Posted by Ian Candish, on September 2nd, 2010
What? Another week has gone by? Well, that can only mean it’s time for yet another Pick Of The Week podcast! Ian has the pick this week and he uses it to display his gargantuan man-crush on Robert Kirkman. As always he’s joined by Simon and as never before he’s also joined by a recent addition to Comic Impact, Ken, who fills in this week for Sheldon who’s out interviewing for a job. Psh, a likely story.
It’s a pretty off the wall podcast with discussions ranging from last weeks comics (duh!)...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 31st, 2010
Let’s forget that the movie adaptation of The Spirit and Robo Cop 3 ever existed, instead let’s focus on what Frank Miller was good at, writing comic books. In the early nineties Miller along with artist John Romita Jr. wrote what is arguably the best Daredevil story, Man Without Fear. Originally it was intended to be a graphic novel, but instead Marvel decided to release it as a five issue miniseries, it is now available as one trade with the full story.
The book is a retelling of Daredevil’s origin story....
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on August 31st, 2010
This latest edition of The Avengers written by Brian Micheal Bendis with art by John Romita Jr opens with a bang as out heroes descends upon a Manhattan that is caught in multiple time lines and well I guess you could say all hell has broken lose. But is this issue any good? Well read on to see what happens to out main group of Avengers.
Marvel and most comic publishers tend to have a habit of putting things on the cover that well I will just say it aren’t true. It is just to sell books of course.This cover is more...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 30th, 2010
It’s only been six years, but Astonishing X-Men has made it to 35 issues. Overall I have been a fan of this series, mostly because it finally made Cyclops a cool character. The drawback of this series is that is so far between issues by the time you get a new one you forgot what happened. Issue 35 is the end of the storyline eXogenetic which I found to be a whole lot better than the previous and super confusing storyline Ghost Box.
After saving Abigail Brand from crashing a spaceship and then fighting off a Sentinel made...
Posted by John Mueller, on August 29th, 2010
Pixar Animation Studios has always had a keen eye for finding truly unique and individualistic artistic talents to create visually stunning ways to drive their stories forward. In the highly stylized opening title sequence for their fourth film, Monsters Inc., the notable influence of 1950’s animation began to appear. Of the many talented artists working at the studio, four names are most commonly associated with pushing this distinctive look forward: Lou Romano, Don Shank, Nate Wragg and, last but certainly not least, Scott...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 29th, 2010
If you’ve been keeping up with Victor Gischler’s new X-Men series (‘Curse of the Mutants’) then you’ll know that there are a couple of one shot tie-ins which you can pick up at your own leasure, if you so please, to accompany the main story. My attention was grabbed by this interesting one shot, ‘Storm & Gambit #1‘. I thought to myself, ‘what an odd pairing for a one shot’, so seen as though I had been hooked from the title alone, and that I quite like Gambit and Chris...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 28th, 2010
Lately Daken has been wearing the brown and orange/yellow Wolverine costume but thanks to Kotobukiya we get a really nice flashback to the days when Logan was sporting this awesome look.
This statue from Kotobukiya is sculpted by Takeshi Kimura and stands 9″ tall. His claws are 2 1/3″ long and are made of real metal. The sculpting on this statue is really quite amazing. It’s extremely detailed, especially on Wolverine’s face which shows him grimacing as he slashes upwards with his left fist. An...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 27th, 2010
Package Description:
There was a time when the crack of thunder rolled across ancient battlefields, calling men to war. This was the call to arms of Thor, ancient god of thunder. He was the master of the storms that whipped the North Sea into frenzied whitecaps and drove the Norsemen to conquest. He was their strength and their armor. In the millennia since, Thor has turned his eye to the protection of all mankind, rather than the patronage of a slect few. He wields his hammer as a defender of Earth, and protector of the weak,...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 27th, 2010
Remember ten years ago when there was only one Deadpool series, and you felt lucky to have it? Now there’s so many Deadpool books you can’t throw a rock into a comic book store without hitting one. I’ve been a huge fan of the Merc with a Mouth for a long time now, and even I’m starting to groan when I see another new Deadpool book on the shelf. In my opinion Deadpool Team-Up is a hit or miss book, it only works if the guest star works. For instance the issue with The Living Colossus didn’t do much...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 25th, 2010
Come on in humble listeners for another one of our Pick Of The Week podcasts! It’s a sad show this week as it’s the last weekly podcast I’ll (hello my name is Rob) be doing for a long time, because I’m heading off to University in a couple of days. So for one more time, join me and my full house of companions; Sheldon, Simon and Ian for another special show!
This episode is a bit of a Marvel-nutter show this week, as a lot of Avengers books came out! There was a mighty impact made on the world of the Hulk, as Sheldon...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 23rd, 2010
I absolutely hate it when comic book characters die, especially when it’s one of my favorite characters. I’ve been a fan of Nightcrawler since I was a kid and saw the Pryde of the X-Men video, and when I read X-Men Second Coming and saw him die I was pissed. I think the worst part of Nightcrawler being killed was that it happened in the middle of the story arc. Suddenly Kurt is dead, they take a few minutes to give him a quick funeral, and then it’s back to the fight for the survival of the mutant race. I felt...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 23rd, 2010
Secret Avengers #4 is the final issue in the ‘Secret Histories‘ storyarc by Ed Brubaker and Mike Deodato. So what did I make of the first story in this new series? I thought that all in all, it was a bad story to start the series with. This story would have been much better if it had been told around the #20 mark. We’ve just not seen enough of this team working together yet for us to take in something as climatic as this. I was a little overwhelmed by this whole story arc.
