Dirty Dozen: Prophet

Dirty Dozen is a semi-regular feature with twelve disconnected thoughts on the first twelve issues of a current ongoing series. 

1. Though it is building an expansive world and story at an intentionally gradual pace, Prophet has already told numerous fascinating and complete smaller stories, too. The first three issues (#21-23 because this is technically the relaunch of an old Liefeld title) could have been an entire mini-series and left nothing to be desired. The same is true of several single issues that followed. But every one of them has by now revealed themselves to also be a tiny piece of an enormous overarching narrative, which makes their individual wholeness that much more impressive.

2. The language of the series shifts playfully between the strictly factual and the deeply personal. Nowhere is this truer than the third-person narration captions, which sometimes sound like a tour guide welcoming us to a scenic new area, and other times give significant insights into the nuanced mental and emotional states of the cast. But you can find it in the dialogue, too, most noticeably with the white and red word balloons of the Earth mothers (white tends to be emotional material while red is for facts and orders). This lingual dichotomy is essential to the tone of the project as a whole. It explores this distant future from both scientifically detached and psychologically intimate viewpoints, which helps to weave a more intricate narrative tapestry more quickly.

3. All the artists are fantastic, so here's what I think they each do best: Simon Roy has the strongest Prophets, expressive and stoic in the right mix, with a clear caveman influence to their shape and movement. It's why Roy was the perfect choice for the opening arc, and he plays heavily to these strengths in the most recent issue (#32), which he wrote and drew in its entirety. There, he explores the humanity (or inhumanity) of being a Prophet by bringing one together with a band of primitive humans. Farel Dalrymple creates the most hideous, terrifying aliens, bringing more of a horror edge to this space story. The Ixtano Circus in issue #30 has the most abundant examples, but the strongest is the Prophet in #24 whose body has become twisted and ruined by a toxic environment. It's a thing of beauty in its ugliness. Giannis Milonogiannis is my favorite, because he does grandiosity better than anyone. The slow and ground-shaking steps of ancient beings the size of mountains, scenes of widespread combat from the old war against the Empire, the floating bodies of dead and sleeping space giants. Milonogiannis can capture these enormities in a single image (though, to be fair, it's often a two-page spread) and his visuals last in my memory more vividly and long-lastingly than most. Finally, there is Brandon Graham, who is primarily the writer but handled art as well for issue #26. Stylistically he's somewhat gentler, giving the vastness of space a calming effect. It feels like he has a great reverence for everything he draws, and it makes me feel the same way. The art of his issue may be soothing, but it is no less awe-inspiring when that is what the story calls for.

4. As we learn of the reach and power of the Empire, we simultaneously see some of its weaknesses, not the least of which is the seemingly-tenuous control it has over its army of Prophets. Even the first Prophet we meet questions and sometimes goes against the voice in his head telling him to stick to his mission. The next guy (with the awesome tail) ends up breaking free of the Empire's control completely. And the the most recent Prophet, John Ka, disobeys a direct order from her masters and tricks them into killing the enemies of their intended targets. She still joins up with the Empire as she is supposed to, but only after this deception. So in spite of what is clearly a vast network of well-trained, mentally-manipulable soldiers, the Empire may not have as tight a grasp on the universe as it expects to, and I am interested to see how that plays out.

5. There are many examples of days or even weeks passing in the space of a single panel and/or through the use of a single caption. The events of this book so far seem to span months, possibly even a year or two, and all of it is taking place after many ages of inactivity and slumber from both sides of the conflict. I love that this is a war no one is rushing into. The Empire and its enemies have to acclimate themselves to this future, organize their forces, and plan their next moves, and everyone seems to be doing so at a deliberate pace. So Prophet matches that pace as a series, within each issue and also in its overall storytelling methods. Switching focus from one Prophet to another, spending as much time in the mundane moments of their lives as the exciting ones, the book gives everyone and everything enough space to be completely explained, examined, and enjoyed.

6. There is an astounding singularity of vision considering the rotating group of artists on the title. Yes, everyone has their own artistic strengths and flourishes (see thought 3 above), but there's also a level of visual homogeneity, at least atmospherically speaking. Wide open spaces, settings reminiscent of the Wild West, alien races that are plantlike or buglike or both, John Prophet as grizzled and brooding---these can be found no matter who is doing the drawing, and it adds a cohesiveness that could easily be missing. So often when artists swap in and out like this, the change is stark to the point of being distracting. Somehow, the Prophet team has found a happy medium. Each artist has a distinct style, but the underlying visual feel of the book remains steadily the same.

