Trailer for the new Marvel event coming this spring.

Trailer for the new Marvel event coming this spring.


Will the Marvel universe ever be the same again? My guess, Yes, but with Matt Fraction writing, I have high hopes for real impact.

"Return of the Illuminati" or "Has anyone seen my Infinity Gem?"

Avengers #8: Return of the Illuminati


I had previously dropped this title because I am not a fan of the work John Romita jr. has been doing on this book. Romita's style is not a style I would put on a more mainstream book as the Avengers, I prefer his more cosmic stuff like his run on the Eternals. The blocky look to his drawings make it hard to distinguish who is who apart from the costumes. Even though I dislike the art style I decided to pick this book up for several reasons, I tend to enjoy Bendis' writing style, master of the superhero banter, and I wanted to see what they were going to do with the Infinity Gauntlet.

The issue opens with Iron Man waiting for the rest of his Illuminati cohorts to arrive. The interactions between this group of "hero masterminds" are spot on with the slight distrust due to the events of the past. The last to arrive was expected to be Black Bolt but his wife Medusa of the Inhumans comes in his stead with news that Black Bolt is dead. Before anyone can show grief for the loss of Black Bolt, Iron Man steps in and says that the reason he called the meeting is too important to delay. Someone has stolen two of the six Infinity Gems.

The rest of the issue retells the events that led Tony (Iron Man) to discover that someone is trying to gather all the gems. So far the thief, Who we know is Parker Robbins (the Hood), has stolen one from the Inhumans old home in the Himalayas, Attilan, and one from an unopenable pocket dimension safe at the Baxter building. The Illuminati journey to Attilan to look for clues but just as they are making some discoveries the Illuminati are interrupted by Avengers led by Steve Rogers. Steve asks one question that sums up his feelings on the Illuminati, "Tony...What are you doing?"

This was an enjoyable issue and I look forward to seeing how things play out. I like Parker Robbins being the big bad villain after the Infinity gems because unlike Thanos from the Infinity Gauntlet series, Parker is just a power hungry villain who is very motivated and resourceful. I am also interested in how Captain Steve and the other Avengers are going to react to the whole Illuminati thing and these select few "leaders" deciding the fate of the Universe. Are they the best people for the job?

For more info on the Infinity Gauntlet series watch for our podcast reviewing it coming soon .

Something I found on the Marvel site.

I was looking around on the Marvel site and ran across some webisodes called What the? and I remember liking these comics for a laugh when I was younger so I gave it a try. This one is my favorite so far.

Watch MSH: What The--?! Episode 13

All new, All ninja-ier X-force

    X-force has had many incarnations over the years, from the original New Mutants team turned militant by Cable (and Rob Liefeld) to the reality T.V. show team that became the X-Statix. The most recent incarnation is very similar in style to the black ops X-men Cyclops put together during the Messiah Complex crossover. Cyclops' X-force was an incredibly effective team with it's assorted skill sets and experience from Elixer to Wolverine but when Wolverine and Angel continue the group hidden from Cyclops and all the other X-men, they bring on board a much deadlier and experienced team. With the starting line-up for the team consisting of Wolverine, Angel (mostly as Archangel), Psylocke, Deadpool, and Fantomex. I expect there to be a lot more straight to the point action and bad-assery and the Kyle and Yost series was pretty Badass.

Issue one of the new X-force titled "Uncanny X-force" is a great starter for this series. Rick Remender, who I love from his Fear Agent work, throws you right into the action with Deadpool as he cinematically sneaks into a strangely Egyptian/Tron entombed city. The scene between Psylocke and Angel as they discuss his Archangel side and whether or not he will be able to control it gives a great look into the dynamic of the couple. Remender does an outstanding job giving these characters a clear voice, with Fantomex and Deadpool both on the team I feared that there would be too much sarcasm and aloofness, but the banter and pacing is perfect. From the battle to rescue a now captured Deadpool to the reveal at the end, Apocalypse resurrected as a young boy, I say kudos to you Mr. Remender, I am anxiously awaiting next issue.

 Jerome Opena's art is terrific. There are some great panel layouts that belong in a movie. you really feel the action and brutality of this team. While it does not have the same darkness as the Kyle/Yost X-force series wt art by Michael Choi and Clayton Crain , which had lots of black and grey with color coming mostly in slews of blood, it still maintains a darker muted feel. This time around we have more traditional comic coloring styles but still maintaining the dark tone. The surreal landscape as Deadpool approaches Apocalypse's ship are great (I believe that is Ship from  the original X-factor, unless there are more Celestial ships laying around than I thought.) The end shot of a young boy Apocalypse with kids toys all around him as he looks upon his tutor with that grey skin and red eyes is evilly innocent and creepy. Evil children are scary.



- Geoffrey K Boyd

Spiderman hits the Big Time - Amazing Spiderman #648

 
Starting with Amazing Spiderman #648 Spidey enters the "big Time" storyline. This issue firmly reminds us, not only is Spidey a quick thinking superhero but Peter Parker is a scientific genius. Throughout the issue we follow Spiderman/parker on the full scope of ups and down that is Spidey's life. This is a great jumping on point for anyone who is interested in getting into comics and with an A rating it's approved for an audience of 9 and up but is more complex than the marvel all ages line. This is also a good jumping on point for fans of Spidey who may have abandoned ship during some of the "one more/brand new day" storylines.

Dan Slott - Writer brings a well paced story that is packed with a brief who's who in the spideyverse as Peter looks for a new place to live. Spidey's wit is well portrayed during the opening with the Avengers and Slott really captured the dynamic of the relationship Spidey has with his Avengers Teammates. This issue really shows Peter coming into his own in both his personal life and his superhero life. With his new job and all the perks it brings, most of all the hefty bump to his pay rate compared to his photography days, things seem to be looking up. Unfortunately good fortune doesn't last long for Peter and with Kingpin, Gargan/Venom, an armored spiderlike mystery guest and Kingsley/Hobgoblin hanging out in the wings this issue, we know things will not stay good for long.

The artistic team, Humberto Ramos - Pencils , Carlos Cuevas - Inks, and Edgar Delgado - colors, do a fantastic job. The layouts were great and really helped drive each page forward with a proper pacing and style to fit that moment in the story. All the Avengers in the opening looked great and so did the Fantastic Four cameos. Ramos really got to play around in the Spideyverse with all the guest stars, friend and foe alike, and a few "Slumdog Millionaire" style trip down memory lane allowing Peter to show off his quick thinking genius for soon to be new co-workers. Overall a very enjoyable read and a great issue to get caught up to speed on the wall-crawler.

- Geoffrey K Boyd

The Walking Dead T.V.

Season one of The Walking Dead, a mere six episodes, has come to an end. How it will be missed till next year when we get to join Rick and the gang on there tragic struggle for survival and sanity in a world over run by "walkers". Here at the Amazing League we have been fans of the Walking Dead series and it's creators for a long while, so when the T.V. series came out we began recording podcasts after each show discussing elements of the show as well as ways the show changed course from the comic series. If you are interested in listening to what we discuss check it out.

Amazing League: Walking Dead TV podcast EP. 1-6 - Coming soon

Thanks for visiting,
Geoffrey