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Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha #1 is a thrilling debut

Posted on August 12, 2023 by pharoahmiles

As an avid comic reader, I enjoyed the comics from my preteen years. This was before all the bigwigs at Image left their jobs at DC and Marvel to form the company which has shown that is more than force in the comics industry. That era gave us some of the best books. I remembered getting into X-Men, not because of Chris Claremont, whom I discovered later, but because of Jim Lee’s art.

It was during that time when I found out why Wolverine was everyone’s favorite character. The animated show that came out only affirmed the reason why. Then came Hugh Jackman’s portrayal, which made him iconic. In the debut issue of Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance, Wolverine teams up with Ghost Rider to hunt a mutant serial killer, one which ties these two.

WE fine Johnny looking for Wolverine in the darkest of places, which makes him wonder why after all this time? We go back in time to a flashback, where Wolverine and Professor Xavier meet a prospective student, but what Xavier sees is too disturbing for him to admit the boy. AS his suspicion was right, as he was something more monstrous, as he kills the other children at his orphanage and he comes back to Xavier’s School aiming to take them out as well. By issue’s end, he would escape but Wolverine in pursuit would run into Ghost Rider, leading to their 1^st meeting and the reason for the meeting in present day, to put this monster down, once and for all.

Overall, Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha #1 is a thrilling debut that sees our favorite antagonists get some payback. The story by Percy is amazing. The art by the creative team is astounding. Altogether, it’s a story that fans of these two characters will absolutely love.

Story: Ben Percy Art: Geoff Shaw
Color: Rain Beredo Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle

X-Men: The Hellfire Gala 2023 delivers shocks we’ve seen before

Posted on July 26, 2023 by Brett

Warning Spoilers(?)

“Welcome to the X-Men. Hope you survive the experience.” That has been said quite a lot over the years. So much that it’s become a joke. It’s a joke based on a truth. The X-Men have a high body count among its members where massacres, genocide, mass killings, mass murder, are all regular events. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that this year’s X-Men: The Hellfire Gala treads that rather overused “shock” to the extreme.

Each years’ X-Men: The Hellfire Gala has been a flag planted in the ground. The one-shot not only introduces a new team of X-Men but also sets up the year to come. It has done that with over the top moments that take the X-Men on an even grander scale. One re-introduced them to the world. Another terraformed a planet. Now, in 2023 we get a new “mutant massacre.”

Written by Gerry Duggan, X-Men: The Hellfire Gala crumbles the excess and grand concepts that were started years ago in House of X/Powers of X. I had problems with those concepts. They took what were a minority group that any minority could see themselves in and instead had themselves declaring they’re the “new gods” with a sovereign nation, acting benevolent while manipulating history, and overall flirting with nationalism. The X-Men have been torn asunder, forced back to their roots, hated, hunted, and a fraction of their population.

And when I say fraction, I mean fraction. While what has happened is sure to be undone to some level in the future, the sprawling cast is now but a handful and that is part of the problem with the issue. We’ve seen this all before. Many times. So, the only way to go is bigger. WAY BIGGER. It’s been done before so much “mutant massacre” is used in the comic. That’s just a bit of the stilted and at times dodgy dialogue from Duggan.

The comic features an X-Men squad worth of artists (maybe two squads). Adam Kubert, Luciano Vecchio, Matteo Lolli, Russell Dauterman, Javier Pina, R.B. Silva, Joshua Cassara, Kris Anka, and Pepe Larraz all contribute. Rain Beredo, Ceci De La Cruz, Matthew Wilson, Erick Arciniega, and Marte Gracia all provide color. The art is pretty solid with some muddled moments and a few panels that don’t quite work (what’s up with Cyclops’ hair in the beginning). It delivers the shock the story sets up and visuals that almost have the impact intended. Maybe if I wasn’t so jaded in this direction, the art would feel grander. But the art in some ways feels reserved, eschewing too many multi page spreads for packed pages and panels.

X-Men: The Hellfire Gala is entertaining in its own ways, but its shock at this point has little emotional impact. It’s been there. Done that. X-Men: The Hellfire Gala sets up an intriguing new direction for the X-Men to come. The idea of Wilson Fisk aiding the X-Men is intriguing. Nightcrawler’s teased direction has potential. The direction for Ms. Marvel is far too clear (the comic isn’t subtle in its foreshadowing). It returns the X-Men to their roots shifting them away from the benevolent gods of the past few years. Like Orchis, the comic delivers a swift brutal attack on the status quo for the line, leaving it in shatters and leaving lots of potential.

