Image by woss_hawkes via flickr
Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel, it’s your weekly round up of some new releases in the world of comics.
Voodoo #2
DC’s alien stripper superheroine is back for issue #2 and it’s… not quite what I was expecting from issue #1.
Now the first issue of Voodoo, I definitely had to agree with Rich Johnston on Bleeding Cool on his assessment that a mixed race bisexual female leading a title could have been a great thing if they hadn’t focused on the stripper part of her character quite so much. For pages and pages of ladies standing around in lingerie, that is. This issue has a lot less gratuitous stripping, a properly credible threat with Major Force and the beginnings of some proper interaction between Voodoo and Agent Fallon.
And the art…. The art’s still holding up the very high standard set by issue #1. Absolutely beautiful lines and colouring here, we’re talking equal to Mike Choi on X-23 in level of amazingness when it comes to posing. Sam Basri, we salute you.
In all, my ruling: this has the potential to be a good book in the next few issues, as long as it doesn’t fall back on relying too much on the exploitative aspects of Voodoo’s character like it did in issue #1. I’ll give #3 a try.
Oh, and there’s also a Batman Christmas special in the back for whatever reason. Batfans, get on it.
Wolverine and the X-Men #1
Well, after the events of Schism, Wolverine has officially allied with Professor X in the fight to let mutants actually have childhoods. This issue is basically setting the scene for the upcoming new series, starting off with a look into daily mutant school life with a visit from some accreditation inspectors.
At the moment, the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning (yes, Wolvie went there) seems a bit like the spiritual successor of New Mutants. You know, the one with Rockslide and Anole. Who, incidentally, are also in this book, which is going to mean awesome and hilarious brotimes worth tuning in for (I kind of hope they go off and do the superheroic duo fighting crime thing again, please Marvel?).
Kade Kilgore, the new Black King of the Hellfire Club, is the big bad in this new arc, but really: a bratty supergenius 12 year old? Are we trying to make this more of an 80s school hijinks comedy than it already looks like? At least making Kitty Pryde headmistress is kind of in keeping with the perfect Mary-Sue girlfriend beginnings she had.
Honestly, I’m expecting some pretty good things out of this book. I’m going to say that between the fun-looking stylized art and the snappy tongue-in-cheek humour, this is definitely worth adding to your pull list if you’re looking for a bit of lightheartedness. That is, as long as the book keeps up with the pace set by the first issue.
Avengers Academy #20
This is a tie-in with Fear Itself, but it’s really more about the fallout of Veil and others leaving the intrepid team of damaged teen superheroes and their equally damaged teachers (as if you can’t tell by the oh-so-dramatic shattered group portrait on the cover). So it’s exactly what you would expect: a set-up for the upcoming line up change, though we get some solid superheroic moral compass questioning going on in here when the members of the team get to say their goodbyes.
I can’t say too much without spoiling some of the impact for long-term fans, but seriously, if you’re wanting to get in on this underrated gem of the Marvel Universe, next issue is going to be where it really kicks off. As long as they keep up the precedent set by the really endearing previous 20 issues, you’re going to have to start getting this- and I’m not just saying that as an occasional fan of the Power Pack (because, spoiler, Julie Power is a new recruit).
What did you think of this week’s new releases? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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October 27, 2011
Comics