7. The moment in Prophet #25 when Old Man Prophet suddenly bursts from the corpse of a Nephilim and so swiftly kills not only two other Prophets but their Earth mother commander...chills. I can still remember reading that scene for the first time and physically sitting up straight (I like to read comics lying on the couch) with excitement. And I didn't even know the full significance of the character yet. It was just such a powerful, well-timed moment, and it represented a clear promise of larger things to come. It marked a shift in the focus of the book. No longer just telling disconnected tales of different Prophets trying to survive, it instead became more personal and established more firmly a long-term story through the introduction of this anti-Empire protagonist. That was when I began to refer to this my favorite current series, and I haven't stopped since.

8. Brandon Graham, who wrote or at least co-wrote the first eleven issues, makes science fiction seem effortless. I have no doubt that it is, in fact, the result of tireless work, but the number of creatures, planets, cultures, biological idiosyncrasies, and the like that he introduces every damn issue is just an embarrassment of riches. And I admire that the scope of this series is so large that Graham will quickly abandon a setting or society in order to move us onto and into the next one. It keeps the book fresh, constantly expanding its world and history. Of course, many things are seen more than once as well (Qid-Pids come to mind as a race that's apparently everywhere), establishing a baseline consistency for the story even as it continues to grow outward and upward.

9. Ed Brisson has lettered every issue. Fantastically. Stylized and easy to follow, his work never gets in the way of the art but won't let you ignore the words, either. And the word balloons of alien symbols covered by balloons with their English translations is brilliant in its simplicity. My guess would be that Brisson did not invent that technique (only because it seems so obvious once you look at it as a way to handle translation), but he uses it expertly either way. The best bit of lettering work is the white or red dialogue balloons of the Earth mothers I mentioned above. It heightens their creepiness and, somehow, helps display the extent of their power. Brisson is one of the most regular elements of the Prophet experience, so he must be doing something right.

10. I love the cover art for this title, which almost always consists of either a single Prophet engaged in some adventurous activity or a gorgeous view of some sci-fi scenery. I guess #30 is really more of an alien than it is scenery, but because it's such a plantlike alien it creates the same feeling as the more scenic covers. The point is, this book knows exactly what it's about: Prophets traversing this beautiful, fantastical universe. The covers express that plainly and clearly, which is sort of rare in comics and something I always appreciate.

11. Like Brisson, Joseph Bergin III has been a reliable aspect of the book as the colorist from issue #24 on. The first arc was colored by Richard Ballerman, who is just as skilled as Bergin III, but only ever worked on Prophet with Simon Roy, making him less responsible for aiding the visual consistency I pointed to in thought 6. Bergin III may even deserve most of the credit for that consistency, and certainly a heaping portion of it should be directed his way. He can capture any environment, and move seamlessly between pages that are a wash of one color and those that are more detailed and realistic. Though his palette tends to favor neutral tones, he can pull out the brasher and more startling reds and blues when appropriate, which helps the many and varied action sequences stand out from the pages around them. Again, there's no question that Bergin III is a great talent, because he's been a part of so many issues of such a strong series.

12. Even though they have conflicting goals, I always find myself rooting for whichever John Prophet I am reading about at the time. As versions of the same man, they all posses an admirable bravery and sense of honor, even when they're working for an invasive evil empire. They are tough, quiet, and sure, and even the "bad guys" appear to be decent human beings at their core, despising injustice and desiring companionship. I love that consistency, and it demonstrates how fully-realized this character was in the minds of the creators before the book even began.

