
• “The Search for Sam” begins here!

In the Aftermath of Secret Empire, How Will Our Heroes Be Changed?

In the aftermath of Secret Empire, one big question lingers in the minds of all the heroes of the Marvel Universe: what redemption can there be for Captain America?

But Captain America isn’t the only one who was changed under the Secret Empire regime. As the world rebuilds itself in the wake of Hydra, so do our heroes – what does it mean for Earth’s Mightiest? And how will it all end?

Don’t miss Secret Empire Omega #1, the epic wrap-up to the Secret Empire saga from writer Nick Spencer and artist Andrea Sorrentino. And watch the fate of your favorite heroes unfold in Secret Empire: Aftermath, in comic shops this fall!

SECRET EMPIRE OMEGA #1
Written by NICK SPENCER
Art by ANDREA SORRENTINO
Cover by MARK BROOKS
Variant Cover by MICHAEL CHO
Variant Cover by MICHAEL TURNER
Black and White Variant Cover by MICHAEL TURNER
No More Hydra Variant Cover Also Available

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH: SECRET WARRIORS #6
Written by MATTHEW ROSENBERG
Art by JUANAN RAMIREZ
Cover by TRADD MOORE & MATTHEW WILSON

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH: U.S. AVENGERS #10
Written by AL EWING
Art by PACO DIAZ
Cover by PACO MEDINA

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH: CHAMPIONS #12
Written by MARK WAID
Art by HUMBERTO RAMOS
Venomized Ultron Variant Cover By DAVID NAKAYAMA

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH: DEADPOOL #36
Written by GERRY DUGGAN
Art by MIKE HAWTHORNE
Cover by DAVID LOPEZ
Secret Comic Variant Cover by SCOTT KOBLISH

SECRET EMPIRE AFTERMATH: AVENGERS #11
Written by MARK WAID
Art by MIKE DEL MUNDO
Cover by ALEX ROSS
Venomized Loki Variant Cover by TYLER KIRKHAM

Review: U.S.Avengers #5

5809521-05The time for goofy solicits is over. A.I.M. is getting serious – and Steve Rogers is here to make sure of it. But where does this leave Roberto Da Costa? Meanwhile, Sam Guthrie is a man of two worlds. Which will he choose?

I haven’t been reading the latest Captain America title, but I am well aware of what Marvel has done to the character, making him a Hydra agent and now, after recent events with the Red Skull, it would appear Steve Rogers is now running Hydra. So this title, advertised as an ‘opening salvo’ is my first real look at Hydra Steve Rogers. And if Al Ewing is writing him like the other writers are in other books, WOW I cannot believe what they have done to this character. I mean I will give Ewing credit for writing this smug, arrogant, self-righteous version of Steve; if he wanted readers to totally loathe this character, then he has done his job. The meeting between Steve and Roberto in this issue was tense and it has definitely set the tone for things to come in this book. It really drew me in and got me looking forward to see what’s going to happen next. There are some breaks in the meeting, with some smaller side stories, looking at the various members of this team, but the focus is definitely on Steve, Roberto and Hydra. Things are not going to get any easier for this team of Avengers.

And as I’m sure I’ve mentioned before in previous reviews of this title, I really enjoy Paco Diaz’ art. There’s not a lot of action in this issue, but I like his rendering of these characters and his expressions and body language on them really worked well with the story. Even just the way he had Steve sitting and lounging around really showed how much this character has changed. I’m not a huge fan of one addition to Steve’s new look that is shown towards the end of the book, but I guess it’s just hammering home what side he’s playing for now.

Overall, I really liked this issue. I absolutely hate Hydra Steve Rogers and that Marvel has taken this path with him, but the writing in this issue solidified my feelings by showing him to be an arrogant ass, so in that, it was very successful. The art, as usual, is solid and I am looking forward to seeing how this team reacts to the coming changes. Roberto has been known to be three steps ahead of his opponents, and it’s going to be interesting to see what happens when his opponent has been in front of him this whole time.

Story: Al Ewing Art: Paco Diaz
Story: 7.5 Art: 8 Overall: 7.75  Recommendation: Read

Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE issue for review

Preview: U.S.Avengers #5

U.S.Avengers #5

(W) Al Ewing (A) Paco Diaz (CA) Paco Medina
Rated T+
In Shops: Apr 19, 2017
SRP: $3.99

The time for goofy solicits is over. A.I.M. is getting serious – and Steve Rogers is here to make sure of it. But where does this leave Roberto Da Costa? Meanwhile, Sam Guthrie is a man of two worlds. Which will he choose?

Review: All-New X-Men #19

5763406-anxmen2015019_dc11_lr-0Together at last! In the aftermath of the X-Men’s war with the Inhumans, the original five X-Men are reunited once more…but will they walk into an uncertain future together or apart?

Dennis Hopeless gives a final issue that definitely isn’t goodbye, as we know the original five members will be starring in their new book X-Men Blue, but rather a “see you soon” issue that, to be honest, feels a little rushed and leaves things rather shaky for the team.

It’s by no means a dark, down issue though. It’s nice to see the original five back together again and talking about their future, and Idie and Evan dropping some ideas on where we might see them next. The issue may have gotten a little corny at the end, but overall it definitely kept up the fun feel that this book has had from the start.

Paco Diaz does a fine enough job on the art in this issue. The characters are front and center and the action moves fluidly. In a couple panels, the faces looked a little strange, but that’s just me really getting picky.

Overall, this is a good issue that sets this team forward into their unknown future. And given what unfolds, they truly have no idea what lies ahead of them. The big revelation had me scratching my head and made me go back and read it a couple of times, but is also got me really interested to keep following this team and see how things play out in the forthcoming X-Men Blue.

Story: Dennis Hopeless  Art: Paco Diaz
Story: 6.5  Art: 7.5  Overall: 7  Recommendation: Read

Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE issue for review

Preview: All-New X-Men #19

All-New X-Men #19

(W) Dennis Hopeless (A) Paco Diaz (CA) Mark Bagley
Rated T+
In Shops: Mar 29, 2017
SRP: $3.99

Together at last! In the aftermath of the X-Men’s war with the Inhumans, the original five X-Men are reunited once more… but will they walk into an uncertain future together or apart?

Preview: Solo #3

Solo #3

(W) Gerry Duggan, Geoffrey Thorne (A) Paco Diaz (CA) Mike Hawthorne
Parental Advisory
In Shops: Dec 21, 2016
SRP: $3.99

Solo’s caught in the middle of a civil war! No, not THAT civil war…but it’s a fight to the death between two rival biker gangs, and if Solo doesn’t get his act together, they might turn their attention toward him!

solo__3

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