Quickies!

X-Force #26

This is the fifth part of the "Second Coming" storyline, that has taken over all of the X-books. Since it is a part of that story, there is little to no members of X-Force in this book. It just follows the A-list X-men as they try and rescue Hope, the supposed mutant messiah. That may be a bum out for you, if you really only want to read about the X-Force team in a book called X-Force that is.

The story is pretty rad though. I've really enjoyed the "Second Coming" story thus far, and I'm not really that into the X-Men. That means they have to try extra hard for me to give a crap about their adventures, and it's working! This issue has a lot of fights, good dialogue, and an ending that is a real swift kick in the boys...and by "boys", I mean my groin.

Seriously, the ending is rough. You should probably buy this issue now, as it may be collectible in the future.


Invincible #71

Hey! Invincible is back! I'm so glad that this book has stopped being put behind schedule due to Image United! Image United #3 still has not come out by the way! Laugh with me about that! HAHAHAH!

Anyways, back to a book that matters. This book picks up where Invincible Returns (the one shot from a few weeks ago) left off. Mark is back in his old costume and he is getting ready to leave Earth to go fight viltrumites. Not too much happens in this issue though. There are a couple fights, and some talking. It's nothing we haven't seen already, or wasn't covered in Invincible Returns for that matter. Ryan Ottley's pencils are still awesome, but that isn't anything new either.

It's kind of like getting a cup of coffee with an old friend just to catch up on things. The next time you hang out, new things will happen. For right now though, just kick back and remember when you were together. That's how I feel about this issue, it's like an old friend has finally started talking to me again after a rough time. I'm glad this friend is back.


Punisher #16

The "Frankencastle" arc comes to a close in this issue, and it is AWESOME. Every issue of this series has been a gem thus far. They have had amazing action sequences, great dialogue that is full of wit, and the art is detailed and full of energy.

If you were upset over The Punisher getting turned into a Frankenstine, then I must implore you to give this series a shot. It's probably the most fun I've had reading comics in the past two years. The Punisher remains in character, except he can kill more people at a faster rate. That's pretty great, but what if I told you that there were monsters and tons on Engrish speaking Japanese monster hunters as well? That's right, you're starting to get it now, it's amazing. Every person that I have convinced to buy this book has been coming back for more every month, and this issue is no exception.

If you still enjoy things that are fun in your life, and you don't totally suck...you should be reading The Punisher.

-Action Chad
chad@coastcitycomics.net

Hiatus is becoming an ugly word

As some of you know, the last issues of Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy shipped this week. According to Marvel, they will be going on a hiatus after these issues, while their next big space event story (Thanos Imperative) is being published. Since all of the characters from both Nova and Guardians will be featured in the story, it will be like you're buying their normal issues. One would assume, when using a word like hiatus, that the books would resume once Thanos Imperative has run its course. So why am I treating these are their last issues?

The reason for that is because another one of my favorite books from Marvel was put on hiatus a while ago, Iron Fist. This was a great series that seemed to end for almost no reason. The sales weren't low and the stories were good. I haven't met a person who didn't like that series. That's saying something, given how jaded the comic community can get. Yet the book was shelved, under the guise that it would return at a later date. It's been over a year now, and no sign of Iron Fist returning. Meanwhile, Hulked Out Heroes one shots seem to be coming into our shop every week... I wish I could figure out the complex equation that Marvel has developed that determines what gets printed and what doesn't.

So, should I hold out with cautious optimism for Nova or Guardians to return? I don't think so. I'm going to begrudgingly accept that this is the end of two of my favorite series. Two series that I have been shamelessly plugging since my first day of employment at Coast City. I highly recommend coming in and grabbing the trades and back issues for these series. They have awesome characters, stories, art, and a raccoon that fires massive guns. I really don't know what else you would be looking for in a comic. I can only hope that my reasoning is wrong, that the series will return as suggested...but they're probably not.

Also, I'm going to write a letter to Marvel about this. I'll post that once I do.

Black Widow #1 Review

Hey guys! Are you into mystery, action, and sexy spies? If the answer is yes, then run right out into the streets, and buy the first issue of the new Black Widow series.

