Friday, January 28, 2011

Marvel Previews Review for March 2011 Part 2 of 2

Continuing the ongoing disaster known as Marvel Previews...

ANNIHILATORS #1 (OF 4)
Written by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Penciled by Tan Eng Huat & Timothy Green II
Covers by Alex Garner & Mike Mignola
Because you -- yes,you! -- demanded it: Marvel’s all-star cosmic team – and cult faves Rocket Raccoon & Groot – in one massive mini! The Silver Surfer! Beta-Ray Bill! Gladiator! Quasar! Ronan! When the Dire Wraiths strike, Cosmic Masters DnA and Tan Eng Huat assemble the heaviest hitters in all the universe to save the day! And there’s more! Plus: the demented duo of Rocket Raccoon and Groot return for their own, new-reader-friendly adventure! What do you do after you’ve saved the galaxy? DnA and the fabulous Timothy Green II answer that with madcap SF combat and swashbuckling, space-faring mayhem! 48 PGS./ $4.99
Lee: In case you missed it, Greg wrote a nice post praising D&A here. I am not sure how they do it but they always seem to write interesting stories that are highly entertaining. I'm betting this will be good too.
Greg: I think the world is a richer place that we're getting a Rocket Raccoon and Groot storyline. I'm hoping the Annhilators lead towards bringing Nova back or something though. I miss that book. Anyway, the wild card here is going to be Tan Eng Huat. He has a really unorthodox style that sometimes looks fantastic (Ghost Rider) and sometimes not (that Thor mini he's working on). This feels like something that's up his alley, so I guess we'll find out.

MARVEL ZOMBIES SUPREME #1 & #2 (OF 5)
Written by Frank MarrafFinoPencils by Fernando Blanco
Cover by Michael KomarckIssue One Variant Cover by Arthur Suydam
A Hunger Supreme! They were the Squadron Supreme, heroes exiled from another dimension to our own…but the twisted science of the Project Pegasus facility infected these defenders with a virulent zombie strain. Now it’s up to Jill Harper’s desperate special ops team to keep the plague contained within the facility—whatever the cost. But Harper discovers that the Squadron wasn’t the only unconscionable experiment being kept off the Pegasus records…and her shocking find may be the key to saving the human race. 32 PGS./ $3.99
Lee: Isn’t this series/concept dead yet? Is there a hero that hasn’t been zombiefied yet? Does anyone even buy these anymore?
Greg: Its appropriate that this is a series that can't be killed. I didn't think they could find a way to keep this book afloat creatively, but here we are.

DR. STRANGE: INTO THE DARK DIMENSION PREMIERE HC
Written by Roger Stern Penciled by Paul Smith, Bret Blevins & Mark Badger
Covers by Bret Blevins & Paul Smith
Collecting Dr. Strange (1974) #68-74. 168 PGS./ $24.99
THING: LIBERTY LEGION PREMIERE HC
Written by Roy Thomas Penciled by John Buscema, Sal Buscema, Rich Buckler, Dick Ayers, Frank Robbins & Don Heck
Covers by Jack Kirby
Collecting Invaders (1975) #5-6, Marvel Premiere #29-30, Fantastic Four Annual #11, And Marvel Two-In-One #20 And Annual #1 168 PGS./ $24.99
Lee: This is a double pick to once again point out the incomprehensible Marvel publishing pattern. First up is Dr Strange with art by Paul Smith at the absolute PEAK of his abilities. This is a great run with some amazing art. It will look great and be fun to re-read. Then we have the Liberty Legion collection which is a mish-mash of stories and art. It typifies Bronze age filler material and is a waste of the paper it is printed on. Who makes these decisions? The Dr. Strange stuff has always been well regarded because of the art, the Thing only by the completist.
Greg: Don't forget, everything has someone who loves it. Particularly in comics. That said, its nice to be getting some good Paul Smith work. He was my absolute favorite X-Men artist and I think its a crime that his career sort of fizzled after the Golden Age.

VENOM BY DANIEL WAY ULTIMATE COLLECTION TPB
Written by Daniel Way
Penciled by Francisco Herrera, Paco Medina, Sean Galloway & Skottie Young
Cover by Sam Kieth
Collecting Venom #1-18. 424 PGS./ $34.99
Lee: Let's start with I am gettin this. I love this group of artists so it's an easy sell. But the art is not for everyone. It is highly stylized and wildly exaggerated. Excellent stuff if you can appreciate something that isn't George Perez. As for the story, I believe this was written during the height of the decompression wave. It was slow in single issues but should read fine as a trade.
Greg: I don't really have a problem with the Humberto Ramos-esque art on these books, but this is the book that basically put me off Daniel Way forever.

THING CLASSIC VOL. 1 TPB
Written by John Byrne
Penciled, Cover by Ron Wilson
Collecting Thing(1983) #1-10., 232 PGS./$24.99
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE CAPTAIN TPB
Written by Mark Gruenwald
Penciled by Tom Morgan & Kieron Dwyer
Cover by Kieron Dwyer
Collecting Captain America #332-350 and Iron Man #228, 520 PGS./ $39.99
Lee: I love this new trend towards huge color tpb's collecting older material. As a collector, I don't think this will hold re-sale value worth a crap. But, as a reader, I am psyched. Some of this material is pretty good. I am not sure the Thing stuff is great, but the Cap stuff was really good.
Greg: Lee, can you explain the appeal of Gruenwald Cap? Cap's my favorite superhero AND I'm a huge liberal, so this stuff should be completely in my wheelhouse, but every time I read it, I'm just kinda underwhelmed. That said, I certainly seem to be in the minority on that front.
Lee: Someday we shall discuss why you despise Way's Venom and why I love Gruenwald's cap. But that is for another day.

Greg: I think this was a strong month for Marvel. Good reprints, solid ongoings. Not alot of Daniel Way. Good stuff. And now, for the opposition party response...
Lee: For all my complaining it really isn't a bad month from Marvel. I get more of the reprint material and there's plenty for me to choose from. But, I feel it unfair to my fans to end on a positive note so... it sucks that Marvel is started to reprint material that I want to read because it's gonna crush my budget. Darn you Marvel.

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