But what do you think?

Amazing Spider-Man by Nick Spencer tpb Vol. 15: What Cost Victory
Marvel Comics
Creators: Nick Spencer, Federico Vicentini, Ze Carlos, Mark Bagley, Carlos Gomez and Alex Sinclair
Release date: November 2021

Got something a little different this time: I want YOU to tell ME what you think of Nick Spencer’s recent run on Amazing Spider-Man.

I like Spider-Man, but I’ve never been a regular reader of his adventures. I read some random issues that I bought as a kid in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but most of them were truly random. The only continuous run I read during that time included some issues with Spidey facing off against Silvermane, Green Goblin and other gangsters. At the time, everyone assumed the Goblin was Harry Osborn again, but it didn’t turn out to be him in the outfit. I borrowed these comics from a friend, and I currently own a trade collecting some of them: Amazing Spider-Man: A New Goblin, reprinting Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 176-180 by Len Wein and Ross Andru.

I bought many of the then-current Spidey titles in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but I’ve since sold off most of those issues. I kept Amazing Spider-Man No. 267, “When Cometh … the Commuter,” a very amusing stand-alone issue written by Peter David. I had the original six issues that told the story that came to be known as “Kraven’s Last Hunt,” but I’ve since sold them and bought a hardcover of the story instead.

All of this is to say I am no stranger to Spidey stories. I’ve read a lot of them, but I don’t still own most of the stories I’ve read. And I don’t follow the character regularly.

But I do like Spider-Man, and I really like some of his villains. I’ve always been partial to the Green Goblin in his various incarnations. I also like Doc Ock, Kraven, Chameleon and some of the others.

I hadn’t paid much attention to Nick Spencer’s recent run on the title. Nothing against the writer; I haven’t read many Spidey stories in more than a decade by anyone. And I’m not familiar with other things Spencer has written.

But the solicitation image for the trade collection of “The Chameleon Conspiracy,” which was the 14th trade collection of Spencer’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, caught my eye. The cover image shows the Chameleon sitting in a darkened room surrounded by masks of the faces of many of Spider-Man's friends and enemies. There are nearly 30 masks pictured, and the cover brought to mind the first appearance of Chameleon in Amazing Spider-Man No. 1, of which I own a reprint. I don’t know if there is a previous image similar to this trade’s cover, but it made me thing of that initial appearance of Chameleon, and piqued my curiosity.

I pre-ordered the trade and then ordered the next one, Vol. 15, when it was solicited. I don’t think I knew when I ordered Vol. 15, “What Cost Victory?” that it would be Spencer’s last. But it did seem like a resolution he’d been building to, and I thought I might need this trade to complete the story begun in Vol. 14. Turns out I was both right and wrong about that.

Both these two trades very clearly wrap up a lot of plotlines from Spencer’s run and stories from past creators, too, including a story arc I’ve never read but heard a lot about, “Sins Past.” Both of these trades were decent reads, but I got the feeling frequently that I wasn’t getting the entire story. I was very aware I hadn’t read everything that came before. I didn’t feel lost, exactly, but still like I was missing something.

So I’m curious to hear from others who have read all of Spencer’s run, and perhaps even more. What did you Spider-Man fans think of his run on the title? Is it worth it to seek out and buy the earlier Spencer trades? What say you, Spider-fans? I’d like to hear from you for a change.

The time was ripe for betting on green

Maestro: War & Pax Nos. 1-5
Marvel Comics
Creators: Peter David, Javier Pina and Jesus Aburtov
Release date: January-May 2021

This series was timed just right to grab my attention.

I’ve long been a fan of the Hulk. I like most of the more “monstrous” Marvel characters like Hulk, Thing, Beast after Hank McCoy sprouted his blue fur, and Nightcrawler. They appeal to me visually, I guess, but I’ve also liked the characterizations of Hulk and Thing a great deal.

When I was a kid, my family watched the Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno “Incredible Hulk” television program every week. I also read and very much enjoyed a nice run of Incredible Hulk beginning with issue No. 212 while visiting a friend around that same time in the late 1970s. I’d read some other issues of the character from time to time, but never on any consistent basis.

I also enjoy the writing of Peter David, be it in the form of Star Trek and other prose novels or in comics. I like how he makes his stories character-driven and always includes touches of humor. Some of my favorites among David’s comics writing include Young Justice, Fallen Angel and Supergirl. I’ve long been curious about David’s lengthy run on Incredible Hulk. He lasts a good long time on the title, and it’s a character I like, but I’d always been unsure where to start reading.

I decided to do something about that curiosity several years ago by picking up the first couple Hulk Visionaries: Peter David trades, but then they got dropped on my to-be-read-sometime pile. Last year, I decided it was time to finally satisfy that curiosity and make sure I did the big Hulk read-through by tracking down the rest of the Visionaries series of trades and the Marvel Epic trades that picked up Peter David’s run on the title.

I also picked up a number of back issues from before Peter David’s run and settled in for a lengthy but enjoyable reading project that stretched from Incredible Hulk No. 195 through No. 448. There were some gaps, especially early on, but I revisited that run from my youth and read a number of later issues I truly enjoyed for the first time. And Peter David’s run was mostly complete, including every issue from No. 331 through 448. I was not disappointed. In fact, I enjoyed reading these Hulk adventures so much, I began following the new Immortal Hulk title in trade form as well, and I’m also enjoying Al Ewing’s take on Hulk.

Included in those Incredible Hulk Epic Collection trades of Peter David’s run was the two-part Future Imperfect story arc. This prestige format limited series by Peter David and George Perez was originally released in 1992. I bought and read these issues when they were released and enjoyed the tale of the modern-day Hulk being transported to a dystopian future where he has to fight a twisted version of himself named the Maestro.

Re-reading this series as part of David’s collected Hulk run, I was better able to appreciate the context around which Future Imperfect was written. I got to not only read Future Imperfect again for the first time in a long time, but I was able to see the beginnings of the story slowly develop in the regular monthly title and then explore the repercussions of the limited series on the characters going forward in future issues. Then shortly after I finished reading those collected Hulk editions, it was announced that Peter David was going to return to the concept of the Maestro for more tales nearly 20 years after the original story was printed. Now that’s serendipitous timing.

These new series would focus on how the Maestro came to be, and I was excited to try them. The first of the announced trilogy of miniseries was simply titled Maestro and explained how Hulk came to be alive in this future war-torn time. It also showed how he encountered another familiar face, who was then using the title of the Maestro.

This second series, War & Pax, picks up the story after Hulk has assumed the mantle of the Maestro and shows him coming into opposition with Dr. Doom and the members of the Pantheon, Hulk’s former teammates. I’m sure this was a welcome callback for any fans who first read about the Pantheon 20 years ago, but it was also a nice callback for me, who had just discovered the Pantheon members about 20 months ago, give or take a few weeks.

Both of these first two Maestro series were fun codas to Peter David’s earlier run writing Incredible Hulk. I’m looking forward to the third installment to begin in a few months. And I expect it to be just as much fun.

This is a fresh start I can get behind

Werewolf By Night: New Wolf Rising tpb
Marvel Comics
Creators: Taboo, B. Earl, Scot Eaton, Scott Hanna and Miroslav Mrva
Release date: April 2021

I’m a werewolf fan; the wolfman is my favorite among the various great Universal monsters. Always has been.

I don’t recall when I first learned of the Marvel Comics character Werewolf By Night/Jack Russell, but the great Mike Ploog art was surely a part of that first exposure. I have all of that first run of the character in my collection now thanks to the Marvel Essentials series of black-and-white reprints.

There have been some attempts to update the Jack Russell/Werewolf By Night character, either in the pages of Marvel Comics Presents or self-titled miniseries throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, but I never much cared for those stories. They often seemed to focus more on gore and killings, things I’m not really a fan of in my horror fiction.

I heard some good things about this title in single issues. I wasn’t entirely sure I would like a Werewolf By Night updating without the Jack Russell character at all, but making a new werewolf character a Native American youth and setting the adventure in the southwest was intriguing. I decided to give the mini a try in trade format, and I was pleasantly surprised by the result.