Story: Gerry Duggan Art: Adam Kubert, Luciano Vecchio, Matteo Lolli, Russell Dauterman, Javier Pina, R.B. Silva, Joshua Cassara, Kris Anka, Pepe Larraz
Color: Rain Beredo, Ceci De La Cruz, Matthew Wilson, Erick Arciniega, Marte Gracia
Letterer: Virtual Calligraphy,Design: Tom Muller, Jay Bowen
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle

Preview: The Vigil #1 (of 6)

Posted on May 18, 2023 by Graphic Policy Team

The Vigil #1 (of 6)

(W) Ram V. (A) Lalit Kumar Sharma
In Shops: May 16, 2023
SRP: $3.99

/…/ /Who Are The Vigil? The shipping vessel Eastwind was taken captive by pirates off the coast of Thailand. 24 hours after the crew had been taken hostage, before communications had been established or any demands made, the crew reported an intervention by a group of unknown individuals. Amid other bizarre claims by the crew, are reports of an individual who changed his appearance at will and a woman who seemingly dodged bullets. Once the pirates were taken out, no attempts were made at rescuing the crew. There have long been rumors rogue metahumans targeting weaponized illegal technology. With some hinting that they call themselves The Vigil. What were they after? Why did they intervene? Are there metas among us? Stay tuned for more/ /…/ /you are being watched./

Preview: The Vigil #1 (of 6)

Posted on May 13, 2023 by Graphic Policy Team

The Vigil #1 (of 6)

(W) Ram V. (A) Lalit Kumar Sharma
In Shops: May 16, 2023
SRP: $3.99

Immoral X-Men #3 teases great concepts

Posted on April 5, 2023 by Brett

It’s been 1,000 years since Sinister’s experiment began. 1,000 years that have led to destruction, death, war, a plan completely spiraled out of control. Sinister is now attempting to right his wrong, searching for the one weapon that can correct everything. Immoral X-Men #3 adds another glimpse the the mad world Sinister has wrought and adds more wrinkles to the end game for this event.

Kieron Gillen continues the interesting thread of Sinister’s journey as he and Rasputin IV travel through space in hopes of finding clues to take them to the weapon to correct the madness. It’s an interesting journey that feels much more like a travelogue than anything else. There’s some action and very interesting moments but much like the event as a whole, it’s a sliver of a narrative.

That “sliver” is partially what has made Sins of Sinister so interesting and so frustrating at the same time. Each issue takes place at a different point in this event. The first issues are 10 years, second 100, and third are 1,000. And thus, they’re just a moment of time. Each issue hints and teases the story at this point forcing readers to piece together what has happened. It also leaves a lot wanted. Everything presented could be a story unto themselves with a full miniseries dedicated to what’s shown. But, we’re given just a glimpse of where things are at, pieces of a puzzle where we can infer the picture but never get to see all of it. That’s both original and frustrating because what’s presented is so interesting. I want to know how we got to each of these points.

The art by Alessandro Vitti is interesting and feels like it’s both grounded in a way and also a world gone mad. With color by Rain Beredo, lettering by Clayton Cowles, and design by Jay Bowen, the art adds so much to the story. We need to infer and figuring out where things stand from the visuals as much as by what’s said. The two need to work hand in hand to really deliver all the information we need. Here, we get a lot of that with teases and hints as to where the mutant legion have taken the world. The visuals drive home the corruption, like rot that has spiraled out of control.

Immoral X-Men #3 is good. It also leaves me wanting a lot more. How the three issues remaining for the event will be able to tie things up and get things somewhat back to the way they were should be impressive. Hopefully, it’s a bit more of a straight narrative than the event so far. Overall, it’s something original, but it’s originality that leaves things in a frustrating place as well.

Story: Kieron Gillen Art: Alessandro Vitti
Color: Rain Beredo Letterer: Clayton Cowles Design: Jay Bowen
Story: 8.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle

Review: Crypt of Shadows #1

Posted on October 23, 2022 by pharoahmiles

When it comes to holidays, there is nothing like Halloween. Before cosplaying became as accepted as it is now, this was the only day most people could become someone else. Costumes can show the other sides of people. As you get older, you take for granted, the ignorance of youth and how something as simple as dressing in a costume can be… freeing.

Fast forward to today, and the world now exists where dressing up ay as your favorite character is not only accepted but encouraged. This is huge when you think of how the children of today will have a better sense of self than most of us did growing up. I remember watching all those Halloween specials growing up, and have wondered where they all went. As much as we’ve gained in cosplay, we’ve lost those “special events”. In Crypt Of Shadows #1, we find our favorite heroes of the Marvel Universe in some spooky situations.

In “The Crypt Of Shadows”, a séance goes wrong, unearthing ghosts that come back for what they feel is theirs. In “Werewolf by Moon Knight”, Moon Knight gets in the middle of a brawl between two werewolves. In “Skin Crawl”, Morbius and Jinx take down a demon. In “Down Came The Rain”, Elsa Bloodstone and Johnny Storm traverse a underground tunnel to save Spider-Man. In “Endless Slaughter in the Infinite Swamp”, Man Thing and X-23 get stuck in a battle that lasts forever. In the last story “Neither Big Nor Bad”, our heroes gets caught up in an unknown and unseen evil.

