Staring Into the Abyss

So I got a little bit behind and decided to spend today reading the last two weeks worth of comics that I had stacked up. So, here are my thoughts on them:

Age of Ultron #3 - I was not expecting that twist at the end. Poor Vision. Whatever led to that, to him being that, poor Vision. My favorite line of the issue was Wolverine telling Steve and Tony that them agreeing with each other "is the end of the world."

Fantastic Four #5AU - Okay, just opening the issue and seeing the title...the title is not okay! The title is "The Death of the Family Richards During the Bloody Age of Ultron! or, 'Everything's Going to Be Okay.'" So yeah...I cried. I just love the Fantastic Four so much that I started crying at Reed's goodbye and kept going through his death and the ending with the kids alone. How much did I love Johnny though? People tell me he is shallow, but that man is not shallow. I loved all his references to his recent multiple deaths. And Sue being the one left standing. That's perfect.

Young Avengers #3 - I laughed so much in this issue. Loki had me laughing out loud constantly and Teddy was so sweetly funny and America is just badass. And then Billy's line where he told Loki that "I wouldn't lend you an eraser let alone power over reality." was awesome.. Basically I just had a lot of fun reading this issue and it's nice to have a few comics that make me laugh more than they make me cry.

Captain Marvel #11 - I have to say that the art is growing on me. The rotating artists, many of them using nontraditional comic styles, has been something I've had to get used to, but I'm starting to really like that this title is so unique. I also really like Carol's supporting cast in this series and Dakota was a fun addition to this issue. The only thing I am not excited about is the hints that we may end up with amnesiac Carol. I hate amnesia stories most of the time.

Indestructible Hulk #5 - I wasn't particularly interested in all the Atuma stuff, but I still loved Bruce's voice in this issue. I also loved that everyone loved the Hulk in this issue. The surprise on Hulk's face when he got kissed was amusing and he quickly retreated into Banner at that point. lol. There were some super bad angles on Mara though that could use the Hawkeye Initiative treatment. Mostly I am just looking foward to next month considering all the Thor teasers. :D

New Avengers #4 - Well apparently all our heroes have been creating their most powerful weapons, or in Strange's case, delving into his darkest magics. This is really not going to end well. The trip to the other universe shows that they are still driven by their normal heroic impulses, though, which is good. The use of Galactus as a universal constant is interesting as well. This is going to be a long complicated story and I am having some concerns about Strange's future in it. I did love the statue to Magneto in the other world and Namor's slimy response to Beast about it. lol. Oh, Namor.

Avengers #8 - Oh, Hickman. One of these days all of these threads will come together and make perfect sense to me. Today is not that day, but I have faith. The best part of the issue had to be Carol throwing the Hulk into battle. Now THAT's a fastball special.

FF #5 - Gosh I love this comic. It's just so good in every way. So much fun character stuff going on and now the shit is about to hit the fan. What is Alex going to Doom for? What is up with Medusa? What is up with Old Johnny? Poor Scott needs a hug and I just need more! Also, Darla trying on all the different headgear? Awesome.

Deadpool Killustrated #3 - This issue didn't do a lot for me...at least not until the end when the Little Mermaid morphed into Namor as she was dying. OMG how hilarious! What would Namor think if he knew that was his literary foundation? lol.

Deadpool #6 - Oh, Wade. I really, really love you. This issue was much stronger than the last and was a good end to the arc. I love that the Avengers actually gave him some praise--sort of--and his righteous anger at SHIELD is delicious. I'm also kinda loving that he now has Agent Preston sharing his brain. That twist makes killing her off okay now, lol. I can't wait to see what's next for Wade and I want to know who he saw in the light and what is up with Strange's concerns.

Guardians of the Galaxy #1 - This is a really promising start to the series and I enjoyed it a lot. I've never read GotG before, but I am interested in all of the characters, especially Peter Quill and want to know more. Also, I somehow had shipping feels for a raccoon & a tree in this issue. I don't even know what to do with that. Or myself.

All New X-Men #9 - This was another strong issue that ends at the same place Uncanny X-Men did. It should be interesting to see where they both go from here. My favorite part of the issue may have been the fact that Bendis lampshaded the stupid "Lady So and So" hero and villain names by having Mystique call them sexist because the guy isn't "Dude So and So." Thank you Bendis.