This series doesn’t ignore Jack Rusell’s history; although the previous WBN title character does not actually appear, he is name dropped a few times. The story of 17-year-old Jake and how he chooses to deal with the family curse that afflicts him is interesting. But the creators here also throw in a classic Marvel western character, Red Wolf, and a secret group of bad guys genetically experimenting on folks.

It all adds up to a very solid read with some beautifully nice artwork. Like a lot of modern comics, this story doesn’t actually come to a final resolution in these four issues. Rather it sets up events that may or may not continue in a future series or another title. I hope to see more of this new Werewolf By Night cast of characters.

I miss you, bro

“Marvel’s The Punisher” Season 2
Netflix
January 2019
 

Shawn died in 2000, nearly 20 years ago now. He was a son, a husband, a musician, a Marine, a prankster, a police officer, and he was my younger brother. He was 28 at the time of his death, so in just one more short decade, he will have been gone as long as he lived.

Time has passed. Life goes on. And there are many days when he doesn’t cross my mind at all. That’s life. But there are also random things that will bring his memory to the front of my mind.

One of the losses I feel most consistently on behalf of my brother are movies and television properties that he would have loved but missed. He was a huge Star Wars fan, yet he never got to see the second and third prequel films or the more recently realized but long-rumored sequels. He very much enjoyed “Phantom Menace,” and I have no reason to doubt he would have been thrilled by and enjoyed all of the films to follow.

The plethora of comic book films is another thing I think he’d have enjoyed. He was always more a Marvel fan than I was growing up. I remember crying when I saw “X-Men” in the theater for the first time in 2000 because he wouldn’t get to experience it, and he was always a huge Wolverine fan. The “Spider-Man” films began in 2002. Then the modern Marvel cinematic age began in 2008 with “Iron Man.” I think he would have loved the explosion of films since then from the various “Avengers” and “Captain America” films to “Black Panther” and “Infinity War.”

Another of my brother’s favorite comic book characters was always Frank Castle, the Punisher, and I’ve been thinking of my brother as I watch Netflix’s second season of "Marvel's The Punisher," starring Jon Bernthal. This is a phenomenal show, and everyone involved deserves kudos for the excellent product they have created.

The Punisher first appeared in Marvel Comics in Amazing Spider-Man No. 129 and was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The character went on to appear in various other titles for several years before starring in his own limited series in the mid-1980s. At the peak of the Punisher’s popularity in the late 80s and early 1990s, he starred in three concurrent monthly titles: The Punisher, The Punisher War Journal and The Punisher War Zone. There was also a short-lived black-and-white Punisher Magazine and other limited series and one-shots at various points along the way.

Shawn collected most of these titles by a number of creators, but the book that struck a chord with me was War Journal. This title, initially written by Carl Potts and illustrated by Jim Lee, would later feature creators such as Mike Baron, Mark Texeira, Chuck Dixon, Steven Grant, Tod Smith, Ron Wagner and others. Potts and Dixon stand out in my mind the most when I think back about favorite issues.

I’m not as familiar with Billy “Jigsaw” Russo, although I know he also existed in the comics. I’m not certain if the comic Jigsaw played a role in the deaths of Frank Castle’s family as he does in Ben Barnes’ portrayal of the character in the Netflix series. If not, the inclusion of that detail helps bring the two characters’ lives full circle in the show.

As far as I know, most of the other characters in the Netflix version of the Punisher are original to the program, but may have been portrayed in comics in some form or fashion. But I love how the ancillary characters add to the show’s drama. Karen Page and Brett Mahoney show up from the cast of Netflix’s “Daredevil” to add cohesion to the shared universe. And Curtis Hoyle, Dinah Madani and Krista Dumont add dimension to the proceedings of both seasons of the show.

Netflix’s “The Punisher” is definitely more gritty and bloody than I typically like my comics stories, but so was the Netflix version of Daredevil. Both worked well in the realities established for the series, and the visceral visuals of the programs don’t glorify violence. Rather they use it to emphasize the physical and emotional toll of these peoples’ lives and choices.

Jon Bernthal does an exceptional job of bringing Frank Castle to life in this series. The later comic series added some nuance and character beats to what could have easily been a one-note, disposable caricature. Bernthal and his supporting cast help do the same with the on-screen Punisher. Bernthal portrays an efficient killing machine on a deadly mission, to be sure. But he also shows Frank’s caring side without turning the brutal vigilante into a parody of the original creation.

I can watch this show for what it is and enjoy it. I tend to think Shawn would have seen it as a more pure expression of the character than some of the various movie attempts. Believing my brother would have liked the show adds a level of appreciation to watching it. But it also makes me sad that my brother will never be able to see one of his “heroes” brought to life on the small screen in such an effective way.

I’m also very sad all of these Netflix Marvel shows have been canceled due to business concerns and we won’t get more of this version of the Punisher, Daredevil or Jessica Jones.

Hope is a requirement

Captain America: Home of the Brave tpb (Collects issue Nos. 695-700)
Marvel Comics
Creators: Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, Matthew Wilson and Joe Caramagna
Release date: 2018

I read two of the single issues collected in this volume, and liked them enough, I said I would buy this trade. Don’t believe me? I wrote about it here.

I bought the trade and just recently, I had time to sit down and read it. It was full of surprises despite my having already read nearly one-third of the contents previously. In fact, it was so surprising, I might not have purchased this trade if I had known more about the contents beforehand. And that would have been sad, because had I not bought the trade, I would have missed out on a wonderful story.

But let’s back up. I took a break from Cap comics after Ed Brubaker’s phenomenal, multi-year run on the title. Brubaker’s run saw Bucky brought back from the dead, Cap killed and eventually resurrected and explored a lot of what the character of Captain America is and represents. I liked that run and its focus first on Cap as an espionage-style character, then later as more of a traditional superhero.

After Brubaker’s run, a number of other creators took the reins of the book and guided it in different directions. I felt I had read the definitive Cap — at least for my tastes — in Brubaker’s run, so I bailed on the title. I can’t speak to the strengths or weaknesses of those subsequent stories because I didn’t read them. But the most recent one prior to the issues collected here was certainly a bit controversial. In that lengthy story arc, an evil version of Cap was revealed as a sleeper agent for Hydra and helped bring the world “to the brink of destruction,” according to a brief introduction in this book, before being defeated by the original hero.

This book opens with the real Steve (Captain America) Rogers traveling the country, getting in touch with common folks and trying to rebuild his reputation. The issues I’d read previously included a done-in-one story along those lines from issue No. 696 and a confrontation with Kraven the Hunter in issue No. 697, which seemed to be kicking off a multi-issue arc when it was revealed that Kraven’s attack was orchestrated by another group. What I didn’t know when I read those two issues was that the group behind Kraven’s assault on Cap had faced the star-spangled hero twice before in the pages of issue No. 695, the first in this collection.

The group is a white supremacist, paramilitary organization called Rampart that tries to stage a coup of the United States, beginning in the small town of Burlington, Nebraska. Captain America thwarts that small-town takeover attempt shortly after the Avengers find and revive Cap from the ice-induced suspended animation that had held him captive since World War II. Cap begins his tour of America by returning to that small town, now renamed Captain America, Nebraska. It is the 10th anniversary of Cap’s defeat of Rampart, but that newly rebuilt terrorist group has also returned, seeking revenge.

Cap once again dispatches the Rampart goons with some help from the residents of the small town, and he leaves feeling somewhat re-invigorated. That is where we find him in issue No. 696, where he happens purely by chance upon a plot by the new Swordsman, the done-in-one tale I’d read previously. What Cap doesn’t consider is that none of the Rampart ringleaders are defeated or rounded up in the battle from the previous issue. Instead, they put in motion the plan with Kraven that is meant to end with them once again putting Captain America on ice, which is exactly what happens in issue No. 697.