Pull List Review: Prophet #31

When Prophet began almost a year ago, Brandon Graham took his sweet time building up the central story piece by piece. It was a strong series right away, but an intentionally slow-burning one, with many issues designed to introduce a single character or concept. Last issue, all of that gradual set-up hit a major peak, and Old Man John Prophet finally had his full team assembled to battle the Earth Empire. That brings us to Prophet #31, which seems to be starting a new cycle of steadily planting seeds so that they can blossom into delicious fruits of story down the line. It's an excellent issue, but one which I liked as much because of what it promises for the future as for what it actually contained in its pages.
     Old Man Prophet wants to form an alliance with the as-of-yet-unseen Woman Army, so he arranges to have a meeting with them, and he and his companions arrive at the location of said meeting and spend some time there preparing themselves. We see Prophet talk with Troll, an old friend of his, who warns him of terrible things to come, which noticeably worries him. But before he can even fully react, he and Diehard discover an open Earth Empire pod, and their new priority becomes finding and killing the Prophet clone who emerged from it. This leads to the first direct conflict between Old Man Prophet's group and the Earth Empire, which our heroes win almost instantly. Not the most exciting of fight scenes, but what it lacks in action it makes up for in brutality and visual appeal.
     Visual appeal is the name of the game when it comes to Prophet anyway, and Giannis Milonogiannis is my personal favorite of the book's rotating team of artists. There is a breathtaking two-page spread right at the start of this issue of two giants floating in space, one of whom is dismembered (and has had his body parts colonized) and the other is curled up in a ball, presumably sleeping. I could not stop looking at those pages, even returning to them while reading the rest of the issue to get another fix. And there's more like that. The fight scene, as I said, is exquisite, all harsh reds and stark whites. Lots of really powerful coloring throughout, actually. Then there's squat, faceless Jaxson strolling around in a hooded robe, which made me do a bit of a double take and subsequently laugh out loud. But my favorite single image has got to be when Diehard looks longingly at Rein-East and we see her distorted reflection in his face. It's a heartbreaking panel, and of all the seeds for future stories planted in this issue, this is the one for which I am most excited.
     Old Man Prophet's strange, sad connection to Rein-East is another piece of groundwork laid out here that I imagine will be significant later on, but really the biggest thing is waiting to see what goes down with the Woman Army. Who they are, what they can potentially offer the cause, and what they'll actually do are all intriguing questions. I'm also crossing my fingers that this isn't the last we've seen of Troll, a wonderfully enigmatic and strangely-spoken creature who I'm betting will have a sizable role to play before all is said and done. So there's a whole lot to look forward to, as well as plenty to enjoy in the present.
     There is no more reliable a comicbook on the shelves today than Prophet, and issue #31, while not explosive or active as some, is a damn fine example of what this title can do. Brandon Graham obviously has a carefully-thought-out plan in place, and every issue adds a brick or two and excites me for whatever will follow. This time even more so than usual.
8.0/10

Pull List Review: Prophet #26

While this book has always had a strangely quiet feel to it, Prophet #26 is even more subdued than usual. Maybe it's the shift in narrative voice, or the lack of any real violence, but something about it feels almost sleepy. It works, of course, because the main character of the issue has only just woken from a long sleep, and the calm of the story did nothing to lessen the urgency of his mission. But there was definitely a dreamlike quality to the whole thing, and one which was hard to pin down.

Brandon Graham not only writes but draws the issue, and does an excellent job at both. Jaxson, our protagonist, is quite a different character than the Prophets who starred in earlier issues, yet the challenges he faces and his ultimate goals are similar enough to create a cohesive whole. Similarly, Graham's art, which has an alarming level of detail, is very much his own without straying dramatically from what has come before. All of this works to make Prophet #26 a story that, on the one hand, is very singular and contained but, on the other, fits snuggly into the rest of the series and adds to the larger narrative in possibly more ways than anything which preceded it.

There are numerous stunning visuals in the issue, including two different two-page landscapes that are simply majestic, but my favorite aspect of the artwork was Graham's use of red. For a long while, the palette is mostly one of neutral tones and muted greens, with red used sparingly throughout. As we move deeper, though, we see more and more red being utilized---like when Jaxson finds his brother, Xefferson, sitting in the middle of a red pool---until, suddenly, it dominates the page. That moment when Jaxson comes out the other side of the Cyclops rail and is washed in red light from a nearby sun is just awesome, and the rest of the issue, similarly saturated in red, is as gorgeous as it is strange.

Prophet is the most reliably excellent title I've seen in some time, and as it builds its reality and its narrative, brick by beautiful brick, it only gets harder to put down.
8.5/10

Pull List Reviews 05/24/2012

First off, my shop got shorted on its order of Teen Titans #9, so that'll have to wait, but luckily there was a lot of great stuff this week, anyway...

