Wolverine: Civil War Review

Writer: Marc Guggenheim
Artist: Humberto Ramos

I read the crossover story Civil War, and planned on reading, and reviewing the tie-in novels that I had, and although I read them I never got round to reviewing them. I am however hoping to do that now, and am continuing with the this Wolverine tie-in volume, with this being my seventh review on Wolverine.

Plot

After the deaths of innocent people in Stamford, CT causes the start of the superhero Civil War Wolverine decides to track down the man responsible, Nitro.

Review

This was yet another brilliant tie-in story to Civil War, also being a great Wolverine story. Marc Guggenheim did a great job of putting Wolverine into this event, as with the X-Men staying out of the Civil War, I was wondering how Wolverine could have a tie-in story, and this story showed perfectly how there could, and should have been one. The drama, and excitement in this story was simply outstanding, as it had a great atmosphere, with brilliant tone. It also had some amazing action that was fitting of a Wolverine story, being explosive, and exciting, whilst also being gritty, and slightly graphic. The emotion in this story was also great, as although Wolverine doesn't produce your normal sad, or happy emotion often, there's a lot that he cares about, and this is shown through his rage, which Guggenheim handled perfectly, adding depth to his character throughout this story.

I was in two minds whether I liked the art in this story, as although I usually love Humberto Ramos' art, I wasn't entirely sure whether it suits Wolverine. Now I loved how he drew Wolverine in costume, as he looked amazing, but the problem I had was that outside of costume Ramos went a little over the top, as the hair was a little too jarring, and the distinguishing features of Wolverine were enhanced too much. The action however was handled perfectly, being very graphic, and explosive, and if Ramos either kept Wolverine in costume all the time, or improved his look outside of the costume he'd be perfect for this series. Ramos' layouts were also brilliant, adding depth, and tone to the story, also giving a brilliant atmosphere to the story. The colours from Edgar Delgado was also brilliant, making Ramos' art more vibrant, also adding more texture, and tone to the finished artwork.

With the X-Men staying out of the Civil War, Wolverine would have a dilemma, as although he sided with his team, he wanted to do what he felt was right, and that was track down Nitro. I loved the interaction that Wolverine had with both Cyclops, and Emma Frost, as although he was friends with them at the time, he didn't always see eye to eye with them, and this is obvious during this interaction. I also enjoyed seeing how he interacted with members from his other team, the New Avengers, who were mainly involved in Civil War, and I especially enjoyed his interaction with Iron Man, and Luke Cage.

What I liked most about this story was that it actually showed something getting done about Nitro, as although he was only the catalyst to start the Civil War nothing happened about him in that story, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I am however happy that there is a series that is dealing with it, and what better series than this one. Besides Wolverine's personality the fact that he isn't on either side of this war makes him the perfect candidate to track down this killer. I also loved seeing Nitro himself, and the fights he had with Wolverine throughout this story was amazing.

This story would also see the involvement of Atlanteans, and with the Atlanteans come their ruler, Namor, who wants justice for his cousin, Namorita, who was killed by Nitro. The inclusion of Namor usually adds excitement, and this time was no different. I found his appearance to be very interesting, and the interaction between him, and Wolverine was brilliant, only being beaten by the small fight that they had, which was simply outstanding. I also loved how this would develop from another part of Civil War that got forgotten, and it was very appropriate that it was developed in this story..

Following the main story there was an issue that would showed what happened to Wolverine during his healing process. Now you may say that this was a cheap additional issue, as a fair chunk of it was the reprint of events from the main story, with new thought boxes added, as well as some additional sequences in between the events. I did however like it, and felt it was a very unique addition, and a nice extra. I also loved how there was thought put into it, and although it wasn't a necessary addition, it was a nice addition.

Final Verdict

This was a great tie-in story, and it was great to see some development from the actual Stamford incident. The story itself was also very gritty, and dramatic, having the perfect tone for a Wolverine story, also having great action sequences, as well as a great addition cast. Due to all this I'd easily recommend this story, as it's a great accompaniment to the Civil War event itself, and although it's not necessary to get Civil War as well to enjoy this I'd highly recommend doing so, as that is a tremendous story itself.

Rating: 9/10

The next Wolverine book I'll be reviewing will be Wolverine Origins: Born in Blood.

The Amazing Spider-Man #700 Review

Writers: Dan Slott, J.M. DeMatteis & Jen van Meter
Artists: Humberto Ramos, Giuseppe Camuncoli & Stephanie Buscema

This is something I've been waiting ages for, and finally the final issue of Amazing Spider-Man, issue 700 is out. Although I didn't know what my final reaction to this would be, as I've been sceptical since hearing that Peter Parker would not be Spider-Man in the upcoming Superior Spider-Man series. I've still however been very excited and although I'm not entirely sure what I feel since reading it, I am happy I got it.