When issue No. 698 begins, Cap is once again revived from suspended animation to find an America much changed and at the mercy of Rampart and its mysterious leader. Nuclear war has ravaged the population, leaving the few survivors weak or mutated. With the exception of issue No. 696, this entire trade is one big tale about Captain America facing off against this one group three times and ending up in a rather dystopian future that is quite bleak, to say the least.

I’m not a fan of dystopian future stories, as I believe I have discussed before, although there are always exceptions. I’m glad I didn’t know this tale would so heavily involve such a future before I bought it or I likely would have passed it up. Instead, though, I happened to read the two chapters that did not deal with the bleak future and found them quite enjoyable. I've read and enjoyed Mark Waid’s writing in other books; and I appreciate Chris Samnee’s clean, flowing art style; it isn’t too cartoony but still harkens back to a simpler time, with clean, simple lines. It also didn’t hurt that I knew from previous cover art that the Thing and the Hulk would also play a role in this story, and I like both of those characters.

So I did buy this trade, I did read it, and I was not disappointed. This team has crafted a stirring tale filled with heroism big and small, with tragedies befalling beloved characters and innocent masses, with examples of mindless depravity and noble sacrifice. And all of it hinges on a simple little concept, one critical to these kinds of four-color heroes, but especially to Captain America — hope. As Cap himself says in this tale near the finale, “Hope is not a plan. But you sure as hell can’t win without it.”

Well said, Cap, and well done, Messrs. Waid, Samnee, Wilson and Caramagna!

Free Comic Book Day finds and thoughts

Captain America No. 696
Marvel Comics
Creators: Mark Waid, Chris Samnee and Matthew Wilson
Release date: February 2018

If you follow the Steve's Comics for Sale Facebook page, you already know I enjoyed some Free Comic Book Day offerings: notably Dynamite's James Bond: VARGR preview and the DC Nation No. 0, although that last one wasn't free. (It cost a quarter.)

I support the idea of Free Comic Book Day: to get new people into comic book stores with the lure of free stuff. But I also very much support the idea of not going, grabbing all of the free books you can and rushing back out. Stay, browse, look around, ask questions and find soemthing else you like or want to try that you can pay for. FCBD is free to the consumer, but not to shop owners, who still have to pay something for those giveaway books. Help make it worth their while by buying some comics, too.

I attended FCBD this year with my 6-year-old daughter and my 17-year-old nephew who shares my interest in the hobby. We traveled to one local store and three others in other town looking for some good books. And at each store in which we stopped, I bought something in addition to picking up a few of the free books to try. Thanks to that free James Bond preview, I decided to go ahead and spend the money to buy the full story in trade. And that wasn't the only purchase that day that prompted further buying.

I was browsing the shelves at the last stop of the day. This shop owner's shelves were pretty picked over by 4 p.m., but he still had several issues that caught my eye, including the one above, Captain America No. 696.

I haven't bought a Cap issue in quite a while. I loved Ed Brubaker's phenomenal run on the title and just hadn't cared to try another run since that one. This cover, showing Cap wielding a sword instead of his usual shield, was interesting. The creative team was the same one I'd enjoyed on Daredevil a few years ago as evidenced by posts here and here and here. And the shop had this issue and the next, No. 697, by the same creators. As a bonus, No. 697 had Cap on the cover with Kraven the hunter, a villain I like. So I picked them both up.

I'm glad I did. No. 696 is a standalone story that was a great read, a well-done Captain America tale that has him stumble across a villain purely by accident. No. 697 was also good, but ended up being continued into the next issue. So I opted to seek out and buy the trade that collects both these issues and the subsequent ones by this creative team.

That's how Free Comic Book Day should work, at its best: Get a person into the store so he or she can find something they want to try, and maybe, find a title they can get into and follow to another purchase and another enjoyable tale.

History Really Does Repeat Itself

Essential Captain America Vol. 4 (collecting Captain America Nos. 157-186)
Marvel Comics
Steve Englehart, Steve Gerber, Roy Thomas, Tony Isabella, Mike Friedrich and John Warner, writers
Sal Buscema, John Verpoorten, Frank McLaughlin, Alan Weiss, Frank Giacoia, John Tartaglione, George Roussos, Vinnie Colletta, Frank Robbins, Tom Orzechowski, Herb Trimpe and Mike Esposito, artists

These massive, black-and-white collected volumes — Marvel's Essentials line and DC's Showcase editions — can be a great way to experience classic stories at a reasonable price. Or they can be a bit cumbersome to get through if you don't really have an appreciation for the character, group or time period being presented.

This volume is one of the good ones. Despite the abundance of names listed above, the vast majority of this volume is the brainchild of writer Steve Englehart and artist Sal Buscema, and that helps this volume maintain a unified voice throughout. The books reprinted here come from the mid-1970s when the title featured both Captain America and the Falcon on the cover and the real-life America was in turmoil. The creators used those turbulent times as a backdrop for an identity crisis of sorts for Captain America himself.

This series of issues brings Cap and Falcon into confrontation with a villain named the Cowled Commander and then a new version of the Serpent Society. The heroes quickly thwart the villains' plans only to have one of the Serpent Society hatch a new plan to drive a wedge between the pair and discredit Captain America in the eyes of the public. That latest plot unfolds over several issues leading into a battle with a new group named the Secret Empire, which in turn leads to yet another incarnation of the Serpent Society.

Captain America and the Falcon aren't the only heroes in these pages. Various members of the Avengers make a number of appearances, along with Nick Fury and various agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., both named and unnamed. The Black Panther and the X-Men also show up for several issues each. And a number of villains, both old and new, also make appearances at various times forcing our heroes to keep on their toes. These nefarious figures include names like the Porcupine, Madame Hydra, Yellow Claw, the Tumbler, the Eel, the Viper, Stoneface, Lucifer and, of course, the Red Skull.

The stories collected in this volume are some really great reads, but it surprised me, reading through a number of these issues for the first time, how many modern ideas began here and how many themes explored in these pages have also been explored in more recent Cap stories. For instance, issue No. 170 is where the Falcon first gets his Wakandan-engineered wings. Before that issue, he used a rope to swing around the rooftops like other non-flying heroes. And while this earliest version of his wings merely helped him glide, they look quite similar to the modern pair he wore right up until he assumed the role of Captain America in the most recent Marvel Comics issues.

Cap's girlfriend in these pages is former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter, the same as in current Cap comics, although her back story has undergone some revisions over the years. But Cap's former World War II-era love interest, Peggy Carter, is re-introduced in these stories and becomes a current agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., somewhat mirroring events from the modern "Captain America" films and the "Agent Carter" television series.

The conclusion of the confrontation with the Secret Empire — particularly the revelation of the leader of the terrorist organization — leaves Cap shaken in conviction and spirit. This is when Cap first decides to stop being Captain America and creates the identity of Nomad, the man without a country. The Nomad identity would return in several story lines since this time, but also, during this period when Steve Rogers is Nomad and there is no Captain America, a number of others try their hands at wielding the famous shield in his absence. The fates of these folks who try to be the new Captain America are quite different from any of those following the death of Captain America in Ed Brubaker's Cap run from a few years ago or of the Falcon assuming the mantle in the most recent comics, but there are also similarities.

These are really some great stories and some very key issues in the history of Captain America. Much of the credit for that goes to writer Steve Englehart, again the writer or co-writer on almost all of the stories from this era of the character. That single narrative voice allows the various story lines to weave in and out of each other and interconnect in a way that multiple writers would find harder to pull off. This book alone represents two-and-a-half years worth of Captain America comics at the end of Englehart's run on the title; he also wrote several of the previous issues, collected in Essential Captain America Vol. 3.

On a side note, one of the fill-in issues collected in this volume, No. 168, is a nice little diversion co-written by Roy Thomas and Tony Isabella titled "... And a Phoenix Shall Arise." This story, minus a few references to then-current continuity that dated the story, was turned into a Captain America Power Records book and record set, a copy of which I still own. If you aren't already familiar with Power Records, you should check out Rob Kelly's excellent Power Records blog (http://powerrecord.blogspot.com/) for more on these great little sets.