Astonishing X-Men #50: I don't want to talk about all the hype surrounding this issue here, for one thing because I plan on talking about it elsewhere, but mostly because I feel like, for the purpose of a review, it's best to ignore that sort of external circumstance and take the issue on its own. And on its own, this issue was a lot of fun. Marjorie Liu clearly knows her characters, and writes them all with strong voices, which helps to add a bunch of really great humor, particularly whenever Wabird's around. There's also a bit of heartbreak, as Kyle turns down Jean-Paul's proposal, forcing Northstar to finally come to terms with the true problems in their relationship. Both the proposal and Northstar's eventual guilt are sad and touching moments, and help to progress the story which has been central to this title since Liu took the reigns. Namely, Northstar and Kyle's love trying to survive in this world full of superpowers. Mike Perkins' art is still a tad uneven, especially when it comes to Wolverine's cowl, but he has some really great moments as well, like when Iceman goes all scary monster and attacks Northstar. All-in-all, a pretty middle-of-the-road chapter, but one which a bit more fun and interesting than the first two. I think that once Liu and Perkins have fully settled into this title, we're going to see great things from them.
6.0/10

Justice League Dark #9: At long, long last, Justice League Dark is as fun and funny as it was always meant to be. Jeff Lemire shakes up the book's  lineup and their reasons for working together, and the end result is much, much stronger than anything from Milligan's tenure on the title. There's a semi-rocky start because, like Milligan, Lemire can't seem to resist having the comic talk about itself---Deadman joking about "real superheroes," Steve Trevor referring to the title as a cute/silly nickname for the team, etc. But once we get past that, there's some really great, magic-filled action and several good moments of characterization which also help to make the whole story more personal for at least some members of the cast. Mikel Janin delivers some of the best artwork this series has seen, too, particularly when drawing Black Orchid, and also Felix Faust. But he does a nice job with everyone, adds a slight but fitting grittiness to the book, and nails the horror elements completely. The inherent potential in this title has always been clear, but only now, nine issues deep, do we finally have a creative team who seems to fully understand and appreciate it. The future looks bright for Justice League Dark.
6.0/10

Mind MGMT #1: I admire and cherish any comicbook that really takes advantage of its medium. Mind MGMT #1, written, drawn, lettered, and designed by Matt Kindt, does just that, with hilarious and intelligent bits of background info written in the page margins, and extra story material on both inside covers. Right there, it wins me over, but of course that's not all it has to offer. It opens with a question about dreams, a question which it never comes back around to answer (yet, anyway), and in truth the whole thing has a dreamlike quality. Some of that comes from Kindt's soft, fuzzy artwork, which helps to keep things calm even when there are moments of fear or violence. But there are elements of dream in the script as well. We get only hints at what is happening and what's to come, but like a dream, even though we may not understand everything, we can feel the weight of it. The importance. Kindt obviously has big plans, and has a lot more figured out than he's sharing with us yet, but he laces this debut with a feeling of impending doom through the narrative captions, so we can sense that big things are building up around the bend. Until that happens, we have a compelling protagonist in Meru, a woman who seems like she might be dreaming a bit herself, or at any rate sleepwalking through her life. She's a strange and fascinating hero, and even though her adventure has only barely begun, I look forward to watching it play out.
7.5/10

Prophet #25: It just gets better and better. Brandon Graham's Prophet has been amazing all along, and this issue is no exception, but there's a subtle shift in personality at work that I thoroughly enjoyed. Partly, this comes from artist Giannis Milonogiannis, who stays true to the established feel of the series but adds a certain roughness to things. The John Prophets we've seen have all been hardened men, but under Milonogiannis' pencils they become so close-mouthed and tight-eyed you can barely see their faces. This is not at all a complaint, because the look more than suits them, and it suits the somewhat harder nature of their mission.  Before, it was always one Prophet struggling to get somewhere, to reach his brothers. Here, not only do we have numerous Prophets working together and already fully-awake, but essentially, they're on a hunting trip. An awesome hunting trip for incredible game---the Nephilim were the best thing, visually and conceptually, about this issue---but nevertheless a hunting trip. This slight but significant change in tone, along with the visually and emotionally stunning ending which pushed the scope of an already massive story out even farther, made Prophet #25 an excellent read through-and-through. The title has firmly cemented itself as my favorite current ongoing series.
10/10