Plot

This issue sees Peter Parker, who's trapped in Doctor Octopus' body make one last ditch attempt to get his own body, which Doctor Octopus is currently occupying back.

There are also two backup stories in this issue, one featuring a old Spider-Man telling his great grandson about his time as a superhero, and another featuring Black Cat.

Review

This was a very good issue, but the ending, which I'll talk more about later, without won't spoiling was in my opinion a little disappointing. Besides that Dan Slott did an amazing job of building up a to the climax of this issue, using things that have happened in previous battles between Doc Ock, and Spider-Man to great use. I also loved how he wrote each character in the opposite bodies, as although we've seen this for the last couple of issues, we haven't seen much, and it's more been in a narrative way. This time we get to see more of how there minds in the opposite bodies lead to them acting in a different way than usual, which I thought was nice, as they both acted somewhere in between their usual actions, and the actions of the bodies they where in.

The art from Humberto Ramos in this issue was very good, and although like I've said in the past I don't like how he draws Doc Ock, I could still enjoy the rest of his marvellous artwork. The way he drew each character was brilliant as usual, and I loved how he drew some of the more awkward moments. I also loved how he drew the action sequences, and felt that he really set the tone, as the other villains were sometimes confused, and Ramos showed that perfectly. I also thought that the cover for this issue by Pascal Garcin was phenomenal, and I love how it's a collage, with dton's of red suited Spider-Men, and the odd Carnage as the red, ton's off Venom's and black suited Spider-Men as the black, and other Spider-Man related characters along with other Marvel characters, without colours as the white.

Peter Talks to Uncle Ben

The thing I liked the most during this issue was that Peter got to have a conversation with Uncle Ben. This happens whilst Peter, in Doc Ock's body gets a huge zap to attach him to an old set of Doc Ock's Arms, which gives him a near death experience where he sees all his deceased loved ones, and people that have died that he feels responsible for, including Captain George Stacy, Gwen Stacy, Silver Sable, and of course Uncle Ben. It's nice to see him talking to Uncle Ben again, cause whether it's real or not his death was Peter's main reason for becoming Spider-Man. The sequence itself was very good, and had a lot of emotion in it, both in the art, and the way it was written. I also liked how although Peter felt partially responsible for all of their deaths that none of them held it against him.

There's Not a Moment To Waste!

After this sequence it is revealed that Peter in Doc Ock's body is still alive, and that he's been attached to the mechanical arms. Although it was Peter in Doc Ock's body, it was nice to see Doc Ock in his original arms, with a lab coat on (although the picture to the left doesn't show the lab coat) as that's retro Doc Ock, and if it does turn out to be the last time we see him it's nice to see him in a more original attire. The way Peter went about after getting these arms was also interesting, as he could tell how desperate it was to get his body back, and that he needed to do it quick. I also loved how he even acted like Doc Ock at times calling Trapster an imbecile, at one point when he was about to make a mistake whilst putting the mechanical arms on him.

Spider-Man and Doc Oc's Last Fight

The final battle in this issue between Doc Ock and Spider-Man was brilliant, and it showed that besides the reader, the characters in the comic itself could be surprised by what they believe to be Doc Ock and Spider-Man's actions. The fight itself was brilliant, and I loved the lengths both character's would go to to stop the other, and how during this Peter could still acknowledge the ingenious things that Doc Ock did with his Web Shooters. I also liked how it teased at what the final outcome would be during the fight, and how when you thought one thing would finish the fight, something else would continue it.

The ending itself was a little bit disappointing, or at least in my opinion. I'll talk a bit about it, but not much to avoid spoiling it. It was maid clear a few issues before this issue that the upcoming Superior Spider-Man series would feature a new Spider-Man. After hearing this it was obvious that something would cause Peter to stop being Spider-Man, whether this was his death, an event that made him hang up his suit, or something completely different. Although I didn't like the news that there would be a new Spider-Man I still decided to go into this issue, as I will do with Superior Spider-Man #1 with an open mind. I did however not like the way this was done, and although I won't spoil it I do think it could have been done in a better way.

The backup stories in this issue were fun, but not as good as I hoped. I was also hoping for the stories to somehow be connected to the main story, which they weren't. Although I thought they were fun stories I still felt that they weren't good enough for this milestone issue, and that the issue might have even been better without them. The art from Giuseppe Camuncoli in the first story was very good, like his previous work on Spider-Man, but I wasn't as keen on Stephanie Buscema in the other, and although it will appeal to some people, it didn't appeal to me.

Final Verdict

A great end to a tremendous series. I would highly recommend this issue to anyone, whether they're a Spider-Man fan or not, and the only reason this isn't rated higher is due to the backup stories, and the fact I didn't like the ending.