This issue sees Commander or Captain...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on August 23rd, 2010
For a while now I feel like I have been one of the only people reading and enjoying both the Incredible Hulk and Hulk.The story has been,to me,one of the best the Hulk has had in a very long time.They have built up a great anti hero in the Red Hulk while showing a different side to the regular Hulk.It has made Banner confront his father issues by dealing with Skarr , his son, in Incredible Hulk 611.Now in Hulk 24 he is made to deal with another issue…one that has been with him since the beginning of Banners transformation...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 21st, 2010
Right now in the Marvel Universe the “Shadowland” story arc is in full swing with Hell’s Kitchen’s protector, Daredevil, using his army of Hand ninjas to turn the New York neighborhood into a police state. So it seems only fitting that this week’s Statue Saturday spotlights the handicapped hero in all his glory.
The Bowen Designs Red Daredevil on Gargoyle Statue is sculpted by Randy Bowen with Troy McDevitt. The statue comes in three separate pieces: Daredevil, gargoyle and a 3″ booster...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 21st, 2010
When you’re a person in charge of a group of people from time to time you have to let loose and show everyone that you really are a badass motherfucker. Thunderbolts #147 is Luke Cage and Warden John Walker’s chance to do just that.
Issue 147 of Thunderbolts starts off with a quick wrap up of the previous issue where the T-Bolts were sent to find a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. and U.N. agents who were investigating a deposit of mutation causing terrigen crystals. The agents were mutated and the Thunderbolts had to work...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 21st, 2010
The kids at Avengers Academy take a field trip this week to The Raft (Maximum Securtiy Prison) as part of the ‘Scared Straight’ program,set up to keep the young whippersnappers from thinking of doing anything remotely evil with their powers. For this issue and the next, Avengers Academy will be focusing on the events which took place on August 18th on The Raft, home of the Thunderbolts.
If you read the truly wonderful Thunderbolts #147 which also came out this week, then you’ll know what happened with the blackout...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 19th, 2010
If you’re on this page then don’t let me stop you on your way down to the iTunes download link below where you can download this podcast, but if you’ve got a spare minute to read this blurb then you’ll find out a little bit about what exactly is in store for you in this very podcast! It’s Pick Of The Week time once more, and Sheldon shares his favourite comic of last week with you, as well as sharing his thoughts on other comics with his companions Simon and Rob.
This week’s POW starts off...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 19th, 2010
One of the best things at Comic Con is looking at all the cool collectibles that you wish you had the money for. Sometime they are a tease of what’s to come and you have to wait to buy them. So here are some pictures for you to enjoy. We can’t wait to get our hands on and post reviews of these collectibles for you. Make sure to hold on tight to that change that is in your pockets!
Captain America and Iron Man PVC Statues from Kotobukiya
Blackest Night may be over, but DC Direct have Black Hand and Hal Jordan busts that...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on August 18th, 2010
Steve Rogers has been alive,dead(frozen),alive,dead(shot through time), and now alive again.So needless to say Mr.Rogers has been through a few things. Through all these different things though he always seems a victim of circumstance. In every story I never think of him as the type of super hero who has to use his brain to take down his foes.Unusually Steve is more of a tactician. In that he is always alert and takes advantage of his foe at exactly the right moment to make the biggest impact on the battle….you know like...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 17th, 2010
How good was your math when your were in school? I got mostly B’s in my math class but it looks like Marvel has been creative with their math. For the past few years Marvel has been renumbering books after they re-launch a book, such as they did with Thor after J. Michael Straczynski left the book and with Ed Brubaker’s Captain America. Now it looks they’re doing it with ‘Ultimate Comics Spider-Man’. Here is the math for everyone wondering how they added up to #150.
Ultimate Spider-Man ran for 133 issues...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 17th, 2010
For sometime now I have been saying that ‘Ultimate Spider-Man’ by Brian Michael Bendis and David Lafuente is the best Spider-Man book out there, and this week’s issue shows you why. In the first few pages we see the Chameleon running around making everyone in New York city think that he is the real Spider-Man. Lafuente’s art is just so beautiful, but I will get back to Lafuente in a bit.
A few pages on we see Peter with J. Jonah Jameson in a warehouse that looks like something out of Fight Club....
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 16th, 2010
We are now 2 issues into Victor Gischler’s ‘Curse Of The Mutants’ story, a story which most of us here at Comic Impact thought would fail from the get go, but I can give you my assurance that this does not suck (was that a bad pun?). In fact this issue was a heck of a lot of fun, and it feels like it’s actually pushing the boat out a bit beyond where most modern vampire stories dare to go.
I think the way it incorporates a good X-Men story with the Marvel vampires is entertaining and it feels quite new...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 16th, 2010
To be honest I have never been the biggest fan of The Hulk. Prior to World War Hulk my only knowledge of Hulk came from the old TV show with Lou Ferrigno, and the more recent movies. I gotta say though in the last three years or so I have really warmed up to the Hulk, or rather Bruce Banner. When Bruce lost the ability to change into the Hulk I got hooked on this series. I’ve really enjoyed seeing Dr. Banner use his scientific genius to take down his enemies instead of changing into a monster and beating the snot out of...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 15th, 2010
Things haven’t been going well lately for Daken. He lost his spot on the Avengers when Norman Osborn was brought down, he was used as a tool by Logan to bring down Romulus and now Franken-Castle has come back for round two after being murdered by Daken.
Issue #89 of Dark Wolverine is chapter 3 of the Dark Wolverine/Franken-Castle rematch, titled “Punishment.” Chapter 1 was in Dark Wolverine #88 and Chapter 2 was in Franken-Castle #19.
The story of this series has been pretty simple: Franken-Castle is really,...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 13th, 2010
This week we are taking a look at one more San Diego Comic Con Exclusive figure. This time around we’re going to look at the Marvel Universe Ultimate Captain America ( World War II) form the fine people over at Hasbro.
Package Description:
During the last days of World War II, Captain America disappeared. The man who had inspired America’s troops in their drive across Europe simply vanished, never to be seen again. Unknown to the world, he lay frozen in the deep, cold waters of the North Atlantic, kept alive...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 12th, 2010
You’ll know his artwork from ‘Thor’, ‘House of M’ or maybe from one of my favorite moments in comic book history when he drew the death of The Sentry in Marvel’s ‘ Siege’.