Switching to the art side of things, Sal Buscema lends his considerable talents to giving the look of these stories the same cohesiveness Englehart's writing does on the story side. Buscema had several different inkers on the issues included here, but the consistency in the pencils gives all of the characters distinctive looks throughout. Buscema's Cap is a strong, muscled defender of the American ideals and the quintessential silver age heroic ideal.


The drawback to that consistency shows up to horrible effect in four of the last five issues collected in this volume when penciller Frank Robbins takes on the art chores. I don't mean to attack the man's skill; I am no artist myself, so I have little room to criticize. More importantly, I have seen some absolutely gorgeous Frank Robbins art in some other titles. But his work in these issues of Captain America looks very rough throughout and downright awkward in a number of action panels. I've included a couple of the worst panels. The one on the left shows Steve Rogers in his Nomad guise traveling across the rooftops in a very strange pose, and the right one shows one of the Captain America wannabes traveling in the same manner with the Falcon. Neither image makes the subject look very comfortable, natural or heroic. These images are not typical of Frank Robbins' art in other venues, but his art on these final issues is the only downside I see in an otherwise great Captain America collection!

We Need More Fun Comics

Amazing X-Men: The Quest For Nightcrawler tpb
Marvel Comics
Jason Aaron, writer
Ed McGuinness, Dexter Vines and Cameron Stewart, artists

I've talked previously about how much I like Nightcrawler and how he should be a fun, light-hearted character most of the time, at least if he's going to be portrayed correctly. I've also previously mentioned that I am not a regular follower of the various X-Men titles. I've read some of the bigger stories, and I've dabbled with the various titles and characters from time to time, but I typically am not an X-reader. For instance, I know that Nightcrawler was killed off some time ago in the X-books, but I don't know exactly when or how.

Enter the news of about a year ago that Nightcrawler was going to be coming back from the dead  — not a terribly unusual event for a comic book superhero — and I was happy to mark down a note to myself to watch for his latest solo title, hope for the best and try it when it came out. This is the story arc — presented in Amazing X-Men, not a Nightcrawler solo title — that brings the blue, furry mutant back to the land of the living. And it is an epic battle pitting a horde of demons against the combined forces of not only both heaven and hell but also purgatory! You can't get much more epic than that. And you wouldn't think a story could get much more grim than that, either.

But Jason Aaron and Ed McGuinness remembered that comic books can be fun. They don't have to be grim and gritty all the time. On top of that, they remembered that Nightcrawler, the focus of this particular little story can — and SHOULD — also be fun! So they made this epic, life-or-death, playing for all the marbles, grand battle not only epic, but also fun!

The story begins with Nightcrawler in heaven, but not exactly enjoying his time there. Rather, he is daydreaming about his many adventures with his fellow mutants in all of the various teams he's fought alongside, as well as his many solo escapades. Another of heaven's inhabitants comes across Nightcrawler and chastises him playfully for not enjoying his — well, heavenly — surroundings more when along comes the aforementioned horde of demons. And who is leading this brazen attack on both heaven and hell? None other than Nightcrawler's own father, the demon Azazel.

Nightcrawler knows he can not hope to defeat such overwhelming forces on his own, and so he summons aid from his former teammates still among the living. Thus various members of this latest incarnation of the X-Men find themselves suddenly in hell, while some are transported to heaven, and still more materialize in purgatory with no explanation whatsoever. Having thus imperiled his friends' very souls, Nightcrawler must gather the various mutants together and lead them in an effort to defeat his father's latest plans for conquest.

What results is a well-drawn, expertly written romp that was FUN to read. In fact, the only weak spot in this trade is the inclusion of the sixth issue, also written by Aaron, but this time illustrated by Cameron Stewart. The change in art style for this epilogue chapter is drastic enough to be a tad off-putting. Add in that the main adventure is over, and this is merely an aftermath type of tale, and I feel that the trade would have been much better without it. It just feels tacked on and serves only to weaken the strong ending of the fifth issue.

Having said that, the rest of this trade was so good and does in fact bring Nightcrawler back to the land of the living, that I only hope the creative team on his latest ongoing solo title — Chris Claremont and Todd Nauck — follows that same formula: Don't forget to make it FUN!

They Were This Close To Losing Me

Fantastic Four Vol. 2: Original Sin
Marvel Comics
James Robinson, writer
Leonard Kirk, Marc Laming, Karl Kesel, Rick Magyar and Scott Hanna, artists

I've always liked the concept of the Fantastic Four: it is a fun idea that these four individuals are more explorers than superheroes, and that above all else, they are a family. And I've read a lot of Fantastic Four stories over my collecting years that I have enjoyed quite a bit. But I've never owned and read a run that felt like the definitive FF to me.

I decided to try again when the title was relaunched early in 2014 with writer James Robinson at the helm. Robinson has produced some stories I have very much loved, but also some that have left me disinterested, so his run wasn't going to be a lock. In fact, I'd intended to sample his version of the FF in trades borrowed from the library, but then I found a good deal on the first two trades (issue Nos. 1-10) of Robinson's run and decided to gamble.

The first volume, The Fall of the Fantastic Four, didn't boost my confidence a great deal. I'd read enough advance solicitation information to already know that Robinson planned to take the team down to their lowest point before, I assume, building them back up. The road taken to do the dragging just seemed kind of long and not too inspired. I was getting bored with the story: Some beasties escape from Reed Richards' lab in the Baxter Building and commence terrorizing the good citizens of Manhattan. Eventually, the team devises a way to neutralize the threat, but not before the monsters do a great deal of damage to life and property. And then it occurs to the New York powers-that-be that maybe it isn't such a good idea for these four very well-known adventurers to live publicly in the heart of the city, keeping all manner of nasty weapons and crazy scientific inventions and other-dimensional portals and who-really-knows-what-all-else in what amounts to their back room.

So the FF are put on trial. And even their friend and ally, attorney Jennifer (She-Hulk) Walters, isn't able to defend them against most of the charges. Part of the problem with this first trade was how long the set-up drags on. But also, it becomes kind of obvious early on that someone — we don't yet know who — is manipulating events to turn public opinion and the justice system against the team, but none of the FF seem to catch on to this fact. And neither do their friends, many of whom have been victims of such a strategy before. No, they all complain about how unfair everything happening seems, but no one questions beyond that.

All of that changed with this second trade, which not only continues the downfall of the FF but also ties into a company-wide crossover event, Original Sin. I haven't read Original Sin, but the basic gist seems to be someone killed Uatu, the Watcher, and once he died, secrets he has learned from watching the Marvel Universe all these years become known to some people. In the case of the FF, Benjamin Grimm, aka the Thing, learns that one of Reed Richards' early attempts to cure him of his deformity is accidentally sabotaged by Johnny Storm, the Human Torch.

Maybe part of the reason I liked these issues better than the first five is the focus on the Thing, my favorite of the FF members, but this trade doesn't focus solely on him. There are also continuing troubles for the other three members of the team.

Best of all, we finally begin to see the FF not standing alone against all that is happening to them. The first to stand up against all of the "unfair" charges and accusations is Jim Hammond. For those not in the know, Jim Hammond is an android with the ability to burst into flame, which earned him some fame as the original Human Torch during World War II. Hammond fought Nazis alongside Captain America, Bucky, Namor and his own sidekick, Toro, in the original Invaders team. Being an android, Hammond could still be around, and has recently been reintroduced into the current Marvel Comics Universe as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Along with all of the other charges against the FF, Reed and Sue Richards are ruled unfit parents. Hammond's S.H.I.E.L.D. unit is put in charge of their son, Franklin Richards, and a number of other children Sue had been working with under the Future Foundation program. Hammond not only sees the injustices being heaped on the Fantastic Four, but refuses some orders pertaining to his new charges. In defending his actions to S.H.I.E.L.D. director Maria Hill, Hammond learns that she also recognizes the bizarre nature of the events surrounding the FF and is also suspicious of the motivations behind the trial and subsequent developments.

