I Want My Marvel NOW: Uncanny X-Men #1, Secret Avengers #1, and Fearless Defenders #1

Uncanny! Secret! Fearless! That's a lot of leading adjectives; some carry more weight than others. Uncanny is, of course, the X-Men legacy title (not to be confused with the title X-Men Legacy). Secret Avengers is a book that's been riding the brakes since its inception, switching writers several times and suffering the burden of being a "sidebar"  for multiple cross-overs. Fearless Defenders is yet another revival of the Defenders team, hot on the heels of Matt Fraction's version (which was a sales non-starter - but this brand is pretty much always a sales non-starter).

Cover to Uncanny X-Men #1, art by Chris Bachalo. Marvel Comics.

Uncanny X-Men #1 is more or less a spin-off from All-New X-Men, the other X-book by writer Brian Michael Bendis, and the more satisfying one, to be honest. We're still dealing with the aftermath of AVX, which saw Cyclops committing an act so heinous, he's been ostracized by (most) of his fellow X-Men. Bendis is casting him as a reckless mutant revolutionary leader, snapping up mutants as quick as they appear for the greater good of...something.

Scott's vision of what it means to be an X-Men isn't exactly clear to me. He seems defined by not wanting to be either Professor X nor Magneto, but what does that mean? What's the middle ground? Bendis lets us know (in All-New, not here) that Scott's building of a small army is an attempt to redeem himself, and the first issue reveals a major stumbling block in that plan.

WILL I BE BACK FOR MORE? Too many X-Men books! Right now, this is my third favorite after Wolverine and the X-Men and All-New, so I can't guarantee that I'll stay with this one. To be honest, though not a bad book, I'm not terribly interested in Cyclops or the band of angry mutants he's surrounded by (Emma Frost, Magneto, Magik).

Cover to Secret Avengers #1, art by Tom Coker. Marvel Comics.

I think writer Nick Spencer may be on the cusp of being a Next Big Thing, but Secret Avengers #1 shares some of the problems I have with his creator-owned book Bedlam, and it's clarity of storytelling. Reading Bedlam, I thought it was just my comprehension skills being called into question. Now I suspect that Spencer isn't always a crystal-clear communicator. He's good with characters and his books feel dense, but the finer points of the plot get muddled in my head. If you caught me right after a Spencer book and quizzed me on what I just read, I would probably fail.

Secret Avengers #1 returns the title to being a full-on espionage book, in which various Avengers are recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D. to handle missions so precarious that they have to have their memories wiped upon successful completion. The first issue throws Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Nick Fury Jr. (as I'll be referring to the Samuel Jacksonized Fury from here on out) into a case involving a mystic cult.

It's funny - I read this month's Avengers Assemble the same night as Secret Avengers, and both books had Hawkeye and Black Widow going on secret missions away from the Avengers team. Assemble's story was quick and basic; Secret's felt edgier and more convoluted. Immediately after, I thought Secret was the superior of the two, but if you asked me right now, I could tell you exactly, beat-for-beat, what happens in Assemble. I can't do that from memory for Secret. Take that as you will.

WILL I BE BACK FOR MORE? Ehh, no. It has its audience, though, and it's nice to see the book swing back into a distinct spy flavor of Avengers that's different from the flagship book.

Covert art for Fearless Defenders #1, art by Mark Brooks. Marvel Comics.

We love B-movies, but is there such a thing as a B-comic? One you feel a little guilty for enjoying? Fearless Defenders #1 is a an action ride that really exemplifies how comics aren't just the writing or just the art, but an overall package of all that plus storytelling plus concept that add up to one unique experience. Cullen Bunn and William Sliney have turned the deadest property of the Marvel NOW line into a scrappy underdog of a book.

I don't know much about Misty Knight, but she's appealingly tough and she has a golden cybernetic arm. Valkyrie is a Defenders mainstay from way, way back, and has had a little more exposure over the past few years during Fear Itself and its extended epilogue The Fearless. The two ladies team up here to fight re-animated Viking corpses brought back to life by the song from a mysterious artifact.