Join us as we talk to French super-artist Olivier Coipel about what it’s like working with Brian Michael Bendis on such a big project as ‘Siege’, what his hopes are for the Thor film and find out what comics made him want to become a comic book artist.
Simon Daoudi
Simon@ComicImpact.com
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on August 10th, 2010
Doom might have done it this time. He has put the X-Men,The Fantastic Four,The Black Panther,War Machine,Deadpool & The Country of Wakanda up against the wall along with all of that nations most precious of resources Vibranium. At every move some of the smartest minds in the Marvel Universe have been usurped by Doom and his bevy of bases and bots! At this point in the game he has all the power, all the vibranium and it would seem all our heroes at the mercy of Victor Von Doom. Does he have what it takes to finish the job?...
Posted by Christina Flores, on August 9th, 2010
While at Comic Con we had the opportunity to talk to the people who create the amazing covers for portable devices, GelaSkins. They have over 100 artists you can choose from as well as being able to upload your own image to create a completely unique skin, or you can choose from a variety of Marvel themes already on their site.
These covers have a durable anti-scratch and anti-UV coating which will protect your electronics as well as keep it’s vibrant colors. The adhesive makes it easy to apply with no residue left...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 9th, 2010
If the comic business doesn’t work out for Brian Michael Bendis (very unlikely, but stay with me), then I reckon he could make a pretty good living out of being a DJ. Whereas the first issue of Avengers Prime felt like a song with an upbeat tempo, this second issue felt more like a layed back, slightly slower piece of music. So with that pathetic analogy of which I am quite ashamed, you shouldn’t be surprised when I tell you that unfortunatly this issue was not as special as its predecessor.
It wasn’t as special,...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 8th, 2010
So Daredevil has become the leader of The Hand, he’s got an army of ninjas that he’s used to create a police-state, and he’s built a giant castle in the middle of Hell’s Kitchen. If that wasn’t crazy enough Daredevil, who has sworn never to kill, has actually killed Bullseye by stabbing him through the chest. When I saw that at the end of the first issue of Shadowland I was stunned. It would be like Batman shooting the Joker in the head, everyone believes it to be the only logical end, but nobody...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 8th, 2010
Five years ago I fell in love with Ed Brubaker’s Captain America. I was telling everyone I know to read this new Captain America book, and then when I first meet Comic Impact staff member Sheldon I told him how great this book was.
I told him how great Brubaker was and then last year Captain America: Reborn came out and I was not a big fan of it, and my man crush for Brubaker went away. But I still read Captain America anyway since I was loving Bucky as Captain America. Now for the past two storylines (Two Americas...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 7th, 2010
Iron Man 2 has proven to be one of the biggest box office hits of summer 2010 and while having a functioning version of the Iron Man armor of your very own might be a bit out of reach, bringing Iron Man home to display is a very attainable goal.
The fine folks over at Kotobukiya have released an Iron Man 2 Mark IV statue for the release of the new movie. This is the company’s 3rd full body Iron Man movie statue following the Mark II and Mark III that were released for the first Iron Man movie.
The Marks II and III from...
Posted by Ian Candish, on August 7th, 2010
So what has Ken Hale, everyone’s favorite gruff adventurer trapped in a gorilla’s body, been up to? Getting in a whole lot of trouble in jolly ol’ Africa, that’s what he’s doing.
Gorilla-Man is an adventurer who, thanks to a big heaping helping of magic, was turned into an immortal ape. About all that is known about him is that he works as an Agent of Atlas so this mini-series has been showing the reader where Ken Hale came from and what he did to lead him down the path toward becoming Gorilla-Man.
Issue...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on August 6th, 2010
The New Mutants Forever takes place when writer Chris Claremont left the book with issue 54. This was when Professor Xavier was written out of the series and Magneto was made the headmaster of the school, but thankfully he doesn’t wear that lame costume with the giant “M.” Unfortunately that’s about the only thing to be thankful for in this book, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
What is nice about the book is that Claremont does a great job of giving the reader the necessary back-story to understand...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 5th, 2010
To thank all the great Cosplayers at this year San Diego Comic-Con we’re doing something different for this month’s “Cosplay Girl of the month.” For your viewing enjoyment here are some of the great costumes we saw this year.And yeah boys the Cosplay girl of the month will be back in September. Trust me you will love her!
Scott Pilgrim Cosplayers
Wonder Woman
Ex Cosplay Girl of the Month (January 2010) Meagan VanBurkleo as Velocity
Poison Ivy
Rogue
Suitcase Armor Iron Man with Spider-Woman (Julia Carpenter)
Ex...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on August 2nd, 2010
Last weekend at San Diego Comic Con 2010 we got a chance to talk to Multiple Eisner Award winners Fábio Moon and Gabriel Ba.
You’ll know their work from such books as ‘Casanova’ and ‘Umbrella Academy’, also their latest comic Daytripper, which has been talked about on a lot of the our POW podcasts and has even been our pick of the week. We got the chance to talk to Fábio Moon and Gabriel Ba about the future of Casanova and Umbrella Academy, and to ask how Daytripper will end. So join us as we...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on August 2nd, 2010
This is one of the most bizarre posters I think Marvel has released in a long, long time. As part of the Shadowland event which focuses around Matt Murdoc’s dark and depressing little word, Marvel has just released a new poster which shows Nova (yes, the cosmic power-house guy) flying through the streets of Hell’s Kitchen.
Along with the teaser poster, Marvel have provided the tagline, “Who Will Be The New Man Without Fear?“, suggesting that it obviously won’t be Daredevil. Have Marvel gone mad?
Nova...