Rebel Blood #3: I love Rebel Blood, and while I am still a huge fan of this issue, it felt a bit less inventive than the first two. More of a straightforward zombie survival narrative. Of course, Riley Rossmo was still drawing it, so it was one of the best-looking zombie survival narratives ever. The pack of rabbits charging through the broken window was my personal favorite, but things like Chuck stomping on a fetus or dragging a guy on the back of a tow truck were badass and unnerving and delightful as well. And the story, while perhaps more direct than it has been, was no less impressive. Alex Link has built an understandable, likable hero in Chuck, and it makes sense that he would try to save Red, his only real friend in this fight so far. It also makes sense that his rescue attempt would fail, because when he finally does make it back to his family (which is his endgame), we want him to be alone, to either save them or lose them himself. So I deeply enjoyed everything that actually happened in this issue, even if it was somewhat more by-the-numbers than I've come to expect. With only the finale left to read, I'm hoping Rebel Blood has at least one or two tricks left up its storytelling sleeve, because as a series, its primed right now to be one of the best of the year.
8.5/10

Secret Avengers #27: Rick Remender should teach a class to other comicbook writers about how to handle tie-ins. Linking directly to the themes of AvX, Secret Avengers #27 is be about heroes fighting each other over what to do about the Phoenix, yet at the same time the actual narrative of the main event title has almost nothing to do with this issue. Unlike pretty much any other tie-in I've read, this truly works and makes sense entirely by itself, with absolutely no preliminary reading of the event it's tied to being necessary. Now, having said that, I should also point out that if you know nothing about Mar-Vell (and I know a pretty limited amount myself) then his return may not pack the emotional punch it's meant to, but Remender deals with this by tapping us directly into Mar-Vell's thoughts. We get more than enough of his history this way, as well as his present state of mind, and it does a lot for our understanding and enjoyment of the story. The thing is, though, it hardly matters WHAT the story's about (which is a rarity with a Remender script) because the art is just so damn fantastic. Renato Guedes, with serious assists from colorists Bettie Breitweiser and Matthew Wilson, manages to top himself artistically from last issue, which is no small feat. Thanos' face on the opening page, Vision pushing back against whatever is brainwashing the Kree, and every bit of the Thor vs. Mar-Vell fight are gorgeous. Somehow, even in the midst of so much violence and, ultimately, death, the art is soothing. It invites you in and warms you, calms you while you read about the possible extinction of an entire planet. I wish more superhero comicbooks were this visually pleasing, and I'm going to miss the shit out of this creative team whenever they depart from the title.
8.5/10

Smoke and Mirrors #3: In some ways, the bulk of this issue is what I wanted Smoke and Mirrors to be a from the get-go: a story about a stage magician from our world trapped in a world where magic is real. So far, instead, it's mostly been about Ethan, the boy who (sort of) befriends said magician, and Mr. Ward's own story is certainly more interesting than Ethan's. But now that we're already so familiar with how Ward gets by in this world, the details of his early days there are a bit less interesting than I think they would've been if they'd come sooner. It also means that when we finally return to Ethan's part of the story in Smoke and Mirrors #3, it feels a bit out of place, because we've already spent so much time focusing on Ward. Still, on its own merits, it's a solid issue, telling a clear, quick tale about a man struggling to adapt to an unthinkable situation, and it handles that narrative quite well and realistically. I'm also warming to Ryan Browne's artwork, which rests somewhere betwen "realistic" and "cartoony." But, I realized reading this, that's actually pretty perfect for a book set in a world that runs on magic, and his characters are emotive and strong. Plus, seriously, this title gets props for including a working magic trcik in each issue, and this one had, by far, my favorite. Now that Ward and the closest thing to a villain we've seen yet are finally face-to-face, I hope the ending of this series can pick up a little steam.
5.0/10

