AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #29: Another consistently solid issue of this title. There are some cheese-ball moments throughout, and the cliffhanger is paced far too quickly for it to have any sort of resonance (unless I’m forgetting things from previous issues). But those quibbles aside, A:TI continues to shine the light in the forgotten corners of the Marvel Universe, while still staying squarely in the middle. I’m going to be a little bummed if it gets canceled at the end of Dark Reign, but if the rumored Avengers Academy takes its place, and stays consistent to the tone presented here, I’m definitely on board.

DARK AVENGERS: ARES #1: Kieron Gillen continues to prove why he was made to write about gods and mortals, perfectly capturing Ares character here, as well as creating some indelible military images. Which is why its such a bummer that this suggests, at least, its going to tie into other comics at the end of the issue. It may not, who knows, but the first 20 or so pages are filled with brilliant menace. I hope the next issue is as good as this one, and doesn’t exactly follow up on the promise of the cliffhanger here.

DARK REIGN: THE LIST – PUNISHER: Now this is what the “List” books should have been all along. This is easily the biggest issue of the week, Marvel-wise, and if you ignore that the ending has been effectively spoiled for months now by Marvel itself, and take the book on its own merits, it kicks an ass and a half. My main problem with the List books so far is this: they purport to be Normie taking Dark Reign to the next level, attacking the heroes where they live. But they come off as attempts hampered by continuity, lack of change, and perhaps editorial decree (oh no! editors! run!). So you get lame things like sending Bullseye after Daredevil with Norman’s over-arching plan being, “Make Daredevil feel bad.” Or Norman’s plan to take down Clint Barton is to wait until he comes into Avengers Tower, and then arrest him. Or, my personal favorite, taking care of Namor once and for all by killing a character we haven’t seen in more than a decade (though I will admit that got to me). I think the key term there is “once and for all…” The endings of these one shots have felt very much like Norman going in loops (standing in for the authors), explaining how the result of the book was a big victory for him. The other problem I’ve had is that these plans have consistently had a reverse Acts of Vengeance feel to them. Rather than mixing things up, Norman sends the same villains who have previously gotten their butts handed to them multiple times by the hero, and expects they’ll be victorious this time. They’re not.

All of this, and I still haven’t talked about this issue, so here we go… And there are spoilers here: Norman decides to take care of the Punisher once and for all. Does he resurrect Jigsaw and send him after Frank? Heck no. He blows up everything in a five block radius around him. And when that doesn’t work, he sends hundreds of H.A.M.M.E.R. agents to kill him. And when that starts to work, he sends in Daken, who slices Frank Castle into tiny little pieces. And if you’re not sure that worked, the issue ends with tiny little pieces of Frank lying in a pile in a alleyway. The end.

Now, that is what I’m talking about. Plus, you’ve got John Romita Jr. drawing at the top of his game, Klaus Janson writing, and insane, over the top action courtesy of Rick Remender. If there’s one fault with this issue, it’s that we also get a preview of the next issue of Punisher (by Tony Moore and Rick Remender, hells yeah), and we know he’s not gone for long.

But like I said, on its own merits? This is a classic comic, and worth every penny.

DARK REIGN: THE LIST – WOLVERINE: Yeah, and then there’s this. Totally fine writing and art, Jason Aaron writing a fun, over the top story as usual, but read above for all my previous criticisms of the List books, and apply that here, too.

DARK REIGN: YOUNG AVENGERS #5: The resolution of this series is hampered a bit by the idea that I don’t think we’ll ever see these characters again, so its a little hard to get into their struggle. Also, though Paul Cornell’s scripting is reliably good, most of the last few issues of this mini have taken place in one warehouse, with the characters just talking. Kinda boring, honestly. I think there was potential here to have a new, Young Masters of Evil to counter the Young Avengers, but it was squandered on yet another recruitment drive story. Ah well.