This still may not prove to be that definitive Fantastic Four story I was hoping for, but I'm a lot more interested in the story and where it's going after reading this second trade. In fact, I'm interested enough to order the third volume when it comes out so I can see where Robinson and crew are taking things. Can't say I felt that way after reading the first trade, and if I hadn't bought both books together, I likely would not have bought the second, which would have been a shame!

Changing Habits, Changing Suppliers

Superior Spider-Man Vol. 1: My Own Worst Enemy and Vol. 2: A Troubled Mind
Marvel Comics
Dan Slott, writer
Humberto Ramos and Ryan Stegman, artists

I've been buying a lot fewer comics of late.

This isn't the first time I've tried to trim my comics-buying budget. Several times in the past, I'd look at what I was buying and how much I was actually enjoying each title as opposed to buying out of habit. I think such periodic analysis is good, and it would often trim my pull list by a few titles here or there.

But this time has been different. It started out the same, weeding out a few titles only at first. But as I discussed last time, I'm selling titles I very much enjoyed but no longer have the storage space for. In light of some of the things I've been selling, it seems silly to buy so much stuff I might enjoy briefly, but will likely just turn around and sell in short order and take a big loss on. Don't get me wrong, reading and enjoying some books has its own value. But why buy so many knowing I'm just going to eat the difference?

Especially when I don't have to. The prevalence of trade paperbacks these days means there are other venues available to comics readers. For instance, the public library. I've borrowed a number of trades and read them through my local library. It's a good, inexpensive way to keep up with a title in which my interest might have waned or to try something new I'm not sure I'll like.

Superior Spider-Man is one of the titles I decided to give a try through the library, and I've been very glad I did. I like Spider-Man. I read some runs from the 1970s when I was a kid that I very much enjoyed, and I still have a few stand-alone issues that are fun to re-read from time to time. But I've never followed the character on a regular basis.

I've heard and read a lot of good things about Superior Spider-Man, the title that recently wrapped up to make way for the return of Amazing Spider-Man. I've also enjoyed other things Dan Slott has written in the past. So Superior Spider-Man seemed like a good title to try, but since Spidey isn't a character I regularly read, the library seemed a good option for a trial of the book.

The first two Superior Spider-Man trades aren't the meatiest in terms of page count; each one collects five issues of the title. But the first was good enough, I requested the second. And the second was also good, so I plan to continue with the series.

For those not in the know on Spidey's world, Superior Spider-Man launched with a new No. 1 in January 2013 because the man under the mask was no longer Peter Parker. In the final story arc of the previous volume of Amazing Spider-Man, the terminally ill Dr. Otto Octavius (Dr. Octopus) managed to transplant his own consciousness into Peter Parker's body, leaving Peter's mind in his own dying form. Peter was unable to undo that switch before Octavius' body died. Believing the real Peter to be "out of the way," Octavius set about using Peter's memories to assume the younger man's life, including his alter ego. But Octavius was not content merely to be young and powerful again. He set out to be a better Spider-Man than Peter had been — a superior Spider-Man.

The first trade in this new series showed Octavius assuming Peter's life and relationships. It also let readers know that Peter was not completely out of the picture. A fragment of his consciousness still existed in his old body, but Peter could not physically affect anything Octavius was doing.

In his defense, Octavius did do some good in Spider-Man's body. He used both Peter's scientific knowledge as well as his own to improve Spidey's costume and create a number of helpful gadgets. For instance, he took Peter's original design for the spider-tracer — a simple way for Peter to "tag" an enemy so he could find him or her later — and fashioned an army of tiny spider robots that could patrol the city, giving him instant eyes on any trouble situation. But Octavius' hubris and violent tendencies also made him much more brutal and unforgiving than Spider-Man had ever been before. In that first volume, Octavius as Spider-Man knowingly uses lethal force to stop a criminal, an act which garnered a mixed reaction among the authorities and civilians.

In the second volume, Octavius continues to operate as a much more inventive but brutal "hero," much to the horror of the phantom Peter trapped in his own body. But with effort, Peter slowly manages to gain some slight control of his body when Octavius sleeps. Peter hopes to use this limited control to call attention to his situation, especially when the Avengers begin to question the dark turn Spider-Man has taken. Unfortunately, Peter's actions also serve to make Octavius aware of his presence.

Slott is telling a gripping tale that is certainly holding my attention better than I expected it to. I'm genuinely curious to see what more Octavius can and will do in his effort to be a better hero than Peter was, and knowing full well that Peter will somehow come back, I'm still curious to see how that feat will be accomplished. Additionally, Slott has populated his tale with a number of new supporting characters that are equally as interesting as the leads.

Ramos' and Stegman's art is a little on the cartoony side and might not work for some other heroes, but seems to fit well in Spider-Man's world. In fact, the lighter tone of the art serves to soften some of the darker ramifications of Octavius' actions as Spider-Man.

I don't plan on dropping all of the titles I buy in favor of borrowing from the library; I still want to own the stories of my favorite characters and certain story lines I'm more likely to return to and re-read multiple times. But the library is a great alternative for reading and trying titles I might not otherwise be able to afford.

Going Out On A High Note

The Avengers No. 56 (2002)
Marvel Comics
Kurt Busiek, writer
Yanick Paquette and Ray Snyder, artists

Back in 1996, most of the Avengers, along with the Fantastic Four, were apparently killed off by the villainous Onslaught. The Avengers, the F.F., Captain America and Iron Man all had their respective titles relaunched with new No. 1s under the banner "Heroes Reborn" and their various continuities were all rebooted. That lasted for one year before it was revealed to both the readers and the characters that instead of being killed by Onslaught, they had been shunted off to a pocket universe. Naturally, upon learning this, the heroes combined forces to return to their proper reality, and in 1997, the four titles again relaunched with new No. 1s under the banner "Heroes Return."

The 1997 Avengers relaunch was led by writer Kurt Busiek and artist George Perez, both very much fan favorites, to say the least. Perez left the title with issue No. 34, but Busiek remained until mid-2002, turning this stand-alone issue in as the finale for his run.

Similar to Busiek's creator-owned title, Astro City, this issue focuses a bit more on the aftermath and consequences of superheroics on regular people's lives — specifically, who is liable for damage done when heroes and villains clash in populated areas.

In addition to providing the Avengers with their mansion home base, Tony Stark (the team's own armored Avenger, Iron Man) has created the Maria Stark Foundation, a nonprofit organization that handles all those niggling details after a dust-up. However, in a real-world twist, the Stark Foundation must answer to the government on expenditures in order to maintain its nonprofit, tax-exempt status. Also, they don't want to pay for fraudulent damage claims, just as a responsible course of doing business. Therefore, at least periodically, Avengers missions and the consequences must be audited.

This issue has a number of Avengers gathered together to meet with these Stark Foundation auditors to relate, and sometimes justify, their actions in a recent mission pitting the team against the Elements of Doom, several non-sentient entities scientifically created to wreak havoc. The issue is presented very tongue-in-cheek and mixes a great deal of humor with the expected level of superhero mayhem.

I haven't read Busiek's entire run from this incarnation of The Avengers, but I've enjoyed most of what I have read of the title. This issue is by far one of the best of that run.

Kind Of A Mismatch, Don'tcha Think?

Nightcrawler 1-12 (2004-2005)
Marvel Comics
Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, writer
Darick Robertson, Wayne Faucher, Jimmy Palmiotti and Rodney Ramos, artists

I was excited to learn in 2004 that Nightcrawler was going to be getting his own solo series.

I've always been drawn to the more monstrous of the Marvel heroes for some reason. The Fantastic Four's Benjamin J. Grimm, popularly known as the Thing; the tragic alter-ego of scientist Bruce Banner, the incredible Hulk; and the X-Men's own Beast and Nightcrawler are easily among my favorites. Don't ask me why. It is simply a fact.