Ultimate Comics X-Men #12: By no means terrible, but a bit of a snoozer. I mean, in my fanboy head, I was thrilled to see Ultimate Layla Miller, Mr. Sinister, and... Apocalypse? Someone who goes by that name, anyway. But it took an awfully long time to get to the Sinister/Apocalypse reveal, without a whole lot else really taking place beforehand. Havok, another character who hasn't been in the title since the reboot (I'm not sure anyone who appeared in this issue has), is rescued from a mental hospital in a weird way, for strange and cryptic reasons that I don't know why I should care about. And I mean, that's pretty much it. Nick Spencer has yet to really whet my appetite with Ultimate Comics X-Men, telling too large a story in such tiny increments. Luckily, this marks his departure from the title, and even though it seems rude to add a bunch of new threads without tying any up before you hand it off to a new writer, I'm excited to see what Brian Wood does with the pieces he's been left. I should say, though, for all my griping about the script, Paco Medina's art actually stepped up a notch this issue. It seemed surer of itself somehow, steadier and more confident, which really helped to carry the dry, meatless story. And all the panels of people being rapidly aged to death (of which there may have been more than necessary, but who cares?) really worked for me. Still, not quite enough to enhance the overall effect of the issue too greatly, as the story dragged its feet from cover to cover.
4.5/10

Pull List Reviews 04/19/2012

Big fat stack of comics this week so let's get to it.

Avengers vs. X-Men #2: What a misfire. Really across the board, this issue was a letdown. John Romita, Jr.'s pencils were highly inconsistent and never impressive. For a book all about two teams fighting, he sure had a hard time drawing more than a couple members of either team in any given panel. But even worse, I am sad to say, was Jason Aaron's script. From the out-of-place, over-the-top, unnecessary narration to some laughable moments of dialogue (e.g. Storm screaming about a marriage counselor in the middle of combat) Aaron failed to make me the least bit interested in what was going on. Which was not much, anyway, just some rehashing of the weak, half-baked "reasons" each side has for fighting this fight, lots of punching and smack talk, and Hope continuing to be sort of a brat about the whole situation. The end. This event needs to pick up some steam real fast, because it's gotten worse each issue so far.
2.5/10


Batman #8: This whole Court of Owls thing is getting a bit tiresome, so I am excited for the crossover to get rolling and get over with. I don't hate the Court as villains, but I'm not wowed by them either, and there have been some very questionable decisions and reveals along the way from Scott Snyder and company. Luckily, Batman #8 mostly avoid those kinds of developments, telling a very brief and effective story about Wayne Manor coming under attack and how Bruce and Alfred work together to save themselves, their home, and their city. It's a lot of fun and very fast paced, with the tension and action ramping up quickly and then staying quite high for the rest of the issue. The partnership between Bruce and Alfred is very natural, and Greg Capullo makes their fear in the face of their enemies and their concern for one another come through in his art. He does a better job with Alfred than Bruce, but they each have some great moments. The best visuals, however, come from the army of slightly varied but still somehow uniform Talons. An impressive and frightening group.

I was not wild about the closing page of the main story---we'll see where it goes before passing final judgement, I guess---or any of the back-up tale (although YAY for Rafael Albuquerque Batman art!) but up until those final pages, a definite win.
6.5/10


Birds of Prey #8: This title is nothing if not reliable. Solid superhero entertainment every month, with this issue acting as a particularly nice example, if only because it more or less stands alone. Not that everything is neatly resolved at the end, but the bad guys which the Birds deal with this issue have nothing to do with Choke, the evil mastermind of the first arc. And though some larger developments are left to be resolved later, the immediate threat of the issue is handled all in one fully-contained and very well-done fight. That threat, a team called The Infiltrators who has it in for Black Canary, is a bizarre group in both their powers and personalities, but Duane Swierczynski and Jesus Saiz introduce them deftly and rapidly and in a way that never slows the story or detracts from the fun. Indeed, one of The Infiltrators, Napalm, was the funniest and most enjoyable part of the issue. I have yet to be truly floored by this title, but also yet to be at all disappointed.
6.5/10