Overall, Crypt of Shadows #1 is a fun set of stories which will have readers ready for All Hallow’s Eve. The stories by the different creators are exciting. The art by the different creators are gorgeous. Altogether, this book will remind readers exactly why we all get excited for this time of the year.

Story: Al Ewing, Danny Lore, Rebecca Roanhorse, Chris Cooper, Chris Condon, Adam Warren
Art: Ramon Bachs, Karen S. Darboe, Geoff Shaw, Ibrahim Moustafa, Fran Galán, Adam Warren
Color: Rain Beredo, Cris Peter, Arif Prianto, Neeraj Menon, James Campbell, Guru-eFX
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle

Review: X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1

Posted on July 13, 2022 by Brett

Last year’s Hellfire Gala delivered memorable moments. The X-Men’s godlike plans for Mars were revealed. There was a murder. It was a coming out of sorts further onto the world, and galactic, stage for the mutant nation. For all of the grand ideas of last year’s event, X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1 lacks pretty much all of that. It’s a rather choppy issue whose whole at times makes little sense.

Written by Gerry Duggan, X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1 revolves around the revelation of mutant resurrection to the world. It is now a known thing setting up questions, both in how will every react, and does it create a security issue. The answer to the first is, not in any realistic way and the latter is, of course. The event will be held and it’s just Avengers, X-Men, and some celebrities that attend. And that’s what’s rather odd. With such an announcement you’d either have world leaders there to protest or protesting and not going. None of that is addressed. The Avengers attend and kind of shrug their shoulders about it all instead flirting with Emma Frost. Even when it’s revealed that Mr. Fantastic had his mind wiped over something, no one seems pissed about it. It’s like everyone took pills to relax before. For a revelation that’s built up as world shattering, the end result during the Hellfire Gala is a reaction that lacks emotion. Even Doctor Doom, who would make a speech or plot around it, makes a joke about returning David Bowie. For something that’s set to such a high pedestal, no one beyond the X-Men are treating it as such.

Then there’s the Spider-Man tie-in. Moira as infiltrated the event through Mary Jane Watson and while there’s a confrontation it doesn’t result in much after it feels like. Wolverine heads to Spider-Man’s comic for an issue but you’d think there’d be some more action regarding this. Was anyone else compromised? No one is going to check? Shut the place down? Your enemy showed up and then gets away and there’s… talk. It’s all rather odd.

Finally, the election of the new X-Men team doesn’t feel like an election. Three members remain on the team, Emma suggests one, and then others feel like they’re volunteered. Where’s the election? Wouldn’t it had been better to have some suspense and have the mutants of Krakoa vote as some are nominated and show an actual “vote”? It’s rather odd in the execution.

But, many will be buying the comic for the fashion. Kris Anka, Russell Dauterman, Matteo Lolli, and CF Villa all provide the art. Rain Beredo, Frank Martin, Matt Milla, and Matthew Wilson handle the color. Cory Petit is on lettering. The designs are always interesting to see. Some are beautiful dresses but this year’s fashion doesn’t feel as inspired by last year’s. Maybe a theme for next year would be better? Overall though, it looks good and I can’t knock the visuals too much. But, it also doesn’t quite have the memorable moments like last year.

X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1 is not the sum of its parts. It is not a better whole than each individual piece. That’s partially because each individual piece is in itself rather odd. X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1 feels like a zero issue in some ways. It sets up A.X.E.: Judgement Day for the X-Men and like Eve of Judgement being from the Eternal’s point of view, this delivers the X-Men’s side. It’s an issue that had potential but it never quite lives up to the importance it claims it has.

Story: Gerry Duggan Art: Kris Anka, Russell Dauterman, Matteo Lolli, CF Villa
Color: Rain Beredo, Frank Martin, Matt Milla, Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Cory Petit Design: Tom Muller, Jay Bowen
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.5 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – TFAW – comiXology/Kindle

Review: Aquaman and The Flash: Voidsong #1

Posted on June 22, 2022 by Brett

An unknown alien force has come to Earth enslaving its populace to sing a song and at the same time seemingly freezing time. Only two heroes weren’t impacted, Aquaman and the Flash, opposites when it comes to personality and approach. Aquaman and The Flash: Voidsong #1 kicks of a miniseries that is more about its heroes interactions than the villain they’re taking on.

Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing are together again and bringing with them a duo of heroes who couldn’t be more different. And that’s where the fun is for Aquaman and The Flash: Voidsong #1. The opening of the comic takes the very smart approach as to who Kelly and Lanzing think these heroes are.