Uncanny Avengers #5 - This issue started a new arc and introduced some new team members. I'm excited to get Janet, Simon, and Sunfire in on the action. It's starting to feel like a full team. I love the idea of working a PR angle on the mutant issues and I really, really love the continued tensions as Cap is forced to follow Alex's lead. I'm still shipping that, lol.

Whew, that was a lot. I need to not get behind in the future! So what did you all think about these comics or whatever else you have been reading the last few weeks? Please talk with me about comics!

First off I have to share to this video that I first found through the Marvel AR while reading F4 this week. It is about Matt Fraction's family and how it is similar to the F4 and how family influences his writing, but also how being a writer influences his parenting. What that means is you get to see inside his and Kelly Sue Deconnick's life a little and meet their kids. It is adorable. You can watch it here at MTV Geek.

Okay, now on to the comics and shows I've watched this week.

Fantastic Four #4 - This was a perfect Valentine's issue. I realize that I may be the only person who likes Reed Richards, but the way Hickman and now Fraction write him I really do like him and his relationship with Sue. It's not perfect and he is a very flawed man, but I get him and I like seeing a relationship that does require work, but that is also deep and built on love. This issue is basically a love letter from Reed to Sue and we see their first meeting in his recollections, which has been tweaked to age her up (thankfully!) since the last time Marvel showed it. Anyway, there is a beautiful twist in the issue where we discover that the cave paintings they find were actually done by Reed having gone back in time to paint them as a reminder to himself not to take Sue or his family for granted. He even paints a heart around her! I'm glad that it seems like Reed is about to tell her the truth about their trip and it only took four issues and a slightly stern face from her to get him there. This is an improvement!

Secret Avengers #1 - I didn't like this comic. It was well written and set up what could be a really interesting plot...but it was done in a way that made me uncomfortable. The issue got good reviews and focused on Hawkeye and Nat which meant I wanted to like it...but...
All the mind wiping as a function of the job made me uncomfortable to start with especially since the tech was introduced to Clint and Nat before they gave their permission. And lets just take a moment here to ask why Marvel must continue messing with Nat's head? Okay, then the big spoiler at the end? That Fury Jr. shot Clint and set him up to be interrogated via torture, telepath, etc. just so Maria could make sure that SHIELD's new mind wipe tech works under stress? That made me mad and uncomfortable as fuck. Basically if this comic turns out to be about Clint and Nat finding out what is going on and bringing the program down I will happily go back and read it, but right now I just don't like what I am seeing. Also I am a bit apprehensive about what this tech could mean for SHIELD's activities across all lines in the future.

Uncanny X-Men #1 This book goes hand in hand with All New X-Men so I picked it up as well. I am glad I did cause as I mention below, I love Cyclops and I love seeing all this plot revolve around him. He really does hurt so pretty. But OMG, the last page... Magneto is working with Maria Hill to discredit Cyclops?! This is going to be so good. Epic even.

All New X-Men #1-7 - I finally caved and read these after hearing such good things. I like Cyclops and love that he is getting some really meaty well developed fascinating stories to work with and this book has TWO Scotts running around! And both of them hurt so pretty! Beyond just Scott, there really is a lot of delicious character focused story telling because of bringing that first X-Men team forward in time. I am very much looking forward to seeing where this one goes over time.

Arrow - This was a fabulous episode and if the Slade/Ollie fic doesn't start getting written (and to a lesser extent the Dig/Felicity) then I just don't understand fandom. I really loved how focused this episode was on the island with only a few flashes to the present. Every scene in both places felt real and necessary to the story in a way that isn't always true of this show. Slade was fabulous both in the fights and just interacting with Ollie and I really hope we keep him on the show for a very long time.

Supernatural - When the show has both me and my mom cheering for Sam and telling him how awesome he is you know its a good episode. I mean we both like him, but usually that only happens with Dean and Cas in my house. I am very, very excited about the direction the show is taking with his character and can't wait to see how it plays out. I'm worried about Kevin and his nosebleeds and those pills Dean gave him though...

Elementary - Of course Sherlock knew about Joan. There was no way he didn't, but I am glad it is out in the open and their new working relationship has been defined. I continue to love the emotion that we see in this version of Sherlock. I love that he wants her to be safe and instead of the usual and sexist tropes of either trying to protect her himself or turning her away for her own good he just wants to make sure she is trained. I approve. I'm also glad that we got to see more of Bell's life and the place he holds in Sherlock's world.

So what do you all think? What have you been reading/watching?