Posted by John Mueller, on August 2nd, 2010
To see the name of Italian sequential art master Milo Manara attached to a graphic novel is an absolute guarantee that within the pages of said book you will find one thing: beautiful women. Of course, these women are more than beautiful. They are also strong, confident, and very often fully aware of their own sexuality and the heights of ecstasy it can take them to.
Click (1983) in which a handheld device renders women helpless to their own libido's.
Though breathtakingly gorgeous (and perfectly drawn) women and sex are...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on August 1st, 2010
Fantastic Four 581. Wow. For the longest time I have been invested in Hickman’s run on the Fantastic Four wondering where it was going.This is the payoff issue! We have seen Marvels first family go into parallel universes and fight seemingly lame villians (Arcade I am talking to you) but one of the biggest mysteries as of late is what was going on with the older Franklin coming to the younger Franklin and whispering something to him on his birthday.It really may seem like I am building this issue up but just keep reading...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 31st, 2010
I had a hard time taking in what I had just read when I finished this 3rd issue of Ed Brubaker and Mike Deodato’s Secret Avengers. I was not expecting Brubaker to make this story so cosmic, as I could probably say that everything about this issue was cosmic material. The weird thing is as well is that as much as I love Marvel’s cosmic comics with all my heart, I am a bit scared about this series getting engrossed in the cosmic stuff. I think that this story could lose it’s way if it is not handled with the upmost...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 30th, 2010
When we were at the San Diego Comic Con we got a chance to talk with David Vonner, the head Sr. Product Designer at Hasbro for the Marvel Universe line. You know us here at ComicImpact are all big fans of the 3 3/4 Inch Marvel Universe line. So join us as we talk with David about the future of the Hasbro Marvel Universe figures and if you’re an old school Marvel Legends action figures fan like myself yo are going to love some of the news your going to hear. So stop playing with your figures for a short time and watch this...
Posted by Ken Zeider, on July 30th, 2010
The current PunisherMax has been going for almost a year now, and I gotta say Jason Aaron has done a fantastic job of filling in Garth Ennis’ shoes. This is the Frank Castle we all know and love, a normal guy with guns who kills people that just need killing. And let’s not forget the art of Steve Dillon, one of the few people that can properly convey the anger of The Punisher.
Issue Nine starts out with Wilson Fisk (the still wet behind the ears Kingpin of Crime) giving a very stern lecture to Bullseye over the phone...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 28th, 2010
Ok I am not a big Thor fan but I do enjoy looking at Jack Kirby and Olivier Coipel artwork. After watching this Comic Con Trailer that was leaked I can now say WOW I can’t wait for this film. It looks like Marvel studio and Kenneth Branagh have done this the right way. I don’t want to go on for to long, just watch
this trailer.
Are you done watching and now counting down the days like I am? THOR is directed by Kenneth Branagh and stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins,...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 28th, 2010
A lot of big announcements came out of San Diego Comic Con this past week, and whether you were there or not it will be likely that you’ve heard about some of them. I wasn’t fortunate enough to be there this past week, unlike everyone else on the Comic Impact team, but I was able to watch the news flow in from afar. I tell you what though dear readers, I had a heck of a time catching up on all the announcements and news since I only came back home from France on the last day of Comic Con’. There are some really...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 27th, 2010
We love Rick Remender here at Comic Impact, and we made his comic Punisher #12 our ‘Pick Of The Week’, and that series is also one of the top books we talk about on our weekly podcast. But this past weekend we got a chance to talk to him at San Diego Comic Con’ about a few projects that will be coming out very soon. Projects such as the all new ‘Uncanny X-Force’ and Rick’s baby ‘Fear Agent’. If you have not read Fear Agent before, then I guess this is the best time to read it as...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 27th, 2010
When it comes to Marvel Comics, I live and breathe for the cosmic comics they publish. The cosmic goodness is consistently outstanding and it’s all down to Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning who nail the science fiction genre in maintstream comic books like no other(s) around today.
Just as there are many other cosmic fans in the same boat as me, we were all quite astounded when Abnett & Lanning revealed at SDCC last week, that Rocket Raccoon and Groot will eventually be getting a 4 issue miniseries of their own. It’s...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on July 27th, 2010
So as you may have guessed from this article, I made it out of Comic Con 2010 alive… just barely though. You will all be happy to know that I have full site in both eyes! On top of all that I got a chance to interview one of my favorite writers from last year!! Nooo not Brubaker, but the one and only Hugo nominated Paul Cornell! You know and love him from Captain Britain and MI-13 as well as the Marvel MAX series Wisdom.
Check out the interview where we get to talk to him a bit about his new on-going series Knight and...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 26th, 2010
And finally, here comes the good stuff! At its third issue, Brian Michael Bendis and John Romita Jr have at long last won me over. I loved this issue. It was everything a good Avengers comic should, in my opinion be. The first two issues were hit and miss in their various ways, but this issue used the ups and downs of what was the ‘build-up stuff’ in the previous issues to really propel itself to infinity and beyond. This series can’t come down from the high level it’s put itself in with the contents of...
Posted by Ian Candish, on July 22nd, 2010
I’m going to start this review by pissing off my college journalism professor and leading with a definition. One of Merriam-Webster’s definitions for “progress” is, “a forward or onward movement.” The first part of the “One Moment In Time” story arc that begins in Amazing Spider-Man #638 is (along with “Brand New Day” in general) the exact opposite of the word progress.
Aside from getting a terrible Whitney Houston song stuck in my head, “One Moment In Time”...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 21st, 2010
It’s time for the Pick Of The Week again kiddies! Enjoy the overly sleep deprived sounds of Simon (about 3 hours sleep) and Sheldon (even less) while Ian lords his 7+ hours over the other podcasters.