FANTASTIC FOUR #572: People are really loving this run a lot, and… I’m not totally sold. Love Jonathan Hickman, LOVE Dale Eaglesham, and the inventiveness on display here is surprising and fun in all the right ways. But the situation with the Council of Reeds and the Celestials is resolved a little too quickly and easily, without using all the tools on display (hey, what about that room full of Dooms, huh?), and Reed’s emotional resolution with Sue, while nice, also feels a little quick. Plus, Hickman separates Johnny and Ben from the group before Reed even gets back. So we’re not gonna get a full group story for a while, which is a bummer. It’s possible Hickman is holding certain ideas and arcs in reserve, so we haven’t seen how this all plays out yet, but I’m not quite falling in love with this as hard as other people are. I’m still keeping with it, though, because its a well made comic, and I expect it’ll get even better, even if it isn’t grabbing me right now.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #19: Well, that situation was resolved way more quickly than I thought it would be. GotG is solid month after month, and its a thrill to see Kang, one of the most integral characters in the history of the Marvel U, back in the spotlight, however briefly.

HULK #16: Who is the Red She-Hulk? Who cares? And I mean that in a good sense, actually, because Loeb is finally remembering that comics are about characters, not just blow-em-ups and super-secrets. I could actually care less about the whole conspiracy angle, but like the attempt to give the Red Hulk some sort of character, and how more is revealed through the new Red She-Hulk. This is not high art by any means, but its been fun, and a step up for two issues in a row.

INCREDIBLE HERCULES #137: There’s nothing I don’t like about this book. Tying up the Amadeus Cho half of this particular arc, we get good emotion, great ideas, and lots of myths, just the way we like it. This book is great.

MS. MARVEL #46: Brian Reed made a pretty bold choice with this arc, to make Karla Sofen (Moonstone) the focus, and “hero” of the arc, while Carol Danvers is most decidedly the villain. And it works, while keeping them both on their sides of the fence anyway. I do think this fizzled a bit, starting far stronger than it ended, but we’re probably (hopefully) getting some follow up on this arc as we switch perspectives back to Danvers. Definitely one of the more underrated titles Marvel is publishing right now, and worth jumping on for next issue at least to check it out.

NEW AVENGERS #58: Bendis has really gotten his groove back on this arc. Its based in the characters, good action, and fun beats throughout. Hope it keeps up, ’cause this is a lot of fun.

NEW MUTANTS #6: The moment we have all been waiting for has finally come: Doug Ramsey is back. Okay, maybe only I was waiting for it, and herein lies the crux of this review: I can’t divorce myself from my feelings for Doug enough to properly review this issue. Everybody has that character, that one character they unequivocally love, and for me it was always Cypher. So… Yeah. Good issue, but I couldn’t read it without feeling kind of uncomfortable, because this isn’t even close to the Doug I know. Amping up his powers to treat combat as a “language” is cool in theory, but it does just come off as “Doug’s powers are lame, let’s figure out a way to make ‘em interesting.” Also, this is probably the 56th time he’s come back as a techno-organic being, so its lost its power a bit. Take this all with a very large grain of salt, by the way. If you haven’t already.

PUNISHER #10: Read this before The List. I would say that this has one of the most insane moments in Punisher history; so much so, it made me angry. And you wouldn’t like me when I’m… Can’t think of a word to finish that statement. Oh well!

SECRET WARRIORS #9: I keep going back and forth about this title. If it focuses on one character (say, Nick Fury or Phobos), I like it quite a bit. If it’s a team story, like this issue, I honestly can’t remember who all the Secret Warriors are, so it’s a little difficult to follow. Does that make me racist towards Secret Warriors? Probably.

ULTIMATE COMICS ARMOR WARS #2: Did Bryan Hitch ghost-pencil this? I swear to god, I didn’t realize this was Steve Kurth and not Hitch until I went back to check the title page. This is silly, the kind of “remixing old stories” that the Ultimate U was supposed to have left behind. I honestly don’t know if any of it would make any sense to someone who hasn’t read the main Marvel U. For someone who has, like myself, it’s a lark, but a negligible one.

ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #3: Same thing here, with remixing Marvel U ideas… Except it kind of works, because Millar is drawing on his run on Ultimates, and skipping right over the Loeb stuff. Great art, big over the top globe trotting story, huge action… Just the way we like it.