The Defenders #5: Matt Fraction's story was a bit up-and-down here, but I thoroughly enjoyed Mitch Breitweiser's art. Particularly in the underwater sequence that makes up the first half of this issue. In fact, that first half was much stronger than the second in almost every way. It had all the action and humor and mystery this title is always seeped in, but somehow it was still a bit calmer than usual, less frantic and overwhelming, and I think Breitweiser's art is a huge part of that. Once our heroes came out from the sea and began to excavate the Nautilus, things started to get a little bit jumpy, and while nothing was all that confusing, it definitely became a few degrees more muddled. Still, from cover to cover, Fraction did a great job with Namor's voice (more than anything this made me wish Fraction could just do a Namor series) and for the few lines he had, Danny Rand's voice, too. I wish it had been a steadier story, but I suppose it was really none too shabby, and perhaps the best looking issue of this incarnation of The Defenders so far.
7.0/10


Hellblazer #290: A really good ending to a pretty good storyline, Hellblazer #290 continues to add to the ever-growing dysfunction of John Constantine's family. John's relationship to his sister Cheryl, his niece Gemma, and his father-in-law Terry all go through some pretty significant developments here. Not to mention his wife Epiphany's own relationship to Terry. And we get set up for yet another appearance of the Demon Constantine in coming issues, which is good news for us as readers. Peter Milligan has definitely found a groove on this title, and even when nothing spectacular happens (like here), he keeps me coming back for more, always anxious to see what might go down next.
6.0/10


Prophet #24: This was EXACTLY what I wanted to see after the incredible opening three-issue arc of this Prophet reboot. A brand new John Prophet in a brand new world, but still a story that builds on the notion of a universe full of these men working toward some mysterious, cosmic common goal. Farel Dalrymple provides exceptional artwork throughout, especially the little girl guide and what she turns out to really be, but the true star of this book as always is Brandon Graham. His captions are so excellently written, so deliciously paced, and always know exactly what and how much to leave to the art. It's pretty uncommon that this kind of stylized-yet-understated narrative voice is so expertly employed in the comicbook medium, because so much of the comicbook world is filled with bombastic, over-powered archetypes. John Prophet is none of those things, and it makes his book all the more worth reading. It creeps closer to the top of my list of favorite titles every issue.

Also, much better back-up story than last time. A bit of an old lesson, perhaps, but told in a very fun and simple new way. And just like in the main story, really interesting and reliable art.
9.0/10


Rachel Rising #7: While not as strong an installment as many of the preceding ones, Rachel Rising #7 certainly isn't weak, either. It's just that rather than having any new deaths or very much new horror, this issue takes some time to set up important stuff for the future. Jet is undead just like Rachel, which can't be anything less than hugely significant. There's now a local detective involved in all this madness, which is bound to add some tension to the whole scenario. And then there's the final sequence, which I won't spoil, but is higher up on the insanity scale than perhaps anything Terry Moore has given us in Rachel Rising so far. And that's most certainly a good thing. Perhaps a bit slower than what came before it, but still full of rich, compelling characters trying as hard as they can to deal with an impossible situation. That's good fiction, no matter what.
6.0/10


The Shadow #1: Essentially what Garth Ennis offers us in this debut is a chilling character study of the titular "hero." And it's the perfect way to kick off The Shadow, a character who has been reinvented and interpreted numerous times over the decades. It doesn't matter what, if any, preconceived notions you have of Lamont Cranston going into this book, because Ennis and artist Aaron Campbell make it brutally clear what their version of the man is going to be like: unrelenting, unforgiving, brilliant, deadly, and arrogant. Even when dealing with his allies, he's intentionally a pain in the ass. Hell, even with Margo Lane, maybe especially with her, his I'm-above-it-all attitude shines through. But from what we've seen so far, he can back that attitude up all the way, and it makes me thrilled to see what else this new series has in store.
8.0/10


T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #6: Pretty weak sauce. The worst Wes Craig art to date on T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents (which is really saying something) and also the least interesting script of Nick Spencer's entire run (yes, all 16 issues, not just the six that make up his second volume). Not the worst script, maybe, but by far the dullest. Mostly just Colleen talking to whoever it is she was seen talking to in Sri Lanka waaaaaaaay back in the first issue of the first volume, info-dumping so the reader doesn't have any hanging questions at all. And in a spy series, that kind of sucks. Everything gets so neatly tied up that it feels too neat, almost out of place for a title that has been hard to slow or pin down since it began. Cafu draws the Sri Lanka segments and does a really great job, but he has so little to draw (again, pretty much just Colleen's face or the face of her companion) and it is cushioned by such wonky Wes Craig nonsense that the overall effect is weakened. I've been a bit cool on this title for a while now anyway, I suppose, but at the very least I expected the finale to be dynamic and adventurous and full of fatalities. I got zero from that list.
4.0/10