What a week for comics and (shockingly enough) the guys don’t all see eye to eye. Sheldon has the pick, Simon can barely read and Ian is makes disturbing promises to the creators of Gorilla-Man #1. Simon and Ian gang up on Sheldon for not reading Chew #12, everyone’s weirded out by Daredevil #508, Superman #701...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 20th, 2010
It’s that time of the year when people are looking at their bank accounts, thinking to themselves “hmmmmmm what exclusives do I need to get at San Diego Comic Con this year?” We are here to help you out. No we are not going to give you a bailout, but we can tell you some of the exclusives that you may see at Comic Con in just a few days from now.
Variant Covers
I know I have talked about it before, I am not a big fan of variant covers but it is always a part of any convention to have variant covers form...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on July 19th, 2010
Many of you who have read my reviews know that I am a fan of Jeff Parker and Agents of Atlas. I love the idea of another underground agency working within the Marvel Universe. On the surface, the idea of a book about Gorilla-Man sounds only a little enticing.This book has GREAT potential to get lost in the shuffle of weekly books but, after reading this first issue it shows that Parker and Company still have a few surprises up their sleeves.
Gorilla-Man and Ken Hale have a sordid past at Marvel Comics. That much is true but,...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 19th, 2010
Avengers Academy has taken me by surprise as one of the better comics to have come out of Marvel’s ‘Heroic Age’. I do not mean that in the sense that I think the ‘Heroic Age’ has produced a lot of poor new series and reboots, quite the opposite in fact! I mean it as in I honestly believe this is one of the better ‘Heroic Age’ comics I am reading.
It’s a busy book (just like ‘Avengers: Initiative’ was before this basically replaced it) with a lot of characters and a lot...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 16th, 2010
With such powerful cover artwork and an extremely intriguing name, ‘X-Force: Sex and Violence’ was something I felt I had to pick up. I had heard about and seen this comic in the previews a few months ago but had given it nothing more than a quick raise of the eyebrow. Yet here I am, giving it more attention than I’d have thought it would warrant.
It’s the first of a 3 issue mini series by writers Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost, and artist Gabriele Dell’Otto. It explores the physical relationship...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 14th, 2010
From Franken-Castle to the X-Men, it seems as if Rick Remender can’t get enough Marvel goodness at the moment. He’s spreading his crazy ideas all over the board as usual this October, when his first issue writing a brand new X-Men title comes out.
‘Uncanny X-Force’ is the name of Remender’s new title. In the wake of Second Coming, the Uncanny X-Force are a secret black-ops team led by Wolverine, formed to take down a newly resurrected Apocalypse. It sounds like deadly Secret Avengers team. Just...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 14th, 2010
This week’s Pick Of The Week is a late night special, as the timezones are reversed! You’ll be listening to an early morning sounding Rob (10am), and a very early morning Simon (3/4am). Sheldon demanded he get his beauty sleep in preparation for Comic Con, so we’ve let our sweet prince have some shut eye for this week. Rob has the POW, and it is actually the last time he will choose his pick of the week for what could be a few years! Fear not though, it is not his final show as he’s returning for a weeks...
Posted by Ian Candish, on July 10th, 2010
I’m a fan of The Young Avengers. I have the first hardcover on my bookshelf and I lend it out to anyone who shows any interest because it’s so good and so much more than the average sidekick book. Unfortunately a lot of the Young Avengers stories that have followed that collection haven’t really lived up to it in my eyes. So when I found out that writer Allan Heinberg and artist Jim Cheung, the creators of that fantistic original run, were coming back to write “Avengers: The Children’s Crusade”...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 10th, 2010
I went to school for design and film history. Now I post about comics on this website, work as freelance designer and work at comic book store. Now, maybe I missed something in one of my marketing classes, but when you have a hit product, you’re not going to talk bad about it right?
Well I guess if you’re not a Marvel fan you won’t give a shit. In the ads for the new X-men books, they’re using the tagline ”How bad is it?”-“That Bad.” I know they’re talking about the whole vampires/mutants...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 9th, 2010
Package Description
Tony Stark is always thinking ahead about how best to protect the Earth. One of the dangers that has preoccupied him for years is that posed by the HULK. Stark built the HULKBUSTER IRON MAN armor, an immensely powerful suit designed specifically to take down the HULK and precent him from threatening the planet.
Appearance
Ok kids let me tell you something this figure will kick your ass and guess what the Hulkbuster was designed to take down the Hulk. The team over at Hasbro has done a great job. When...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 6th, 2010
Fans of the character Taskmaster will be pleased to hear that later on in September this year, he will be getting his own mini-series. Big time Marvel writer; Fred Van Lente (’Marvel Zombies 3/4/5′ and ‘Incredible Herucles’, to name but two of the hundreds of comics he’s written) is the man on the task of writing this mini series .Taskmaster is a character whose history go from seeing him frequently bump into long time pal; Deadpool, to most recently being seen over at The Initiative base whilst...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 4th, 2010
For sometime now, we have been hearing about this all new X-Men comic, that is going to have vampires in the first story arc. I personally think it is a bit silly.
Well, guess what I read last night? That’s right, the new X-men number 1 from Victor Gischler (’The Death of Dracula’) and artwork by Paco Medina (‘Deadpool’). How was it? How did I get a copy, and does it spoil ‘Second Coming’? Read on to find out.
First off this issue does not spoil ‘Second Coming‘. Thank God,...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 3rd, 2010
Regardless of whether this comic was good or bad in anyone’s eyes, one thing that rings universal is that Victor Gischler quite obviously has big plans to bring vampires back into the Marvel Universe on a large scale. This comic saw the uprising of what could be said to be a ‘civilization’ of vampires. I’m not talking just for a story-arc or two in the future which might focus on these vampires, but perhaps what could be for the forseeable future; and if I am wrong about that, then even so, I want to shake...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on July 2nd, 2010
Who is Andrew Garfield? that is the question a lot of us where asking last night when we found out that Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios have officially announced that the 26-year-old British actor Andrew Garfield is going to be Spider-Man.