It ain't Maus, but it's thrilling in its own slam-bang way. Bunn's work feels refreshingly pressure-free, not trying to stand out as the Most Important Marvel U Must-Read, and Sliney's thick linework and mastery of action sequences display a foundation in simple cartooning that's a welcome change from Marvel's typical well-rendered talking heads.

WILL I BE BACK FOR MORE? Lord help me, yes. This is my new guilty pleasure book - the one I will recommend while sheepishly dragging my toes on the ground. I hope it doesn't let me down.

Transformer Roll-Out: 'Transformers: Prime' #4 Advance Review

Julian Titus is a writer for PixlBit.com and the host of the Nerds Without Pants podcast. He's also the biggest Transformers fan I've ever met and will be covering IDW's Transformers comics right here on a regular basis. This week, he's got an advance look at the latest issue of Transformers Prime...

I didn’t know what to expect from Transformers: Prime. I haven’t seen any of the animated series beyond the original miniseries, and I expected issue 4 to be so far into an arc that it might be hard to follow. Thankfully, I’ve followed the Transformers across multiple iterations since the beginning, and it’s cool to find out that the comic adaptation of Prime actually has a lot of its roots in the recent video games from High Moon Studios - War for Cybertron and Fall of Cybertron.

Variant cover for Transformers: Prime #4, art by High Moon Studios. Hasbro/IDW Publishing.

Transformers: Prime #4 is focused on the Dinobots. Actually, make that the DINOBOTS, considering the somewhat annoying lettering in this issue anytime they’re mentioned. Grimlock and company have rescued Ultra Magnus, but now they find themselves face to face with Shockwave. Fans of those aforementioned games will remember that it was Shockwave that transformed the former Autobot elite squad into massively powerful creatures based on lifeforms found on a remote planet which we call Earth. If you didn’t know, don’t worry - Shockwave explains it in great detail, as he’s known to do.

This is what I would call a “bridge” issue. There really isn’t a lot of action here, and most of the book fleshes out the origins of the Dinobots in this version of the Transformers universe, and sets up Shockwave as a perfect foil for the somewhat slow-witted Autobot team. Really, this issue (and I assume the previous three issues) is nothing more than a launching point for Transformers: Prime: Beast Hunters, yet another ongoing series that focuses on the Dinobots.

As my intro to the Prime comic universe, issue 4 wasn’t a bad jumping-on point, especially since it was a refresher course on the video game backstory. I’m not too sure about Beast Hunters, as I’ve only ever loved Grimlock when he’s written by Simon Furman. I also have concerns about IDW overextending themselves, as this will mark the 5th ongoing Transformers book in their stable. It will take me a few more issues to see how much I dig Prime, but you can be sure to check back each week for more Transformers goodness.

Review: Wolfman and Colan Reunite in New 'Curse of Dracula' Collection

They say you can't go home again, but in the late 1990s, writer Marv Wolfman was asked by Dark Horse Comics to team up with frequent collaborator Gene Colan on an all-new Dracula book. The duo were once responsible for one of the all-time best runs on a horror comic, Marvel's Tomb of Dracula, in the 1970s. Dark Horse was looking to capture lightning in a bottle a second time with an all-new mini-series, The Curse of Dracula, but the book didn't find a break-through audience at the time. Colan passed away in 2011, ending any continuation that this version of Dracula might have had. 

So, historically speaking, this is already an interesting book - the re-uniting of a dream team to re-invent the iconic horror character that helped define their careers. The three issues have been collected into a new hardback edition by Dark Horse, perhaps as a show of respect to Wolfman and Colan, but I'd also imagine the comics market is more receptive to vampire books now than they were back in 1998. Regardless, for fans of the creators or the titular blood-sucker, this is a win.

It's not as boldly different from Tomb of Dracula as Wolfman seems to think that it is, as outlined in his introduction to the book. Dracula himself has been updated into a younger-looking, hipper figure than Marvel's mustachioed menace, but Wolfman still assembles a core team of damaged-goods vampire hunters whose sole purpose in life is to vanquish the Prince of Darkness once and for all. By making it more contemporary, Wolfman changes Dracula's motivations somewhat, with political power, not the blood of innocents, driving his every decision.

