Every week, comic fandom is gifted with a slew of fantastic stories from a slew of fantastic creators. These days there’s just so much good stuff out there that it can be a bit overwhelming, especially if you’re new to comics. Thus AIPT presents to you, Fantastic Five! A weekly column where we pick five fantastic books released during the week and tell you why you should take a chance on them via a snippet from our reviews.
Enjoy, and happy reading!
Listen to the latest episode of our weekly comics podcast
Hawkeye: Freefall #2
Words by Matthew Rosenberg. Art by Otto Schmidt.
I appreciated how the book would interlock Clint scenes with something happening with Ronin — plus, getting the confrontations of Ronin with Spider-Man and other thugs helped to not just have talking heads in funny scenes, as it kept the action moving and showcased Otto’s dynamic art. As I was reading the issue I did laugh at how Clint was starting to feel almost like Bruce Wayne with all of this money and witty charm…then I started to see that Ronin was also talking in a voice similar to Christian Bale’s Batman. So, in this issue follow the money, see how it comes and see where it goes. I won’t spoil the last page for you — it does provide evidence in who Ronin is, but I’ll be honest: I don’t think I can trust it. (10/10)
–Christopher Franey
X-Men #5
Words by Jonathan Hickman. Art by R.B. Silva.
This is yet another good issue in the series that aims to detail something new in every issue while reminding us Cyclops is flipping awesome. He’s the glue that keeps this book together as the creators probe new threats for mutants and the X-Men to be fearful of going forward. (9.5/10)
–David Brooke
Thor #2
Words by Donny Cates. Art by Nic Klein.
Klein does a great job capturing the scale of Galactus and the new look and powers of Thor. The Cosmic Marvel universe tends to be bright and hopeful, but here there’s a darker edge to everything. Props to color artist Matthew Wilson who is able to darken the page while reminding us there’s a brightness in there somewhere. You can see it in Thor’s hair in the above image where it’s white in the light but darkens in the shadows. There seems to be a shadow hanging over so much in this book and Wilson makes it look natural. Galactus is still clad in purple, but he has foreboding shadows around him to remind us this is not going to end well. Galactus is terrifying no matter the angle in this book. Joe Sabino’s letters do well to balance the captions versus the dialogue and you have to love the cosmic crackle surrounding a few of the word balloons. (9.5/10)
–David Brooke
Justice League #39
Words by Scott Snyder. Art by Daniel Sampere, Jorge Jimenez, & Juan Albarran.
This is a brave and bold finish to a 10-part story that had a lot riding on it. What could have rang as false is handled with truth and vision. In its final moments Justice League proves the team, much like the heroes on it, can be a force used to inspire hope and empowerment. There is a message here that is crafted not to be against anything like war or violence but is positive in its hope for compassion, life, and finding the hero inside all of us. We just need to believe it’s there. (9.5/10)
–David Brooke
Something is Killing the Children #5
Words by James Tynion IV. Art by Werther Dell’edera.
Readers don’t need to see every nightmare-inducing limb of this cave-dwelling creature terrorizing Archer’s Peak, as the imagination of what this beast looks like in full is somehow more skin-crawling than a double splash page of the children-killing monster. That line work from Dell’Edera is the perfect alley-oop lob for Muerto’s coloring, who easily lands the slam dunk. The way his reds pop so vibrantly against this issue’s dark backgrounds are reminiscent of Dave Stewart’s legendary work with Hellboy, as Erica’s blood-splattered look will sit with the audience long after they’ve put this issue down. (9/10)
–Shamus Clancy
You must be logged in to post a comment Login