IMDB shows he was in such film’s as Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus (which is now number#1 on my netflix queue) he was also in a few episode of Dr Who (Evolution of the Daleks,Daleks in Manhattan) I don’t recall seeing him in those episodes and I know...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on July 2nd, 2010
This episode of our Pick of the Week podcast is one of the most juicy podcasts we’ve done for a while here at Comic Impact. It’s a real joy ride, let me tell you that! Sheldon has the Pick Of The Week after Rob had it last week. Sheldon is joined as always by Simon and Rob, who all together russel up the comic book goods for you to get high from!
There is a big debate about Avengers #2 and it’s ups and downs, and how ‘Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne’ has showed some of the guys its much more pleasant...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 30th, 2010
Mark Millar made everybody sex wee just a little bit back in 2008-2009 when Marvel published his ‘Old Man Logan’ storyline which focused on a future version of Wolverine, in a world where the bad guys had ultimately ‘won’, and had killed most (close to all) of the superheros. It was an absolute hit, and although it was not to everyone’s tastes, it really was an undeniable smash-hit run, and went through many printings in single issues, and sold highly in trade format too.
Recently, on his online...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 29th, 2010
It is with great trepidation, that I read this issue. It fills me with dread to even consider opening up an issue of Franken-Castle anymore. Rick Remender seems to have done the impossible, and turned something with such high potential into one of the most fragile series Marvel is currently publishing. I’d rather walk on dangerously thin ice right now, than read an issue of this. The amount of wonderful stories that could come from this are certainly plentiful (which is something we’ve known for as long as I can remember,...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 28th, 2010
Love him or hate him if you have been reading comics for sometime now you know who Jeph Loeb is.He now has a new title you can call him Mr. Vice President, Head of Television for Marvel Entertainment.
That’s right the man who gave us Red Hulk, Spider-Man Blue, Batman Hush and a lot more is now the Vice President, Head of Television for Marvel Entertainment. This is not the first time Loeb has worked in Television he has been apart of such shows as Heroes,Lost and Smallville also little known fact but he worked on of...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on June 28th, 2010
If there is one thing for certain it is that we FINALLY can lay to rest who the RED HULK or Rulk is..but at this point in the game are there are any readers still left who care? That is what keeps coming up in my mind as I read through HULK#23.
I know for a lot of the HULK readers may have given up along time ago with all the allegations of “Who is the Red Hulk” which quickly from a lot of the people I have talked to turned into “Who cares who the Red Hulk is”. I can’t say that I don’t understand...
Posted by Amy Dallen, on June 28th, 2010
I actually tried not to pick this one.“You loved Avengers #2, you could talk about that,” I said.“You loved/hated the latest Second Coming issue, as usual. You could talk about that,” I said. “You tried really hard to feel something about the new Power Girl other than grief that it wasn’t
Amanda Connor, how about that?”“Don’t write about this one. No one is reading this one.” And there, my friends, is the rub. If you are a fan of the expansion of the medium of comics, of the idea that comics can and should...
Posted by John Mueller, on June 28th, 2010
In last week’s installment of Sequential Sunday we took a look at the work of the great Al Williamson who passed away on June 12. As an addendum to that article I’d like to give some suggestions to those who’d like to explore the work of this comic art master via some of the books currently in print as well as those that are soon to be released.
Al Williamson’s Flash Gordon: A Lifelong Vision of the Heroic by Mark Schultz (Flesk Publications)
One of Williamson’s greatest influences was Flash Gordon,...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 23rd, 2010
It’s come around to another Pick of the Week podcast once again folks, and this time around it’s down to Rob to choose his pick. Rob is joined by Sheldon, Simon and new Comic Impact staff member Ian, who makes his first podcast appearance.
It’s a not a very fun week for comics this week, and the guys didn’t have an awful lot of fun reading their comics this week. Next week is going to be amazing though for new comics! But the guys make the best of what they have and made a hilarious show for you. The guys...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on June 21st, 2010
If you have been reading my reviews for a while then you know I have a love hate relationship with our friendly neighborhood Spiderman.To kind of reiterate Spiderman seems to have gotten the c-class treatment over the last year or so and I have been waiting for a creative team to turn that around and stick with the book.Now I realize that Spidey comes out like 4 times a month and again I would MUCH rather see him come out 2 times a month with a better book.
Onward now with the review of The Amazing Spider-Man # 634 with Joe...
Posted by John Mueller, on June 20th, 2010
In a career that spanned more than five decades, Al Williamson (1931-2010) earned a reputation for being a genre-defining science fiction artist, constant encourager of up and coming comics artists, and an all around wonderful human being who enriched the lives of others through his loyalty and friendship.
Since his recent passing after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease, there have been many warm tributes written of the man and his outstanding work. To get a better understanding of how one person can affect so many...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 19th, 2010
‘Dark Wolverine’ is surprising me lately, and not in a completely positive way. It used to be a consistent series with a reasonably sound sense of progression and rhythm from issue to issue. Now it just reads as if it’s a mix of random events thrown at a timeline in the wrong order. Cause and effect doesn’t seem to matter anymore. The ‘Reckoning‘ crossover with ‘Wolverine Origins’ was just nuts, and then you have this issue which relates in no way to -anything- that just happened...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 18th, 2010
Package Description
Though he is blind, DAREDEVIL perceives far more than most people. His senses heightened to superhuman levels by a childhood accident, he lives a world of continuous sensation. He can smell lies on a man’s breath, or hear the panicked heartbeat of a mugging victim from ten blocks away. His uncanny radar sense paints a detailed picture of the world around him, allowing him to dodge bullets, and survive incredible dives from the rooftops to the streets.
Appearance
This figure is very red, and...