Colan was 71 when he drew this, and clearly hadn't lost a bit of his magic. The art here is presented with modern computer coloring, but stripped of inks, allowing Colan's pencil marks to show through the mostly-blue palette. The artistic middle ground between impressionism and realism displayed here is uniquely Colan's. His figures are wispy sketches in perpetual motion, contained in skewed panels that are never aligned to a grid, yet the distinct faces of his characters and the moody lighting suggest the use of in-studio life models. At this age, his pages are still imbued with kinetic energy, and he's not afraid to get experimental when it comes to layout (one great panel with Dracula's head thrown back in a scream leads to a road spewing straight from his mouth to the scene of a driving car).

Wolfman feels slightly tentative as a writer here, despite more adult content than Marvel would allow in the 1970s, perhaps trying to straddle a line between creating something new while appealing to people who loved the old stuff (film critics have dubbed this "sequelitis"). The three issues collected here tell one story, but with a cliffhanger ending that I'm sure would've been explored in-depth had this series caught on with readers. If Wolfman could've found the balance between the old and the new that he was looking for, the book might've evolved into something really special for Dark Horse.

This is a worthy package, though, despite any whiffs of unfulfilled potential that linger around the book. The heroes are weird and flawed, Dracula is sexual and sinister, and Colan's art shines through every page. The older I get, the more I've come to appreciate him as an artist. Since we won't be getting any new work from Mr. Colan, it's up to Dark Horse to keep his memory alive through reprints like this one. I think they've done him proud.

Into the Pit: 'G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero' #187 and 'Snake Eyes & Storm Shadow' #21

Tyler Mager is a writer for CollegeMovieReview.com and a filmmaker based out of Austin, TX. He also happens to be an enthusiastic G.I. Joe fan and will cover IDW's Joe comics in his new regular feature "Into the Pit." Take it away, Tyler...

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #187

Starting in the middle of a run always scares me a bit.  I’m a little insane about picking up from the beginning in hopes of not missing a single plot point, surprise or revelation.  Luckily for me (and the readers), veteran G.I. Joe writer Larry Hama makes it crystal clear what’s going on even if it’s through stilted, cliché dialogue that unfortunately spends too much time on exposition and not enough time building character.  With much of the issue’s focus on lesser-known characters from the Joe ranks, this approach helps identify them but we never see any distinguishing characteristics to separate them from the pack. 

Cover to G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #187, art by S.L. Galant. Hasbro/IDW Publishing.

The action switches consistently between the Joe's rescue mission, Darklon’s escape and Jinx’s top-secret excursion. At times S.L. Gallant’s art gets a bit chaotic, forcing some weird angles that frame out key moments.  Characters sometimes fall or get injured only to be seemingly fine a few pages later. To add to the confusion, many of these newer (at least to me) troopers look so similar that when Lieutenant Falcon shouts out orders, I can’t tell who’s doing what.

There’s an inherent goofiness that Hama uses to his advantage to get some cheap laughs.  Specifically there’s a ridiculous prison break featuring fake puke that plays like a scene from the 80's cartoon. I actually admire this approach, as it would have been easier to keep it as gritty and modern G.I. Joe, but instead, it almost dares you not to enjoy at least some aspect of it at a nostalgic level.  G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero isn’t my kind of comic, but I appreciate the change in focus by highlighting newer characters, many of whom I never knew existed.  I just wish I had a sense of who any of them are beyond their silly call signs.

Snake Eyes & Storm Shadow #21

The last time Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow squared off, only Storm Shadow emerged from the duel alive. With this final issue, Chuck Dixon has orchestrated an interesting way to end the spin-off series - a completely silent issue that reflects the dedicated nature of the two lead rivals (Editor's note: Sounds like Dixon is paying homage to the classic 1984 Joe story "Silent Interlude!"). Issue 21 is pure visual storytelling with Dixon taking a backseat, instead relying on the excellent skills of Robert Atkins and Atilio Rojo who prove they are more than up for the task.

The story begins in 1632 with ninja clans battling over a sword inscribed with some sort of a snake.  Fast-forward to 2012 where that same sword is found causing some terrorists, Storm Shadow and the Hard Master to collide in a flurry of violence to obtain the mysterious ancient weapon.  Swords slice and arrows are loosed as the action is expertly told through a Hollywood-style sequence that thrills.