Rating: 4/5

The Amazing Spider-Man #699 Review

Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Humberto Ramos

I have been a Spider-Man fan for a number of years now, and Dan Slott's run has been amazing. Although not all the issues he's written lately have been perfect he has made me very excited to see what will happen when issue 700 arrives, and I've not been as excited about a Spider-Man story in years.

Plot

WARNING: THIS WILL SPOIL THE END OF ISSUE 698

This issue continues from were the last issue left off, Doctor Octopus has managed to switch bodies with Spider-Man and is now living his life with all his memories whilst Peter is trapped in Doc Ock's dying body. After sifting through Doc Ock's memories he finds out how he managed to switch bodies with him, and goes to drastic measures to escape the Raft including enlisting the help of super villains.

Review

This was a brilliant issue and I'm getting very excited about issue 700 is 3 weeks time, slightly annoyed issue 699.1 will be in the way now. Slott has done a brilliant job on this issue and I have loved most of his work over his run on Spider-Man. Although there wasn't as much action in this issue as some of the other issues have had, and not as fun as it usually is, it was still a very good story and shows that he can write a good issue with a serious story. The way he told the story from Peter's thoughts trapped in Doc Ock's body was brilliant, and you could really feel the desperation in the character knowing that he's in a body that's dying whilst Doc Ock could be committing ton's of crimes in his name.

I was happy to see Humberto Ramos doing the artwork for this issue as I have loved his art throughout the last couple of years, and think his style really suits this series. Paolo Manuel Rivera also did another amazing cover and I've enjoyed both this cover and the last, and have loved the symbolism in them. I love how Ramos' art work has this fun feel towards it, and how even though it doesn't look to serious he can still show great emotion, and set a brilliant mood to the issue. Like for instance when he drew Doc Ock in Peter's body standing over Peter in Doc Ock's body, you can see the malice in his eyes, and how Spider-Man looks pure evil for a change. I have however never been a fan of how he draws Doc Ock, okay it keeps with his unique style but I think it's a little to unrealistic for my taste.

THIS NEXT PARAGRAPH MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

This issue revealed how Doc Ock managed to switch bodies with Peter. Whilst thinking of how to get out of this predicament he's in Peter decides to see if he can find anything n Doc's memories. During this sequence we see parts of Doc Ock's earlier life, when he almost married Aunt May, and even more recent events including Ends of the Earth. It is revealed that during Spider-Man's fight with the Hobgoblin's in the last story, Danger Zone, and due to Spider-Man's Spider-Sense going nuts temporarily Doc Ock put his plan into motion. I thought the way Doc Ock did this, which I won't explain in detail (you may work it out if you look at the picture, so avoid if you want to avoid a possible spoiler) was very interesting, and although this was similar to one of the ways I thought he may have done it, quite different at the same time. It was a very ingenious way of swapping bodies with someone, and although not necessarily the most elaborate, would still have needed ton's of planning, and was realistic enough for a comic.

Also in this issue the Lizard reveals to who he believes is a dying Doc Ock, but is actually Peter, that his mind is in fact Dr. Connors, and that the cure that was administered to him at the end of No Turning Back worked leaving his mind trapped in the Lizards body instead. Lizard himself revealed this at the end of that story so it wasn't new news, but now that Peter knows makes it worthy news. It was eventually going to come out in the open, and leading up to the supposed huge (which it should be) 700th issue it makes sense to use this information. I've also liked how Slott has gathered together things that have happened over the last 100 issues and put them into this story, as we obviously have Doc Ock how's been dying since then, Scorpion who featured in the Revenge of the Spider-Slayer (which is part of the Matters of Life and Death TPB), and Lizard and Morbius who both were a part of the No Turning Back storyline. It will be interesting to see how these character will affect the 700th issue, and after reading the preview for issue 699.1 I'm actually interested to see how that will affect things just before the 700th issue.

The choice of villains in this issue was also interesting, and I loved how the obvious villains weren't chosen. I especially liked seeing Hydro-Man again as I really enjoyed this character years ago, and though he was brilliant in the 90's animated series. Trapster, or Paste-Pot Pete as older comic fans may know him as was also an interesting choice. Although he featured in the Deadpool series prior to Marvel NOW! recently, he's not really made many appearances which is a shame, as when written well he's a decent villain. Finally Scorpion, there had to be a well known Spider-Man villain amongst this group and Scorpion is the best choice. He's easily manipulated, and will do anything for money or a chance to beat Spider-Man. I'm interested to see how these villains will affect the 700th issue, and how Peter gets on whilst working with villains.

Final Verdict

A truly phenomenal issue and I'm really looking forward to the 700th issue now. Although this issue wasn't perfect, and more serious than most Spider-Man stories, it was still very good, and very gripping which is needed in a build up to a big story. I would highly recommend this issue to anyone, as it gives a lot of insight to what might happen in the 700th issue, and with something big about to happen to Peter you don't want to miss it.

Rating: 4.5/5