X NECROSHA: Blackest Night begins here! Its actually unfortunate that this is coming so close to the heels of BN, though to the writer’s credit, it zips through the “Oh my god! Look who’s back alive!” thing much more quickly and efficiently. I’m not sold on this yet, but if you want the tapestry of the X-Men part of the universe for the next few months, you have to start here. Actually, read X-Force first, then this, then New Mutants. But yeah, start here. In the middle.

X-FACTOR #50: I would love to say this is a triumphant end of this title’s biggest arc, but… Well, X-Factor is always solid, and always fun, but this is a little too texty. And plotty. And wraps up a bunch of stuff that I didn’t really care about, so unfortunately the stuff I do care about, like Layla Miller’s secret origin, and what’s going on with Evil Madrox kind of get short shrift. That’s too bad, but at least we’re clearing the deck for a new start next issue, and hopefully more people will start picking it up.

X-FORCE #20: Basically a continuation of the X-23 series, this is hardcore, sad, and everything that is good about this comic on a regular basis.

Video reviews for JSA #30, Superman #691, Flash: Rebirth #4, Hulk #14, Secret Warriors #7, Last Days of Animal Man #4, Wonder Woman #35, New Mutants #4, Batman: The Widening Gyre #1, Sinister Spider-Man #4, X-Force #18, Gotham City Sirens #3, Dark Wolverine #77, Avengers: Initiative #27,

As usual (well, as of last week and this week, usual), we’ve got spoiler-free reviews of tomorrow’s Marvel Comics today! Be sure to check back tomorrow and leave your thoughts, and we’ll have more spoilery looks on the video shows this week.

BLACK PANTHER #4 – Boy, they sure are taking their time with this “Who is the new Black Panther?” thing, huh? I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s competently done, but I think I enjoyed the immense amounts of fun Reginald Hudlin brought to the run before it went to its new numbering. Now it’s all mysticism and gothic intensity, and it’s losing my interest.

DARK REIGN: HAWKEYE #2 – As much as I like the idea of this series, the execution is a little lacking. Whereas last issue had a strong focus on Bullseye wanting to be known as Bullseye, not Hawkeye, this issue jettisons all that in favor of a new psychological take on the mass murdering sai-stealer. Again, it’s not bad, Andy Diggle knows what he’s doing; but I can’t help but think this would have been far better as a one-shot, ala Chris Gage’s Thunderbolts one-shots, which focused on a character, informed the main book, but worked mainly as supplemental material. I also like Tom Raney’s pencils a lot, they’re nice and clean, but he has a bright, almost bubbly flair that doesn’t quite match the realism of Dark Avengers, for example.

DARK REIGN: YOUNG AVENGERS #1 – This should be Young Masters of Evil, right? And it almost is, except for some garbage about, “We’re heroes! No we’re not! Are we? I don’t know!” I love Paul Cornell’s writing dearly, but this is a bit of a mess, mainly because it’s entirely unclear who these young heroes are aspiring to be. The idea is great: young heroes inspired by the Dark Avengers are like the Young Masters of Evil. Except… Nobody knows the Dark Avengers are evil, so it comes off as a fantastic, unexplained coincidence that there’s a baby Enchantress, and Executioner, etc. Hopefully this will clear up a bit next issue, because Cornell (and the idea) deserve better than this first one.

DEADPOOL: SUICIDE KINGS #2 – I feel like I’m coming off as quite the negative nancy this week, so apologies on one more negative review before a few positive ones, but none of this comic makes any sense. Sorry, that’s a little strong, but how hard is it to pit Deadpool against The Punisher? It’s not. You barely need an excuse. Yet this book is bending over backwards to come up with a reason for them to come to blows. Here, I’ll pitch a better comic right now: The Punisher realizes Deadpool is an amoral assassin, and decides to kill him. Done! Goodbye.

GENEXT: UNITED #1 – The first GeneXt series was a nice surprise… Given the complicated premise, that the X-Men had aged in real time in from their first appearance, and now had grandchildren running around with mutant powers, it was surprisingly successful with an old school X-Men feel. Which makes sense, given that Chris Claremont wrote and created it. This issue picks up minutes after the end of the last series, and works just as well. If you want fun, old school X-Men tales set in modern times, this book is well worth a look.