Posted by Ian Candish, on June 17th, 2010
In the aftermath of Dark Reign and the Siege of Asgard, things are finally getting back to normal in the Marvel Universe. The heroes are no longer on the run and Steve Rogers is in charge. With a gaggle of heroes to manage, he has coordinated a number teams with members specially suited for the type of work that team will be doing. To put it mildly, I’m sooooo into this!
The newest team book, and the one I’ve been most looking forward to, is New Avengers #1 written by current Marvel overseer (seriously, what...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 14th, 2010
The Cancerverse
It’s probably safe to say that The Thanos Imperative is the biggest cosmic crossover Marvel has published since ‘Annihilation Conquest’ or perhaps the earlier ‘Annihilation War’ events, and the sales numbers for the first issue are there to prove this from what I’ve heard. Comic Impact Staff member Sheldon jumped onto this event, and enjoyed the first issue so much, that he made it his Pick Of The Week on one of our downloadable podcasts! But as many readers (longtime or new)...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on June 12th, 2010
Feeling a bit patriotic today because of the US vs England World Cup Game? Whew it was a nail bitter! Still in the mood for some good old American fun? Then you need to run not walk to your local comic store and pick up Captain America issue #606!! This was a great issue and a good jumping on point for newbies as it really does set up a new , and what looks to be wild ride of a story arc for Bucky and crew!
The Issue starts off with Bucky and Falcon on a mission and Bucky Cap just keeps taking over the top risks which gave Falcon...
Posted by Butner Brimberry, on June 11th, 2010
I don’t know if you’re into comics or video games, but you probably want to check this trailer out if you are. It “officially” reveals Dante from Devil May Cry and Deadpool as playable characters. I say “officially” because everyone knows what each of these guys’ silhouette looks like from teaser posters.
Also, we are now taking theories on what the ending swirly fire is. Dormammu is in the game so it’s probably him, but I’m hoping for Galactus personally. Maybe even Mephisto.
Butner...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 11th, 2010
Marvel have been putting out some wonderful new series over the past few weeks, and they are truly winning the keys to my heart with their quality. Secret Avengers, Thunderbolts and now S.H.I.E.L.D… all these series are brand new (Thunderbolts, athough not a new series, has reached new beginnings) and combine a bit of everything I look for in an ideal comic. Secret Avengers and Thunderbolts are unconventional team books, and S.H.I.E.L.D is an amalgamation of historical fiction and pure thrill-drenched mystery. Although...
Posted by Ian Candish, on June 10th, 2010
The pages of Ultimate Marvel have been rather tumultuous in the recent past with the events of Ultimatum. While most books have largely moved on, Ultimate Spider-Man has been keeping the aftermath of Ultimatum a constant source for storylines by spotlighting the backlash toward mutants from “normal humans” (would Magneto be offended by that phrase?). More specifically how “normal humans” are reacting to Kitty Pryde, a known mutant and former X-Man, going to public school with ...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 10th, 2010
If you listened to the latest Pick Of The Week podcast, then you will have heard us talking about how awful the upcoming X-Men series looks. It’s been almost 20 years since Marvel have put out an X-Men #1 so I hear, but I can imagine that to some people this is a pretty big deal, and it surely must be pretty damn special, right? Well we’re not so sure here at Comic Impact (excluding Dana, probably, ha!), we think the idea of the X-Men and vampires seems a little too silly to be taken seriously. Then again, our movie...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 9th, 2010
It’s Pick Of The Week time once more, and Rob is very, very excited! Why? Because someone other than him has chosen a Marvel cosmic book as their Pick of the Week! Sheldon has the pick this week, and he’s joined by Rob and Simon as always.
It’s been a rather poor week for comics this past week, but the guys try to jazz things up for you listeners a bit by searching through their stacks to find the best comics to talk about. The main topics this week are where the guys think Franken-Castle should go from here?...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 8th, 2010
A few months back on Comic Impact, I reported that Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy had gone on hiatus whilst The Thanos Imperative took the spotlight in Marvel’s Cosmic line of comic books. Many fans (including myself) were not sure what the fate of these two series was to be, as there were rumours of these two series not coming back after the Thanos Imperative ends. However, I was sure they wouldn’t get cancelled, as it seemed illogical, and if it was their intention to cancel them, then Marvel would have come out...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on June 7th, 2010
Ok let me be Frank about this book right now and all of you can be Microchip…..haha get it cause his name is ..well ok now onto the review.
I really don’t know where to start with this book right now. I have mixed opinions on what this book should be versus the current state of the book. I should start out by saying I do like Rick Remender a lot! I also have a long history/love affair with good Punisher books..War Journal I am looking at you!So when I saw that they were doing something radically different to Frank...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 7th, 2010
Thor #615
This one is for all you Thor fans out there. Whether you like it or not, this September you’re going to see award-winning writer; Matt Fraction try his hand at writing Thor. Matt Fraction has won an Eisner award and major respect within the Marvel universe for his Invincible Iron Man series. So with Iron Man under his belt, as well as Immortal Iron Fist and a few others, it’s about time Fraction snatched up the big blonde Norseman.
Matt Fraction will take over from Kieron Gillen in September, and will be...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 6th, 2010
Most people are probably asking themselves, “who the hell is Darkstar and the Winterguard?“. Well, that was what I was asking myself when I saw the cover for this comic. I had no idea who these characters were at all, I saw a bear and Crimson Dynamo and I told my self, Oh my god it’s actually a communist bear so I knew I wanted to read this and review it for you Comic Impact readers.
So who the hell are Darkstar and the Winterguard? Well think of these people as Avengers but with a Russian setting. The...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 5th, 2010
We’ve seen the adverts for ‘Avengers: Prime’ in the pages of our Marvel comics for a few weeks now, and what do I think of the first issue now that it has finally hit the shelves? Well, it was actually a damn sight better than I thought it would have been! The adverts seemed dull and entirely boring. If they were really trying their very best to enthuse me into reading it with ads such as those, then they left a lot to be desired.
