Light
week to start off being the comics between Christmas and New Year.
This week: the beginning of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Tie-in comic as well as their first Miracleman annual and an issue of
Sonic Universe that turned up a week late.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
#1
Perfect
Bullets
writer: Mark Waid; pencils: Carlos Pacheco; inks:
Mariano Taibo w/ Jason Paz; colours; Dono Almara; letters: Joe
Caramagna
Interesting
experiment this: a tie-in series for a
Cinematic Universe project set in the Marvel Universe proper. Nice
idea: there are a lot of things the TV series can't do due to expense
or legal issues. Here we get to the see the familiar characters
playing with all the toys...
… sort of.
The focus here is firmly on Coulson and we get an
extended set of flashbacks setting up his past in the Marvel
Universe. He's a nerd, basically, who grew up fascinated by the
Golden Age superheroes and then entered adulthood as the current
superheroes got their start. He knows everything there is to know
about the Avengers, the X-Men and the rest and SHIELD uses him to
assign those heroes to jobs for them. That's our set-up.
We get a nice flashy bit of business for him to deal
with as Asgardian baddies pop up all over the world and he has to
sort it out. Cue him flying in to one of the many hotspots with his
team, here consisting of Fitz, Simmons and a barely-present May.
All-in-all the team doesn't get much chance to shine between the
flashbacks and superhero guest stars, the later of which I expect to
be the format of the series: the team plus guest stars fight the
threat of the week.
Its
certainly not an uninteresting set-up and I'm in for issue two, at
least, but I feel fans of the series (I'm just barely halfway through
Season One) might end up a little disappointed since this isn't
really the team and especially the Coulson from the series. Not
surprising given the differing circumstances of the two settings.
Oddly, I wouldn't say he was the Coulson from Secret
Avengers either but that could
change considering where the current arc in that title's going.
So fun but probably of more interest to the casual
viewer than the committed fan of its parent series.
All-New
Miracleman Annual #1
The
Priest & The Dragon: The October Incident: 1966
story:
Grant Morrison; art: Joe Quesada; colours: Richard Isanove; letters:
Chris Eliopoulos
The
Miracleman Family: Seriously Miraculous
story:
Peter Milligan; art: Mike Allred; colours: Laura Allred; letters;
Travis Lanham
I
rather missed the boat on Marvel's Miracleman relaunch, mainly
because I'd never heard of the property. I got caught up thanks to
Movie Bob of The Escapist's videos on the subject and went looking
for an in. Granted, annuals aren't often the perfect done-in-one
taste tests they used to be in the old days but they do still tend to
include a series' A-game. I certainly got the A-game stories but I
highly doubt they're a good sample of the series. Both stories are
great, don't get me wrong, but...
The
Grant Morrison story is very Grant Morrison, by which I mean its
obscure as hell and as closed off as narratives get. Its a short
piece from the point-of-view of a priest confronting a Miracleman
supporting character recast, for some reason, as the Anti-Christ. Its
the sort of thing that feels like a great beginning but according to
the behind the scenes notes at the end of the book this is an unused
script from the 80s, coupled with Morrison's recent declaration he's
swearing off monthly comics means this probably isn't going anywhere.
The
real pity of it through is the striking but simple artwork from Joe
Quesada which makes me wish the man had more time to be an artist.
The
Milligan/Allreds story is again, very emblematic of the creative
team: a very solidly and slightly meta romp through the colourful
cast of heroes and villains from Mick Anglo's original 1950s stories.
There a villain called Young Nastyman, there are dolphins with
spears, “Russkie” nuclear tests, death rays and all sorts of
other bonkers tropes and ideas. Its actually a pretty cool rejoiner
to the dark and violent Miracleman of the 80s Morrison was writing
for and the general comicbook industry of the time.
If
nothing else the Annual has given me more of an idea of
Miracleman/Marvelman's varied history and I'll probably pick up the
trades of the new series when they come out.
Sonic
Universe #71
The
Spark Of Life part one
story:
Ian Flynn; script: Aleah Baker; pencils: Tracy Yardley; inks: Jim
Amash; colours: Matt Herms; letters: Jack Morelli
You
know, I think I'm finally getting used to this new rebooted
continuity now its finally starting to explain itself. True, I'm not
sure I like Nicole's new origin as much as her old one but we'll see
how I feel about it come the end of the arc.
Speaking
of the arc, I do so like it when Universe does a Freedom
Fighters story, second only in my affections to Knuckles-based
stories. Here we have Sally, Tails and Big the Cat chasing after
Nicole when she rushes off to answer a distress call from her
creator, Doctor Ellidy. The issue is mainly set-up and doesn't really
stand up as a very satisfying story on its own but I'm willing to
forgive that for the promise of an arc exploring Nicole's development
(if her artificial sentience is the “Spark Of Life” of the title)
since that was one of my favourite subplots before the Worlds Collide
reboot.
The
only bum note and a thing that bugs me in general about the
post-Worlds Collide status quo, is Big the Cat. I've never really
liked the character. It was okay when Team Freedom were the also-rans
guarding New Mobotropolis in back-up strips but now he's wandering
round the A-plot being a lovable idiot and I greatly dislike lovable
idiots, a personal bias, I know.
Still,
more than good enough for comfort food which is the main reason I
still buy Sonic comics.
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