Thunderbolts #173: No question, this was a better chapter than the first of this Thunderbolts vs. Thunderbolts story. Fixer has been a highlight of this title under Jeff Parker's writing all along, and watching him interact with his younger, wilder self is both a lot of fun and quite poignant, and takes the story in at least one unexpected direction as we prepare for the last issue before the change to Dark Avengers takes place. The best part of Thunderbolts #173, though, was Baron Zemo, not just because Declan Shalvey makes him look so awesome with his mask off, but because everything he does perfectly in character while still moving the story of the current Thunderbolts forward in great strides. He's the smartest guy in the room, and that means he can aid a team he was just fighting while simultaneously serving his own wicked goals, and it makes his solution to the long-running time travel conundrum of this title come quickly while still feeling natural. Only one issue to go before a change in name, cast, and, presumably, focus for this book, but Thunderbolts #173 renewed my faith that Jeff Parker will bring us something enjoyable and at least partially surprising for the closing chapter.
6.0/10


Uncanny X-Force #24: It's back! After a rare misstep in the "Otherworld" arc, Uncanny X-Force returns to its former glory. Phil Noto on pencils, a clear target for the team to kill, and major advancement on the always interesting Psylocke-Fantomex romance. The main thrust of the issue is AoA Nightcrawler (can we just call him "Nightcrawler" yet?) killing AoA Iceman, with a little help from Wolverine and Deadpool. Rick Remender does a really great job fleshing out this Nightcrawler through not only his captions but also his tactics during the fight against his old friend. It is an inventive and emotionally powerful battle, for the reader and the characters, and it serves as a reminder of the true potential for greatness in this book. According to Remender in recent interviews and whatnot, another major mega-arc is about to kick off, and this standalone tale (also acting as a grat epilogue to "Otherworld") is the perfect way to transition into whatever Remender has planned. It brings the cast closer together, helps completely establish the newest member, and brings back the grim and awesome violence and assassination this title does so well. Bravo!
8.5/10


Wolverine and the X-Men #9: As far as tie-ins to major events go, this was a pretty satisfying effort. It begins before the first issue of Avengers vs. X-Men, chronologically speaking, and takes us all the way to the end of that same issue seamlessly, which is an impressive accomplishment. And Jason Aaron manages to give Wolverine's choice the necessary gravitas without losing the lightweight, humorous tone that Wolverine and the X-Men has established for itself. I loved the opening sequence on Planet Sin, and had a few smiles during Captain America's visit, the brief moment of tenderness between Toad and Husk, and the conversation between Logan and Idie. All good, believable, engaging stuff. Chris Bacahlo, for his part, delivered some of the clearest art I've seen from him, which was a pleasant surprise, since I typically find myself confused for at least one whole page when he is on art duties for this book. Not a lot of big important story beats (except for maybe the last page) as far as the whole AvX conflict goes, but a solid tie-in issue nonetheless.
7.5/10


Wonder Woman #8: While Brian Azzarello's work on Wonder Woman has been really good all along, one thing I've noticed is that a lot of the time, Diana is overshadowed by the rest of the cast. Not because she isn't awesome, it's just that she is so steady and consistent and, in many ways, familiar, while the rest of the characters in her world are new and strange and full of insights and/or knowledge which she does not posses. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but the truth is Wonder Woman doesn't always feel like the star of her own title. This month, however, that all changes. In an awesome issue that sends Diana and Hermes to Hades in the hopes of rescuing Zola, we get a great version of the underworld, some really spectacular action, and most of all we get to see Wonder Woman in the spotlight. He new armor, brilliantly designed by Cliff Chang (who kills it on every page like usual) and her confident swagger make her stand out in all of her panels, and while Hermes kicks plenty of ass himself, it is Diana who leads the charge and fights the hardest. A somewhat obvious "twist" at the end, but one which makes me super excited for next month all the same. Even though it didn't deal with the controversy from last issue (and that does need to be addressed at some point for sure) Wonder Woman #8 did just about everything else right.

Also, "In its brevity is where life's importance lies." YES!!!
8.0/10