Quick Comic Reviews

Marvel Teap-Up; Daredevil; The Authority: Revolution



Marvel Team-Up #1-2

by Robert Kirkman & Scott Kolins

Spider-Man & Wolverine? Aren't those guys in enough comics every month already? Still, Kirkman makes this initial foray a fun read, as Wolverine is sent to New York to make contact with a new mutant, who just happens to go to the school where Peter Parker teaches. Despite the fact that this series will feature different Marvel heroes teaming up each month, it looks as though Kirkman is going to also be telling a loosely connected over-arching story as well, as evidenced by the handful of pages that foreshadow future stories. (But what the heck was up with that page of Nova?) Kirkman has been given the canvas of the Marvel Universe to play around with, and he goes about it enthusiastically. Kolins is a good fit, as he does dynamic people-in-spandex stuff well.

Rating: 3 (of 5)




Daredevil #67/447

by Brian Michael Bendis & Alex Maleev

Bendis may be stretching himself a bit too thin these days, but while it shows in his lackluster work on Avengers, it's not in evidence at all in Daredevil, where he and artist Maleev continue to tell quality enertaining stories. In part two of "Golden Age," they continue to tell the story of the original kingpin of Hell's Kitchen, Alexander Bont. In black and white we witness Bont's rise as a mob boss; Bont's fall to a rookie Daredevil is represented in pseudo-four color halftones; and Murdock's capture and torture at the hands of a just-released Bont is done in Maleev's modern style. It's only the art in each part that is different though--the story in all three sections is done in typical Bendis decompressed style.

Rating: 3 (of 5)




The Authority: Revolution #2

by Ed Brubaker, Dustin Nguyen & Richard Friend

Brubaker's revitilization of The Authority continues, as Midnighter is brought into the future by an aging Apollo, who revels--to the surprise of noone who has actually read any amount of literature--that The Authority's take-over of the U.S. has led not to a utopia, but to a world-wide distopia. Of course Midnighter must now return to his own time to prevent this future from happening, and that means disbanding The Authority. Which, if he succeeds, would be a good thing for the book, as the team features basically the same line-up as when Warren Ellis debuted it years ago. Change or Die, remember? The Authority needs new blood, and hopefully Brubaker is on his way to providing it.

Rating: 3 (of 5)