LOCKJAW AND THE PET AVENGERS #1 – It’s embarrassing how excited I was for this book, and boy did it deliver. I’m not going to say much other than you probably know from the title whether you want to read this or not. If it’s “not,” let me correct you and say that yes, you do want to read it. It’s the most fun you’ll have reading an Avengers book all month. No joke. Marvel has been killing it with its pseudo-continuity books like Dr. Doom and the Masters of Evil, the Power Pack books, and X-Men: First Class; Pet Avengers fits in there quite well, thank you. Also, if Speedball’s cat Niles ends up in some sort of S&M armor by the end of the series, I will kiss Chris Eliopoulos square on the mouth.

PUNISHER: FRANK CASTLE MAX #70 – This is the last issue of the arc, and I haven’t read an issue since Ennis’ run, but it sure does seem like a lot of elements from what good old Garth was doing on the title, without the insane intensity. Ah well.

SAVAGE SHE-HULK #2 – I know a lot of people are mad that She-Hulk (aka Jennifer Walters) was cancelled for this title, and is being replaced by a new She-Hulk (Thundra and the Hulk’s daughter). Too bad none of that is true. She-Hulk was cancelled, but not because of this title. That was a happy accident. And the Savage She-Hulk isn’t replacing Jenny… She’s all over this issue, being as awesome as ever. There’s still a lot we don’t know about this character, and it seems like all four issues are going to be the superhero equivalent of 16 Blocks, but I’m officially on board with the new Thrulk. If you’ve been avoiding the title for any of the above reasons, stop it, and pick up this issue. You’re supporting new characters in the Marvel universe if you do, and single handedly destroying comics if you’re not. That may be a little harsh, actually. And untrue. Maybe.

SECRET WARRIORS #4 – I gotta say, four issues in, and I’m still not 100% sure who all of these characters are, or what they’re about. As a team book, it seems like we may have one of those “The team after the first arc isn’t the same as where we started!” things going on, which is starting to make me think, “Maybe I’ll wait until after the first arc, then!” As a Nick Fury book, though, Hickman and Bendis are rocking it. They have a great handle on Fury, where he’s at, and what he’s about. It’s nice that he’s returned to the Marvel Universe proper in style, with his own, f-ing terrifying Rogues Gallery. That’s not even mentioning Stefano Caselli’s gorgeous art, which makes this book worth picking up on its own.

THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ #6 – What can I say that hasn’t previously been said. Every issue is like a work of art. I mean, it is a work of art. Pick it up.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #132 – Goddamn if this isn’t the most consistently great title Marvel has ever published. Bendis is writing this title so well, and so completely owning everything about it, that I can’t imagine anyone else ever writing the title. He’s even writing a great story arc in the face of the monumentally crappy Ultimatum event. And as much as I’m super giddy about David LaFeunte on Ultimate Comics Spider-Man when this relaunches in two issues, I’m going to miss Stuart Immonen’s superb art. I GUESS it’ll be okay that he’s going over to New Avengers. OH WELL. By the way, slight spoiler time, but anyone else think Bendis might (seriously, potential spoilers if I am an incredible genius) kill/get rid of Peter Parker? I could be totally off base here, but I think at least for the first arc or two, Ultimate Comics Spider-Man could probably be titled Ultimate Spider-Woman Comics. Don’t get me wrong, I’m betting Pete’ll come back from the “dead” at some point (and not that he’s dead at the end of this issue, I’m just speculating), but if I’m right, you all owe me cookies.

WAR OF KINGS: ASCENSION #2 – Why is there a comic book about Darkhawk? And why is it so fun? I feel weird.

X-FACTOR #43 – Peter David, as promised, is continuing to do a lovely job of making X-Factor as fun, exciting, and surprising as it has ever been, but there’s one moment in here that totally grossed me out. You’ll know what it is when you see it. In its own way, it’s as shocking a reveal as anything on the last pages of the previous three issues. And that’s not counting this issue’s last page reveal, which is fun and shocking in its own way. In case it isn’t clear, go pick this up.