The Flash/Barry Allen is a hero who thinks things out and can see the bigger picture but misses the small details. Aquaman/Arthur Curry might be a leader but still feels he needs to get his hands dirty and can’t delegate. Both are a bit headstrong each having an argument with their significant others. The two together of course are going to clash if they have to cooperate to solve this issue as they both see their way as best. I’m sure the answer will come in their working together and somewhere in between the two’s separate approach.

The art by Vasco Georgiev is interesting. With color by Rain Beredo and lettering by Troy Peteri, the art has an animated cell quality about it at times. There’s a cartoonish aspect that’s interesting to see on the digital page. The colors make it all pop in style with solid moments of action as well as some great moments between the two heroes and their spouses. This is one where the body language and a look on the face really tell so much. Small visual details just add everything to the interactions.

Jackson and Lanzing have delivered another fun debut giving us high stakes, lots of action, and some great moments between Barry and Arthur. It’s another example that if you see their names on a comic, it’s one to pick up and give a chance, you’ll rarely be disappointed.

Story: Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing Art: Vasco Georgiev
Color: Rain Beredo Letterer: Troy Peteri
Story: 8.15 Art: 8.15 Overall: 8.15 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: comiXology/Kindle – Zeus Comics – TFAW

Review: Batman #122

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Brett

With a new creative team coming in a few months, Batman is at an interesting point. After an opening story arc that got the character out of Gotham for a bit, he’s back in the US and roped into “Shadow War“, the event that pits Deathstroke against the League of Assassins. Ra’s has been murdered and it looks like Deathstroke is the assassin. It’s a clash of titan villains as war has begun. Batman #122 is the second entry in the event that has Batman attempting to figure out the who, what, and why of it all as the upcoming clash promises to escalate.

Joshua Williamson delivers a good entry to the story that has Batman being a detective. He’s been pulled into the assassination to figure out who did it and why and uses his cool tech tools in an attempt to do so. For a character that has gone low-tech in previous issues as he’s lost his fortune, the use of these particular tools stand out as they feel a little beyond is current means and a bit like the “old” Batman with the bottomless fortune and unlimited R&D. Beyond that, it’s a good entry in the event. For those that missed the opening issue for “Shadow War”, Batman #122 does a good job of catching up readers as to what’s going on and what it all means. It also moves around the various puzzle pieces as battles play out. It moves the story along really well.

Howard Porter handles the art with Tomeu Morey‘s color and lettering by Clayton Cowles. The art is good though at times doesn’t quite feel like it totally fits Batman. I’ve loved Porter’s work elsewhere as it has a certain kinetic style that really fits characters that involve a lot of movement and action. Here, with a character being more of a detective, it doesn’t quite fit those particular scenes. But, it does work for fights throughout. It’s an interesting style that I generally like but not all the way here.

The issue also features a back-up story from Williamson, art by Trevor Hairsine, color by Rain Beredo, and lettering by Willie Schubert. The story is supposed to be the first meeting between Batman and Deathstroke. Deathstroke is hired to kill Robin which of course leads to a clash between the two. I don’t know the history enough of these two to really nail it all down for continuity but the comic has a nice retro feel to it all. There’s also an intriguing twist at the end where I want to read the next chapter and see where it goes.

There’s nothing inherently bad or wrong about Batman #122 that makes it a “read”. The comic is part of a mini-event that spans different series, so unless you’re really invested in the story, it’s an issue whose value really comes from that. There’s some interesting aspects to Batman’s actions but overall, unless you’re into “Shadow War”, this is an issue you can probably skip.

Story: Joshua Williamson Art: Howard Porter, Trevor Hairsine
Color: Tomeu Morey, Rain Beredo Letterer: Clayton Cowles, Willie Schubert
Story: 7.85 Art: 7.85 Overall: 7.85 Recommendation: Read

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: comiXology/Kindle – Zeus Comics

Aquaman and The Flash Must Team Up to Stop a Force From Beyond our Reality

Posted on February 25, 2022 by Graphic Policy Team

DC has announced a new series, Aquaman & The Flash: Voidsong from Collin Kelley, Jackson Lanzing, Vasco Georgiev, and Rain Beredo. The three issue miniseries launches in June and will be collected in paperback on October.

They descend suddenly from the stars, in monumental ships like floating cathedrals. They are touched by a dark and terrible force from beyond our reality, silent but for the one note they emit that freezes all motion. Their mission: to drain the Earth of all its kinetic energy and leave it a lifeless husk!

What the mysterious attackers didn’t count on is the Flash who was in the Speed Force when Earth was struck and Aquaman who was in a deep ravine far below the ocean’s floor. Though they’ve fought side by side, these two hereoes have little in common.

Aquaman & The Flash: Voidsong debuts with a 56-page first issue and a main cover by Jay Anacleto and open to order variant by Georgiev. It launches on June 21st!

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