So I was excited by the prospect of one of my favorites getting his own series. Not a miniseries, mind you. Nightcrawler got one of those in 1985 and another in 2002. The former was a fun-filled romp through a number of different dimensions playing up the character's swashbuckler nature. It was also written and drawn by the incomparable Dave Cockrum, the character's co-creator. The 2002 mini was somewhat less impressive, at least going by the knowledge that I know I bought and read it at the time but can't remember what it was about now.

But this was to be an ongoing series. Yay!

I should have been wary about the announced writer of this ongoing series, however. That is not to imply that Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa is a bad writer. I've rather liked some of his other comics work. But if memory serves, he has something of a reputation for being a horror writer. That certainly fits what he did with the short-lived Nightcrawler series. And I'm afraid that is at least partly what led to the poor sales that most likely killed the series so soon.

These stories aren't bad. In fact, I like the first story arc a great deal. Storm, then the current leader of the X-Men asks Nightcrawler to investigate a locked-room mystery with a very dark twist: the locked room is a youth ward in a mental institution and only one child is left alive when 13 others are torn apart mysteriously. If the lone survivor is not responsible for what happened, an unlikely possibility, then he must have at least seen what happened. But he is so scared, he is not speaking to anyone.

Even Nightcrawler himself points out that this isn't really a mystery that seems to suit either his personality or power set, but he still tries to get to the bottom of the mystery and help the young boy who survived the first incident despite the misgivings of the institution's head physician, a man who has no fondness for costumed heroes. Once that arc is concluded, the next poses another mystery for Nightcrawler to crack, this one involving some souls not yet at rest. Next the X-Men's fuzzy elf must confront some demons from his own past and gets a visit from Mephisto. Along the way, several other X-Men make appearances.

But again, the horror genre doesn't quite seem to fit the mutants' most benevolent soul. I think that might just be what killed off this series before its time. Having said that, these aren't bad stories, just a little mismatched.

The Woman Who Just Wouldn't Quit Part 2

The Pulse 1-14 (2004-2006)
Marvel Comics
Brian Michael Bendis, writer
Mark Bagley, Scott Hanna, Brent Anderson, Michael Lark and Michael Gaydos, artists

Last time, we talked about Jessica Jones and her book Alias, which ran its course and was ended by its creators on a high note because they felt like they'd done with the character what they had set out to do. Except, as writer Brian Michael Bendis himself explains on the last page of Alias' final issue, that wasn't really the end of Jessica's story.

Jessica was actually a pretty popular character in the Marvel Universe at the time of Alias' cancellation. And Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada had another book in mind that he thought might be a good fit for Bendis and Jessica Jones, this time told squarely in the Marvel Universe, not the Marvel Max periphery.

The idea was for an investigative procedural-style comic that could go anywhere story would take it in the Marvel Universe, and Jessica Jones seemed very nicely suited to such a venture. After the personal changes the character underwent at the conclusion of Alias, there was also a natural personal path for her to undertake. So The Pulse debuted a few months after the last issue of Alias was released. In story, "Daily Bugle" publisher J. Jonah Jameson is not fond of costumed vigilantes, but he has to concede that tales of their exploits sell newspapers. So he decides to create a weekly sister publication to the "Bugle" that will play up the doings of the super-powered denizens of New York City. Jessica agrees to take a job consulting and investigating for the new publication, to be named "The Pulse." And "Bugle" staffers Ben Urich and Kat Farrell will write much of the copy. The upside of the steady gig for Jessica is health-insurance now that she is pregnant and in a steady relationship with the baby's father, Luke Cage.

The Pulse was an interesting title, although it had a much different feel than Alias had. And the art on the initial arcs was quite a bit different from Gaydos' painted work on Jessica's initial adventures. But the stories put Jessica and the other "Bugle" staffers next to heroes like Spider-Man, the Avengers and Nick Fury while pitting them against the likes of the Green Goblin, Hydra and childbirth. Brent Anderson and Michael Lark took over the art chores for the second story arc and the book took on a darker feel, more like Alias, as it dealt with the aftermath from the Bendis-penned Secret War. And finally, Gaydos returned to deliver the art for The Pulse's final story arc, the birth of Luke and Jessica's baby, and the final missing pieces of Jessica's untold past in costume.

Bendis again penned a text page in the final issue of The Pulse explaining that he'd finished what he'd wanted to do with Jessica's character and was moving on. The plan had been, Bendis explained, for the title to continue on without him. That wasn't to be the case either, however, as the announced new writer for The Pulse, Paul Jenkins, would instead write the Front Line companion book to Civil War. Plans change.

And so, Bendis would continue to write Jessica's adventures, albeit in a third book. Jessica's boyfriend, soon-to-be-husband, was the leader of the New Avengers, the group that went underground and refused to register with the government during the events of Civil War. Jessica and the baby continued to be an important part of Luke Cage's life, and thus, popular back-up characters in the pages of New Avengers.

The Woman Who Just Wouldn't Quit

Alias 10-28 (2002-2004)
Marvel Max
Brian Michael Bendis, writer
Michael Gaydos, Mark Bagley, Rick Mays and Art Thibert, artists
********** Mature Content Warning ************

I didn't pick this book up when it debuted; in fact, I'm not even sure I knew anything at all about it when it debuted. Unlike some books, I'm not even sure exactly why I picked up issue No. 10, my first exposure to the series. But I did, for whatever reason.

I still don't know what was in those first nine issues or how the creators of the series -- Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos -- first introduced the world to Jessica Jones, the main character of the book. But my first exposure to her was in issue No. 10. Jessica Jones is a former superhero in the Marvel Universe who now works as a private detective. She doesn't use her powers much; I didn't even have a clue what her powers or abilities might be from this issue. The entire book is a single afternoon, mostly in the offices of the Daily Bugle. Publisher J. Jonah Jameson has called Jessica to his office and wants to hire her to uncover Spider-Man's secret identity. Also involved in the discussion between Jessica and Jonah are Robbie Robertson, the Bugle's editor-in-chief, and Ben Urich, an investigative reporter at the tabloid. Jonah wants Ben to cover Jessica's investigations into Spider-Man's I.D. Oh, and as a Max book, there's a lot of cussing in the dialogue.

The entire book is also painted in big, bold panels without any word balloons whatsoever. Rather, all of the dialogue is typed out in the negative spaces like the dialogue in a play or movie script. The story didn't have any real action or superheroics at all. It was just the conversations between these characters, but it was intelligent and made you think a little bit to fill in the gaps. And the presentation was so unique, and the story was so thoughtful and thought-provoking to me, that I continued to pick up the book for the rest of the run.

The rest of the issues are a little more traditional in their presentation: more action taking place, word balloons, multiple panels per page, etc., although there were still several scenes with prolonged conversations between two or more characters. This is still a Bendis book, after all. The subsequent stories were still thoughtful and thought-provoking. Not everything was spelled out for the readers, and more is revealed about Jessica's past in each successive story arc. See, Jessica is a continuity implant. The character never existed before Bendis and Gaydos dreamed her up in the last decade. But her story is that she gained her powers through tragedy and tried to use them for the betterment of mankind by putting on a costume and being a hero. She took the hero name Jewel, and while she never became a household name, she tried. Until something bad happened to her. It took a long time, but after she recovered from that second tragedy, she tried again to be a hero, this time a decidedly darker hero named Knightress. That didn't last long either before she quit superheroing for good and became a P.I. That, in a nutshell, is Jessica's back story, but it never really happened in any Marvel Comic before this one.

I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the series and the various arcs that followed that stand-alone issue No. 10. There was one where Jessica is hired to find a teenage girl who disappeared. In the middle of that case, Jessica is fixed up on a blind date with then-current Ant Man Scott Lang, and they begin to date. Another case begins with Jessica coming home to find an intruder in her apartment, an intruder that turns out to be the missing Mattie Franklin, former Spider-Woman. That arc brings in guest-appearances by Jessica Drew, another former and now current again Spider-Woman, and J. Jonah Jameson. Matt Murdock, Jessica's friend and attorney, and not-so-secretly at the time Daredevil, also makes several appearances, as do other heroes of the Marvel Universe. But very seldom is anyone powered seen in costume in this book. Oh, and the last two story arcs flesh out a lot of Jessica's back story previously only hinted at. As I said, I very much enjoyed the rest of this series, and I guess I never went back to see what was in those first nine issues because Jessica's story felt pretty complete with what I had. I just never missed those first nine.