This comic deals with the aftermath of Siege, and focuses on Thor, Steve Rogers...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 4th, 2010
Package Description
It’s been a long time since LUKE CAGE went by the name Power Man, and a lot has changed. He’s gone from being an independent operator, making money with his powers, to a leadership role in the AVENGERS. There was a time when his bulletproof skin and super strength made him impulsive and short-tempered, but his recent responsibilities force him to think of others first before he acts.
Appearance
Looking at this figure you can tell he is a bad ass mother fucker, the way I have always read Luke...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 3rd, 2010
Ok, so yesterday we showed you the concept designs of what Chris Evans would look like as Captain America. But now how about some photos of what Chris Hemsworth looks like as Thor.
If you re-call sometime ago, we had posted a photo of Hemsworth dressed as Thor, and it look badass, yet I am not 100% sure if this is official. I am not big fan of his hammer, Mjolner glowing. There is something about these photos that look a bit too CG, and they feel a bit weird.
Thor hits theaters on May 6, 2011. Thor is being directed by Kenneth...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 2nd, 2010
Unfortunately we cannot show you any live action shots of Chris Evans as Captain America in his role as the man of the people in the upcoming Marvel hit movie ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’, but we can show you the next best thing, thanks to AICN!
As of today, some rendered images of the actual concept designs for Chris Evans as Captain America have been posted online, and we are able to show you them. They are confirmed as being “the real deal” and not just fan mock-ups.
They look pretty badass,...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on June 2nd, 2010
Sure there are no new comics out today but we still have some BIG news for you Comic Impact readers. This morning we got big news about Joe Quesada, who has been Marvel Comics’ Editor-in-Chief for sometime now, being promoted to the position of Chief Creative Officer. For more, read the following press release.
Press Release
Marvel Entertainment, LLC announced today that it has promoted Joe Quesada to Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment. In this new role, Mr. Quesada will work alongside Alan Fine, Executive...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on June 1st, 2010
Hold your horses a minute, Moses. I’ve got another commandment you can stick on your big ol’ tablet right here. If any aspiring comic creators even dare to set out in aim of creating a comic book as awesome as Secret Avengers #1, then I may be inclined to have to strangle them. Why? Because when I read a comic this awesome, it makes my job of reviewing it a living hell. I don’t know where to start!
That’s why this review is, alas, a few days overdue. I’m ever so sorry about that readers. But if you...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on May 28th, 2010
Would you believe it. I was quite astonished when I heard about this. For a mainstream comic book, and not a one-hit-wonder like Kick-Ass #1 was, but a mainstream comic book at Marvel getting a third printing. That’s right folks, ‘S.H.I.E.L.D. #1′ has sold out a second time through Diamond and people are demanding more. You’d have thought if anything, Avengers #1 or something like that would be demanding the most amount of extra printings, and perhaps it will once it has a chance to sell more copies.
If...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on May 28th, 2010
At the rate I’m going with giving new Marvel Comics a chance I will be reading most if not all of the books they put out! That is the first thing I thought as I finished reading Thunderbolts #144.Let me start off by saying that I did not read any other version of the Thunderbolts before this. I know the general idea of this team though is to take high end super criminals and form a team to try and reform them which will either take time off their sentence or at the very least allow them to get out and kick some ass while...
Posted by Rob Andrews, on May 27th, 2010
Recently announced as the latest actor to join the ranks of the cast in the upcoming Captain America movie, is iconic actor, Tommy Lee Jones. Jones, the infamous American actor of 63 years, will star along side Chris Evans (Captain America ), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury) and Hugo Weaving (Red Skull) in a currently unconfirmed role in Marvel’s upcoming blockbuster hit.
So far, the actors announced as signed on for this film seems to be pretty prolific stars. Tommy Lee Jones was most recently seen in the Coen brother’s...
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on May 23rd, 2010
One of my favorite storylines from last year was ‘American Son’ in the Spider-Man comics by Joe Kelly, and a few months back I saw that there was limited series called American Son coming out too.
I was thinking to myself “Wow, I can’t wait to read this”, and this past Wednesday, guess what hit comic book stores?First off, I was bit sad to see that Joe Kelly was not working on it, and to see that we get Brian Reed (Ms.Marvel) on it, was a bit of a let down. I told myself this is not the end of the world....
Posted by Simon Daoudi, on May 21st, 2010
Package Description
Created by Russian scientist Anton Vanko to perform miracles of electrical control, the CRIMSON DYNAMO was every bit as powerful as IRON MAN. Manipulated by his Soviet masters, Vanko very nearly defeated the American hero before he realized his mistake and committed himself to the cause of freedom.
Appearance
The sculpt makes me think of an old Soviet Union type armor but that works as we are talking about Crimson Dynamo here. This is NOT part of the Iron Man 2 film line this part of the Comic series....
Posted by Rob Andrews, on May 21st, 2010
This week’s Pick Of The Week has a new structure, and one that will continue to run throughout future podcasts! Since this is our 140th episode, we’ve decided to give you our Pick Of The Week comic at the start of the podcast, instead of at the end. It’s a nice change and we think it works well, but let us know what you think, as we record these podcasts for you!
Simon, Sheldon and Rob are the brothers in arms this week, so listen in as they rifle through what the good reads were this week. There is a lot of...
Posted by Sheldon Lee, on May 21st, 2010
The Spy.The Spaceman.The Goddess.The Robot.The Gorilla. Normally not a by line that would grab my attention but it did and boy am I glad I took the chance on Atlas #1 by Marvel Comics. I have to say right off the bat that I am not a big fan of anything with a talking ape.Having said that the way in which Gorilla-Man’s origin is explained is acceptable to me. Now on to the book.
Here is a quick summary of what to expect from Atlas.
In the late 1950’s, The U.S. Government let FBI Special Agent Jimmy Woo forge a team of...