The story, by Marjorie Liu, starts off with the Black Widow, a.k.a Natasha Romanov, meeting an old friend from her Russian spy days. They discuss a mysterious note she received, which she hoped her friend would know something about. Unfortunately, her friend has no answers. He warns her that she should proceed with caution, and they depart. His warnings were more than warranted, as Natasha is attacked in the street. She is knocked out by her attackers, who then perform surgery on her in the street! The intrigue and insanity escalate from this point on, resulting in one of the more brutal scenes I've seen in a comic. Once you get into it, you can't put it down.

Marjorie Liu handles the title character well, in the Widow's debut issue. The dialogue between characters, especially between Captain America (her BF) and herself, is handled well. If you have no idea who these characters are, or what their past is, you will know that they have known each other for a while and have deep relationships. The story moves along at a brisk pace, providing a great mix of action and entertaining dialogue.

The art in this book is great too. Daniel Acuna provides gripping visuals, that help immerse you into Natasha's gritty world. His line work is expressive and detailed. You could go through this book without any words and know exactly what's going on. The coloring in this book is vibrant and dark in all the right places. It really catches your eye, and leads you along the page well. It's good stuff guys!

This book is full of action, suspense, and drama. It's an all around good read that deserves your attention. If you're still not interested, even after all that I wrote, then you should know that Captain America, Wolverine, and Iron Man are in this issue too. Now we're up to action, suspense, drama, beautiful art, and awesome guest stars. This issue has it all!

Kick Ass

I'll admit that when I first read the Kick-Ass comic books, that I had a hard time getting behind it. I just can't get into genital electrocution in a comic book for some reason. There's probably something wrong with me.

Anyways, when I went to go see this film, I had neutral expectations as to how this film would turn out. I wasn't emotionally invested in the characters, based upon the comic book. It could have been bad or good, it didn't matter to me.

With that being said, I really liked this movie. When these characters are presented in the medium of film, using real people, I ended up really liking them. I got nervous for them when they were in tough spots and happy when they succeeded. I was invested now. Every actor in this cast displayed a unique character, and they interacted well with each other. After the first few scenes, I was behind Kick-Ass.

The soundtrack for this movie really helps to accentuate several scenes. It included emotional instrumentals, pop rock covers, and even a live recording of a song which even had the audience clapping and cheering at the end. It helps make the scenes that much more fun. Kudos to whoever did the soundtrack selection for this movie.

The action scenes are over the top, gruesome, and fun. I know there were several times that I screamed out "YESSSS!!!" during the film after seeing a particularly awesome beat down (yeah I'm that guy, but to my defense there were only like seven people in the audience). Any action buff would be doing themselves a disservice by missing this film in theaters.

Everything I've mentioned thus far is mainly due to Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl. She was amazing in this film and deserves every bit of positive praise she receives. The other actors in this movie are good, but Ms. Moretz was just that much better. Her and Nick Cage have great chemistry on the screen as the father/daughter crime fighting duo. If I ever have a daughter in the future, I want her to be like Hit Girl. Deal with that statement ladies and gentlemen.

If you are still on the fence, then I'll sum it up like this. Kick-Ass is Kill Bill #1 meets Superbad. If you liked both of those movies, then go see it. If not, then this movie may not be for you. I loved it, but I love over the top crazy stuff. In the end, I think you will agree that this movie was aptly named...it kicks ass.

Ideas!

Here's an idea for a new comic book series starring Etrigan the Demon! Let's have him become a rapper that solves mysteries. He already speaks in rhymes all the time, so he might as well BUST them!

He would travel around the world on tour with his posse. His posse would consist of Deadman, G'Nort, and a resurrected Biggie Smalls. These comics are going to print money! Etrigan is going to be stacking paper to the ceiling!

His first mystery to solve would be who is the snitch? Once the snitch is discovered by Etrigan, he would assuredly receive the stitches that typically accompany snitches. Naturally, more mysteries would develop while he is on tour, each with amazing results.

Would this be awesome? The answer is a resounding yes.

Boston Comic Con 2010!