So Jessica's book ended with issue No. 28. Not because sales were particularly bad or anything, but because it felt like an ending to her creators. They'd said what they wanted to say with the character. So Alias ended. But Jessica's story was not yet over.

The Best One Yet

The Ultimates: Tomorrow Men
Pocket Books (2006)
Michael Jan Friedman, writer

This is another Marvel prose novel, but from a later set than the previous ones I've discussed. This set of novels, released in the mid-2000s, has a slightly different cover style than the previous series of novels in the 1970s and 1990s. The 2000 books all have a solid color strip on the left side of the front cover that matches the spine and back cover color. The title of the book and author are printed sideways on this solid color strip.

The Ultimates is the first book from this series that I have read, and if it is any indication of the quality of the overall series, it is a step up from the 1990s prose novel series. Not that those books were bad, but this one just reads a little better, one of the better comic-book novelizations I've read to date.

The Ultimates as a concept is basically a modern retelling of the Avengers, but for Marvel Comics' Ultimate Universe. While the Avengers have often worked with Col. Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. in the regular Marvel Universe, in the Ultimate Universe, the team is assembled by Gen. Nick Fury specifically to be a super-powered S.H.I.E.L.D. strike team. In the first twelve issues of the comic-book series, the team is assembled with the newly revived Captain America, Iron Man, Wasp, Giant Man/Ant Man and scientist Bruce Banner. Their first mission is to bring in Banner after he accidentally turns himself into a monster called the Hulk. And then, the team -- joined by Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch -- must repel an alien invasion.

This novel, according to notes in the book by Friedman, is meant to bridge the gap between that first 12-issue Ultimates comic series and the second. The novel begins when a group of intruders suddenly appears inside the Triskelion, the Ultimates' island base of operations. Iron Man is the first to arrive and manages to fight the intruders to a stand-off until the arrival of Captain America and the Wasp causes the invaders to suddenly surrender. Once the fighting stops, Gen. Fury and the rest of the Ultimates question the intruders who claim to be time travelers from the future on a mission to benefit mankind. The Tomorrow Men, as they call themselves, have come back in time to stop the growth of a vast criminal empire that will eventually seize control of the world and dominate humanity in the future. They are hoping to enlist the aid of the Ultimates in their mission.

Several references are made to the first 12-issue series of The Ultimates comics, but everything needed to follow this story is presented in these pages, making the novel reader friendly. The bulk of the action focuses on Iron Man, Captain America, the Wasp, Thor and the Black Widow, although the other characters are also present. And again, this was a very good read.

I do find it curious however that Captain America alone is so prominent on the cover of the book. Iron Man and another character -- possibly the Black Widow -- are suggested behind Cap, and I realize cover space is limited with that title strip taking up some of the room, but that still seems an odd choice for a team book. But oh well, can't have it all.

Superheroes? ... What Superheroes?

Wolverine by Greg Rucka Ultimate Collection tpb
Marvel Comics
Greg Rucka, writer
Darick Robertson and Leandro Fernandez, artists

Wolverine is quite possibly Marvel's most over-exposed character. Since his debut in Incredible Hulk No. 180, he has appeared in his own solo titles and too many incarnations and permutations of X-Men groups to count. At various times, he's been a member of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, and he's guest starred in a number of other characters' solo titles, even if he wasn't the headliner of a given issue. Sometimes, he's even been featured in all of these places at once along with starring in more feature films than any other Marvel character to date. He's a popular little Canadian.

Greg Rucka launched a new solo title for the character in 2003 and stayed on board to write three story arcs or 19 issues, all of which are collected in this volume, before handing the reins of the series over to Mark Millar. I haven't read that many Wolverine solo comics; I've tended to catch him more as one of a group. I don't dislike the character; I just don't care for him as much as I do some others. But Wolverine and the Punisher were always the favorites of my brother, Shawn. I always think of my brother whenever I read a Wolverine or Punisher story I really enjoy. I think how he would have liked said story, too, and how sad it is that he will never get to read it. But that's another story.

Back to these Wolverine stories, I've read them all before -- all except for one. And I liked these stories. Enough that I wanted to hold onto them despite my efforts to scale down my collection before my wife decides to do it herself and just starts a huge bonfire. So I was happy to find all of these issues collected in a single trade. Trades can more easily be stored on a bookshelf, thus freeing up space for something else in the finite number of comic book boxes I've allowed myself to keep.

One of the things that stands out for me about these issues by Rucka is that Wolverine really doesn't appear in them at all -- at least, not if you are looking for the smallish brawler mutant in the familiar yellow and blue or yellow and brown spandex superhero suit. Instead, this collection would more correctly be titled "Logan." He still has his mutant healing ability and those nasty, razor-sharp claws, but the superhero suit doesn't appear once in any of the issues I'd read previously. There are no super-villains to be dispatched. There is just a man, albeit a special man, trying to do the right thing in a world filled with gray areas that blur the absolute right and wrong most of us try to live by.

In the first story arc, Logan lives across the hall from a waitress who works at a diner he frequents. They are not friends. They barely speak to each other at all. But the waitress senses something different about Logan and decides to confide in him one day just a little bit about herself. She's in hiding, and she fears the people she's hiding from will soon find her. When she disappears in a hail of bullets and mysterious nighttime intruders, Logan feels compelled to search for her.

The second arc follows the first, with Logan on a road trip. Stopping for gas, he stumbles across a heinous crime which takes him across the border into Mexico and presents him with a moral dilemma he can find no easy answers to. And the third arc, the closest of the bunch to a traditional superhero tale, sends Logan off to save an old friend he'd forgotten he knew and places him at odds with Sabertooth, the evil mutant who shares many of the same abilities.

These stories are more along the lines of a typical action movie plot or maybe even a spaghetti western starring Clint Eastwood than usual superhero fare. The one issue that differs, the one I hadn't read previously, is sandwiched between the second and third arcs and takes place almost exclusively in Logan's subconscious mind. He's sleeping during much of the issue, and we are given a glimpse into his dreams. This is the only place where costumes and other superhero tropes appear, and yet what troubles Logan's dreams are the events from the first two story arcs and questions Logan has about his own nature.

Especially if you've never read a Wolverine story in your life but enjoy a good, dramatic action movie, then this is the collection for you. Give it a try!

Now That's More Like It

X-Men: Soul Killer
Boulevard Books
Richard Lee Byers, writer
Leonard Manco, chapter illustrations

This is another of those 1990s Marvel prose novels and one of the best ones I've read. I'm not well versed in X-Men history like I am with some other Marvel characters, but this adventure pits Storm, Rogue, Cyclops, Jean Grey and Wolverine of the X-Men against the demon-sorcerer Belasco. Apparently the X-Men have quite a history with Belasco in the comics as many past battles are referenced in this novel. The five members of the X-Men are joined by Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, Colossus and Amanda Sefton of Excalibur. The two mutant teams also develop an uneasy truce with Dracula, lord of the undead, in opposing Belasco's scheme to bring the Elder Gods back to conquer the world.

It's also interesting that this series of novels has its own internal continuity of sorts. The last 12 pages of this book list all of the various 1990s Marvel-themed prose novels to date in "chronological" order of how they happened. That might not be a big deal when it comes to a Spider-Man solo novel and an X-Men novel, but several of the books team various heroes in one adventure. For instance, the Doom trilogy teams Spidey with first the incredible Hulk, then Iron Man, then the Fantastic Four. Another trilogy I haven't read yet teams Spidey with the X-Men for a time-traveling saga. That adventure apparently happens immediately prior to Soul Killer because several times in this novel various X-Men characters mention still being tired from the conclusion of that tale.