Some questions are answered while others are saved for the upcoming G.I. Joe reboot but as an experimental piece of comic book storytelling you can’t really get much better than this.  It’s unique, beautifully drawn and earns every bit of its gimmick through not just the fantastic action but an emotional last few pages that immediately puts this title on my catch-up list.

Review: The Plot Thickens in John Byrne's 'The High Ways' #2

I don't know if I will end up reviewing every issue in this series, but I had such a personal reaction to The High Ways #1, that I wondered if the second issue would cause me as much conflict. I didn't give it a negative review, but I couldn't get a handle on the book's hook, and I wondered if my love for John Byrne was getting in the way of viewing it more objectively.

I feel much better about the second issue. Byrne's telling a small-scale sci-fi mystery, something that wasn't 100% clear with the first issue, and I'm in to see how the whole thing plays out. The set-up saw a three-person crew manning a kind-of tow truck spaceship get called out to a remote station on a false alarm. Here, that mystery is expanded upon with flair, as the lead character Sprout unearths deception, alien animal poaching, and mysterious stowaways.

As always with Byrne, the art serves the story. He gets attacked sometimes for a "sameness" to his character types, but I see most artists settle into a couple of types of faces they're comfortable drawing, and stick with those for their whole careers. I'm not sure why Byrne gets grief for it. Of particular note are the two black leads of The High Ways, who provide a solid example of organic on-the-rack diversity. They're black because they can be. Why make them white like every other sci-fi book on the stands? It's a happy kind of progressive, where the creator is thinking outside of their own drawing table for a change.

So, yes, I've come to peace with what The High Ways is offering, and I'm curious to see it through to the end. "Old-fashioned" can sound like an insult these days; so can "quaint," so for lack of a better word, let's call The High Ways...reliable. We can rely on Byrne for a level of competency and professionalism, no matter the project. The High Ways is a reliable space adventure, low on spectacle and high on mystery. I'm in.

(The High Ways #2 is available now.)

Transformer Roll-Out: 'Transformers Regeneration One' #88 Advance Review

Julian Titus is a writer for PixlBit.com and the host of the Nerds Without Pants podcast. He's also the biggest Transformers fan I've ever met and will be covering IDW's Transformers comics right here on a regular basis. This week, he's got an advance look at the latest issue of Transformers Regeneration One...

So far, the prime directive of Transformers Regeneration One has seemingly been Simon Furman doing away with all the characters and gimmicks he was forced to introduce into the original series 20 years ago. Clearing out the Head Masters, Action Masters, and the like, the series has felt more like a purge than a continuation of a licensed comic book that was far better than it had any right to be. Now that he’s finished culling the Transformers universe, it seems like Furman is finally building to something that moves the Regeneration timeline forward.

Covert art for Transformers Regeneration One #88, art by Andrew Wildman. Hasbro/IDW Publishing.

Scorponok continues to make his power play for the Decepticon leadership, bolstered by his newly recruited Autobots (made aggressive thanks to unlocking the “warrior gene” within) and the conflicted Grimlock. I find it odd that the altered Autobots immediately turn on their comrades, implying that every Transformer is just one line of code away from being a killing machine. It makes for a bleak version of the Autobots that’s very close in tone to the current Robots in Disguise series, which I’m not a fan of. Hopefully, some of the converted Autobots will turn that newly found aggression on their enemies, which would certainly be a more interesting development than the good guys simply becoming bad guys.

Far more interesting are the secondary stories in this issue. Hot Rod is still deep in the bowels of Cybertron, hoping to commune with Primus, the Transformer god. He runs afoul of some familiar creatures that long time readers will recognize, and what he finds has tantalizing implications for the future of the series. Soundwave gets a hint of Bludgeon’s grand plan, and back on Earth, Galvatron finds something that could help him return to power.

The first 7 issues of Regeneration One were all about cleaning the slate. Now, the stage is set to change the Transformers universe in big ways. Between Hot Rod searching for legends and relics and the potential for a three-way Decepticon civil war, the future of Regeneration may be bleak, but it’s also quite interesting.

(Transformers Regeneration One #88 hits stands Wednesday, February 13.)