Wow, we had an awesome weekend at this years Boston Comic Con. There were so many cool costumes, deals, and awesome people. We got a lot of awesome sketches from Franco Aureliani ,of Tiny Titans fame. He was a real class act, make sure to look him up if he attends a convention near you!

We had a lot of fun, so I wanted to share with you the pictures I was able to take of the event. They're mostly of the awesome costumes that people made. Enjoy!

Our tables, a.k.a the cool kids tables.

Two Face, Joker and Harley Quinn

Superman's pal, Jimmy Olsen

Sue Storm, Mockingbird, and Raven

Kraven the Hunter and Mr. Negative

Poison Ivy

Wonder Woman

Baroness and Mankind (He did use Mr. Socko on her, it was too funny.)

The Jedi from Force Unleashed

Me with Cap's shield! I threw it across the room and hit the Red Skull in the face. Good times!


Adam showing his modeling range. This was after he beat up several Hydra agents.


Chun Li (She tried to jump off a wall and kick me, but I hit her with the Dragon Punch. She falls for it every time.)

Wonder Woman, this time with a cape!

This R2-D2 really moved around and made all of the noises! It also played a song by Sting! It was amazing!

Domino, Scarecrow, and Sabretooth

Waldo and Carmen San Diego (Rockapella was strangely absent)

Awesome Sinestro costume.

Rogue and Gambit

Joker's goon, female Scarecrow, and The Joker (from the video game Arkham Asylum)

Franco drew this for Adam. Hilarious.

This speaks for itself.

R2 took us to Hooters later. That droid parties HARD.

- Action Chad
chad@coastcitycomics.net

Quickies

Ultimate X #2

Wow, this series keeps taking me by surprise. I haven't decided whether it's really that good, or if it's because my expectations were so low heading into it that not being terrible makes it good. Food for thought!

This issue introduces the second character of team Ultimate X, Karen Page. Her introduction is far darker than Jimmy Hudson's. It's riddled with tragedy, you really feel for Karen as you learn more about her life as a mutant in hiding. Towards the end of the story, a couple of familiar faces show up and cause what was foreshadowed on the cover of this issue. It's an intense moment where you really get to see what Karen can do with her mutant powers. It's pretty awesome.

If you've been weary of giving this title a shot, I recommend that you do. It's taken me by surprise, and I'm loving it so far. Oh! I'll leave you with this. Karen Page is not her real name! Read it and find out, it's cool!

Star Wars: Purge

I love stories where you get to see Darth Vader be a bad ass. That's why I liked this issue!

Set between episodes 3 and 4 of the movie series, we find Darth Vader overseeing the construction of the first imperial walkers. Occasionally he is drawn to battle outside of the factory, where he quickly dispatches the rebels. Vader's frustration is growing, as he senses a Jedi in the distance of this planet. Despite the Emperor's warnings to not pursue the Jedi, Vader takes off to find him. What follows after that is a cool, but tragic, result that typically happens to Vader.

If you're a fan of Star Wars, then you should pick this one up. The art is great and the story is awesome. Also, it has giant monsters in it. You can't go wrong!

Spider-Man: Fever #1

First off, I loved this issue because Spider-Man is in it. Second, it has Dr. Strange in it, which makes it doubly awesome. Third, Brendan McCarthy makes this look like a beautiful acid trip and that makes it triplely awesome! Triplely is not a word guys, I just made it up!

The story involves Dr. Strange opening an ancient book he shouldn't have. This is a pretty common thing for Dr. Strange. It releases some magical energy, which then opens a gate that allows some ancient spider creatures to enter our world. Naturally, Spider-Man gets caught up in this mess and well...it's a trip and a half. I can't put Mr. McCarthy's art into words, while doing it justice. You need to hold this book in your hands and experience it for yourself.

This book has a cool story, awesome art, and features Spider-Man. What more could you ask for? Also, it's a lot cheaper than buying the drugs necessary for you to see ancient spider deities. That's me just saving you money right there.

Thor and the Warriors Four #1

It's no mystery that we love books like Tiny Titans and Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers at Coast City. With that being said, it didn't surprise me that I really enjoyed this issue.