One further item of shared continuity for these novels is SAFE, the Strategic Action For Emergencies federal agency. This S.H.I.E.L.D.-like national police force has never appeared in any actual Marvel comic as far as I am aware. But they have made an appearance in all of these novels that I've read to date. The head of the organization is Sean Morgan. This book includes several nameless SAFE agents led by one of Morgan's lieutenants, Major Nefertiti Jones, who has also been in several of the novels I've read before. I'm not sure why the novels don't just go ahead and use S.H.I.E.L.D., the more familiar Marvel national cops. I wouldn't think it would be a rights issue because S.H.I.E.L.D. is typically mentioned in the novels, but SAFE is always the go-to agency involved in the action of the books.

And speaking of action, this book begins with Belasco assuming control of a nest of vampires in Natchez, Miss., and using them to put his latest scheme into motion. He generates a massive storm cell over the city, partially to cover his other actions and partially to lure the X-Men to the area. Storm travels to Natchez to use her weather-controlling abilities in an attempt to limit the storm and subsequent flooding. Rogue volunteers to accompany her teammate, which proves fortunate for Belasco, as she is the main X-Man the sorcerer is hoping to lure into his trap. Belasco uses one of his vampire brood and Rogue's mutant ability to leech energy from people to assume control of the heroine. Then he uses the controlled Rogue to attack Storm. The other X-Men get involved when they lose contact with their teammates, and Excalibur is made aware of the situation by Dracula, who is alerted to Belasco's scheme when control of his Natchez nest of vampires is taken from him.

Obviously, the book combines typical superhero action with no small portion of supernatural activity. Oh, and no small amount of good writing. I'm not saying the book is flawless. There are a number of coincidences in both Belasco's plan and the mutants' final victory without which the story would fall apart. But again, this is by far the best of these Marvel novels I've read. Check it out!

And He's Back In Form

Daredevil by Mark Waid tpb Volume 3
Marvel Comics
Mark Waid and Greg Rucka, writers
Chris Samnee, Marco Checchetto and Khoi Pham, artists

I was a little underwhelmed by the second trade collection of these Mark Waid Daredevil stories and likely wouldn't have purchased this third volume if it hadn't already been pre-ordered. I'm glad it was! These stories are back up to the high level set by the first trade, and by no small coincidence, these stories also serve to wrap up the story started in that first trade.

We start out with two Daredevil guest appearances in other books written by Greg Rucka, Avenging Spider-Man No. 6 and Punisher No. 10. Previously, Daredevil had confiscated a unique hard drive of criminal information on all of the major Marvel Universe crime "families" as depicted in the first trade collection of this title. With the help of the Avengers, Daredevil used the information on that hard drive to bring about the downfall of one of those criminal cabals, as detailed in the second Daredevil trade. But possession of the device has left Matt Murdock, Daredevil, and all those around him targets for the other four groups. This trade collection begins with Spider-Man trying to intervene, urging DD to turn the drive over to either the Avengers or the Fantastic Four, while the Punisher hopes to take the information for himself to use in his one-man war on crime. The three, along with a new partner for the Punisher, agree to work together instead, but things do not go exactly as planned, which leads directly into Daredevil issues 11-15, also in this collection, wrapping up the saga of that hard drive, but also setting DD up for some trouble with the ruler of Latveria, Dr. Doom!

Very fun, high-flying adventure tales. And unlike the DD guest-appearance included in the second trade, these two "extra" books seem to flow a little more naturally with the Daredevil ongoing. Pick it up; you'll be glad you did!

Somebody's Gonna Get A Beatin'

Indestructible Hulk 2
Marvel Now
Mark Waid, writer
Leinil Yu, artist

I'm one of those readers who felt that Tony Stark/Iron Man had a lot to answer for after the events of Civil War a few years ago. Since that time, I've been happy to see some instances where some of Tony's friends have taken him to task for some of his decisions and his hubris during those events. This book falls into that category.

Maria Hill, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., has taken Bruce Banner up on his offer from the first issue: S.H.I.E.L.D. supplies Banner with a lab, staff and materials so he can create things to benefit mankind and ensure that he is remembered for more than the destruction caused by his green alter ego. In exchange, Banner allows S.H.I.E.L.D. to point him in a useful direction when he inevitably hulks out again. While not 100 percent convinced of the overall benefits, Hill is taking advantage of the offer in light of there being no other workable solutions to the Hulk problem. For his part, Bruce Banner is making the most of his deal, already having developed a few new bits of hardware and setting a goal for himself to complete work on at least one new invention each week.

Enter Iron Man at the outset of this issue, barging into the S.H.I.E.L.D. base where Banner is currently located and demanding that Hill turn over whatever technology or whichever super-villain she is using to mind-control Banner. Hill explains that isn't the case, but Iron Man insists on investigating the situation for himself. Tony and Bruce share a mathematical joke to lighten the mood of the meeting, and Bruce does what he can to assure Tony that this plan is for the best. But it is also obvious that the two men have an underlying animosity/rivalry going on. Tony is clearly impressed by some of what Bruce has already accomplished but refuses to acknowledge that out loud. And Bruce has anticipated Tony's interference and expects the metal-clad Avenger to try to end the arrangement. You just know all of that tension is going to result in a superhero smackdown! But don't worry, fans of each character have their moments to be proud of in what ensues.

In fact, my only complaint with this book so far is the art -- just not a fan of Leinil Yu's work, especially on this title. I absolutely hate the way he draws faces here: the drawings are so detailed, you can't see the faces for all of the linework.

Bless The Little Children For They Have Saved It

Daredevil by Mark Waid Vol. 2 tpb
Marvel Comics
Mark Waid, writer
Paolo Rivera, Emma Rios, Kano and Khoi Pham, artists

The appeal for this series dropped off a little bit with this second trade collection of Mark Waid's run on Daredevil. I reviewed the first collection here, and really enjoyed it. It was a fast-paced, fun adventure book and a terrific read.

The first story in this collection continues that very high standard of excellence. There's a little bit of foreshadowing that will tie in to a later tale pitting DD against the Mole Man. But the bulk of Daredevil No. 7 features blind attorney Matt Murdock continuing an annual tradition of taking a class of blind children on a field trip. A sudden severe snowstorm throws a monkey wrench in the group's plans, and Daredevil is left to rescue them when their bus crashes. Problem is, Daredevil is injured in the crash, losing blood, and truly blind as the effects of the storm dampen his usually heightened senses of hearing, smell and touch.

The next issue in this collection is where things start to go awry. Daredevil makes a guest appearance in Amazing Spider-Man No. 677 and the "team-up" continues in Daredevil No. 8. Spider-Man serves little purpose in the story except as the means to bring Daredevil and the sometime cat burglar Black Cat together, but a plot twist at the end of the story reveals a motivation for the pair to cross paths without Spidey's involvement. That just makes the rest of the story seem like a pointless detour. To make matters worse, the art on the Amazing Spider-Man portion of the two-parter isn't up to the level of the rest of this collection. I'm not familiar with Emma Rios' work from other books, but she just doesn't seem to pull it off for this reader. The art isn't bad, exactly, but "off" somehow. And I absolutely hate how she changes Spider-Man's eye lenses in every panel to convey facial expressions. Some artists can pull that kind of thing off well, allowing the readers to suspend disbelief that the mask really moves, squints, etc. For Rios' pages, it just seems like she can't draw Spidey's lenses very well.

Issues 9 and 10 of Daredevil are the Mole Man confrontation hinted at earlier. This wasn't a bad tale, just not one I cared overly much for as the Mole Man has his minions steal bodies from a cemetery, and Daredevil tries to determine why. And finally, this volume also includes Daredevil No. 10.1, which returns to the plot from the end of the first trade collection where Daredevil is holding five criminal empires at bay because he has possession of an artifact that contains all of their secrets, and they naturally want it back.

All in all, this isn't a bad collection, but it's not as good as the first trade was. That first story makes up for the rest, however, so I'm still gonna recommend you check this trade out.