The issue starts off with the kids from Power Pack finding out that their Grandmother is dying. Yikes! That's a bumout. Luckily for them, they live in the Marvel Universe. Where things like Asgard and apples that cure all diseases are. The gang sets out to find Thor, but instead finds Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers (yay!). This is great for them as Frog Thor, who is Asgardian, is on that team. He agrees to help them out, and shenanigans ensue from there.

I can't speak highly enough of the fact that there is a character called Frog Thor. He's Thor, but a frog...it's flippin' genius! I hope someone in the Marvel offices got a bonus for this guy being created.

Seriously though, this book is a lot of fun. It's actually something you can read with your kids, if you have them that is. I don't have kids and I still liked it though...I guess it's just enjoyable for everyone. Just read it already, it has Frog Thor in it!

He's coming to your house

Better get another chair for the dinner table!

First Friday

Here is some photos from our First Friday exhibit! All of this awesome work is by Ban Bru of 3-D Montser. Dan is a super nice guy and does great work.If you're interested in viewing more of his stuff then check out his website.

This Spider-Man piece belongs to me now!

We also had Poverty free styling past closing hours.

Thanks Dan!

Wow, that's rough Archie...

This is the real cover, to the first issue, of Archie Loves Veronica. I just added in what we were all thinking anyways!

Review: JLA #43

WARNING: This review will contain spoilers! So, don't be a baby if you read something you didn't want to know yet!

I apparently hate myself today, because I chose to review Justice League of America #43. I'll let the rest of this review speak for that statement, read on!

The issue begins with a flashback from Green Arrows perspective. We see the JLA, the old one featured on the cover on the left, fighting the Shaggy Man (why does this seem familiar?). After the battle is over, we then cut back to Green Arrow being alone at the Watchtower. He's fighting off the bad guys that broke in last issue (Now I remember! Grant Morrison already did these stories! They were better when he did them! -1,000 points!). It looks like Green Arrow is in trouble guys!

I'm going to sidetrack from the story for a second if you don't mind, because this is bugging me. These villains that he's fighting, an evil version of the New Gods I guess, are just horribly designed. I just wanted you to know how ugly I think they are. One of them looks like Fortress from Image United, which is a sin against my eyes (I threw up in my mouth a hundred times just writing that sentence -1,000 points).

Anyways, back to the "action". We cut to Blackhawk Island, where the rest of the Justice League is fighting the other half of the group of villains that invaded the Watchtower. Keep in mind, I don't have a group name for these villains. That's because one has not been provided by the author. I would address them by their name, as opposed to the generic term "villains", if I could. I do know that one of them is call Chair though...yep, just Chair. It would be cool if all the villains were named after furniture, but sadly this isn't the case (Not having a villain named Papasan -100 points). There are only two positive things that occur in the next six pages. The first thing is that Batman doesn't help them fight, he just sits on the sideline, thinking about how this team sucks (at least we're on the same page +500 points). The second thing, there is a talking Gorilla man on this team (thank f@#$%^ god +500 points).

We the cut back to the Watchtower, Green Arrow is on the run from the villains and ducks into the room where Red Tornado's head and body are (UGH! Red Tornado?? Could this issue get worse? -500 points). In case you don't know, Red Tornado is a robot, hence the being alive while being in two parts thing. Anyways, Red Tornado manages to control his headless body and dispatches the villains when they arrive with a wind blast. The villains take off after that. Green Arrow takes off as well, in an emo huff. The head of Red Tornado is slightly annoyed by this (the body is indifferent -100 points).

Meanwhile on Blackhawk Island, the rest of the team is STILL arguing with each other (I hate this -500 points). They then head back to the Watchtower and discover it's been trashed by the bad guys. They talk to Red Tornado's head and blah blah blah blah!

I won't punish you with the details of the rest of this issue. In short, they fight some more lame bad guys, and the villains open a gateway into the multi-verse. It's a convoluted mess, and I feel bad deducting more points at this point.

I'm not going to deduct points for this, but I want to keep a joke rolling...

- No Spider-Man (no points deducted out of pity)
- No Bikinis (no points deducted out of pity)

So, the final tally is... -2,200 points. This issue was a crapfest!

-Action Chad
chad@coastcitycomics.net