X-Men: Battle of the Atom #2 Review

Writer: Jason Aaron

Artists: Esad Ribic & Giuseppe Camuncoli

Although Battle of the Atom has lasted longer than it probably should have, having some slow moments along the way, it has overall been a very entertaining story. It does however all come down to this ending, as although it's been good so far, a bad ending could ruin the entire story.

Plot

The X-Men and the future Brotherhood go at it one last time, with S.H.I.E.L.D. inadvertently attacking the mutants as well. 

Review

This was a very good issue as a whole, but it had quite a few problems, with the ending being one of the main problems. Also unlike solicited the issue would actually be written by Jason Aaron who did a brilliant job of making the issue very exciting. He did however not didn't do a fantastic job of ending the story, as although a certain part of the outcome was already spoiled, the ending wouldn't give much clarity to the overall story, making it feel rather unnecessary. Aaron would however add a lot of suspense and drama to this issue as well, with there being some very interesting dialogues, though the poor ending still overshadows all this quite a bit.

The artwork on this issue would be the other big problem, as although there were some very talented artists with the main artwork being done by Esad Ribic and Giuseppe Camuncoli, and the epilogue artwork featuring more of Camuncoli's work, also featuring art from Chris Bachalo, Kris Anka and Stuart Immonen. The main problem with the art was that it was clearly very rushed, with it being poorly detailed. There would however be the odd phenomenal panel, and the layout overall was amazing, but the roughness of the art made it very hard to enjoy it, even with the beautiful colours from  Ive Svorcina, Andres Mossa and Guru Efx.

The issue would start straight from where Wolverine and the X-Men #37 left off with the X-Men being attacked by S.H.I.E.L.D. missiles, that were fired by the Brotherhood. Now this would be a very exciting sequence with the fight between all the X-Men and the future Brotherhood taking up most of the issue. During the fight there would be some amazing interactions, but the best would be between Wolverine, Cyclops and  the future Jean Grey.  On top of this the younger X-Men would also add some fun to the sequence with what certain members had to say about the events.

We'd also get to see some Sentinels in this issue, though what bothered the X-Men most about this was the fact that they were S.H.I.E.L.D. Sentinels. Now naturally this wouldn't make the X-Men happy, and naturally so. The addition itself was however rather hollow, as it would have been nice to have seen a bit more action involving the Sentinels, as their appearance seems to be mainly to set up the future events of Wolverine and the X-Men. Other than that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s involvement in this issue was overall very decent, as although they seemed mainly background characters, they added a different tone to the issue, and overall I look forward to seeing the aftermath of this sequence.

The main story would be followed by four epilogues, two written by Aaron, one written by Brian Wood and the last being written by Brian Michael Bendis. Now I won't go into any detail about these epilogues, but story wise they'd be the best part of the issue, and did a fantastic job of giving a little bit of closure for the characters, setting up the future of the X-Men brilliantly. The epilogue that interested me the most however had to be the final one by Bendis that would see Kitty Pryde air her feelings over the event in a very exciting fashion.

Final Verdict

This was an exciting issue, but due to a poor ending and very rushed artwork it was probably overall the poorest issue in the story, with it making the story feel irrelevant and unnecessary. There would however be some explosive moments, and some shocking developments with the epilogues doing a fantastic job of setting up the future of the X-Men titles, but unfortunately it wasn't enough to overcome the sudden and poor ending. Due to this I'd only recommend this issue to anyone who's been following the story so far, or anyone that loves explosive action, as otherwise it's only essential for the epilogues.

Rating: 6/10

Wolverine and the X-Men #37 Review

Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Giuseppe Camuncoli

Battle of the Atom has been a brilliant crossover so far, as although there have been times where I've felt that there's been too much set-up and that the story has been a little too long, it has still been very enjoyable, and has had some amazing moments. 

Plot

As both Wolverine's and Cyclops' X-Men regroup from their respective fights with the original group of future X-Men, who are revealed to actually be the future Brotherhood, the Brotherhood take the younger X-Men off in a Blackbird to instigate Plan B.

Review

This was a very good issue, as although it wasn't brilliant, being far from what I expected it to be, it had some very exciting moments and Jason Aaron set-up the final part brilliantly. It is however the fact that this series has been so much set-up that has annoyed me, as although it has still been a fabulous series, if it had less issues, it would have less set-up, which would make it even better. Aaron did however do a great job of adding a lot of excitement near the end, and the dialogue throughout was very interesting, adding a lot of depth to the issue. In saying that the first part of the issue was rather slow, with unnecessary interactions, and if it hadn't ended in the exciting fashion that it did it would have been a very poor issue.

The artwork on this issue was also very good but not brilliant, as although overall Giuseppe Camuncoli did a fantastic job, there were a few things that bugged me. The first was the characters facial expressions and emotions, which were very awkward at times, though that is a usual problem of Camuncoli. The detail in his artwork was however very good considering the amount of characters involved, as although there were a few panels that felt a bit rushed, there were some panels that had a lot of characters that looked phenomenal. The layouts however would also help for that, adding a lot more depth and excitement to the issue, feeling more dynamic than they did in the last issue.

This issue would see the first encounter between Wolverine and Cyclops since Cyclops' team paid the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning a visit in All-New X-Men #11. It's always nice to see the tension between these two, especially since Avengers vs. X-Men, though it felt slightly unnecessary here. It was however the reaction that Wolverine's X-Men had to this new lot of future X-Men that interested me the most, as although it would slow the issue down a bit, it would show the amount of confusion that all the time travelling has caused. I also enjoyed the interaction between the two Quentin Quire's, as apart from being slightly humorous it would also add a WATX feel to the issue which was missing from the last issue.

This issue would reveal that the renegade X-Men from the future are in fact the future Brotherhood. It was nice to finally get something to differentiate the two groups from the future, as it was awkward talking about two different groups of X-Men from the future in the same sentences. I did however feel that this could have been added earlier in the story, when it was revealed that they weren't the true X-Men from the future. The actions of the Brotherhood in this issue would also be interesting, as although again it was mostly set-up it would create some exciting moments, setting up the conclusion brilliantly.

S.H.I.E.L.D. would make their second appearance of the story in this issue, and it was interesting that it came in this series as S.H.I.E.L.D. have made most of their recent X-Men appearances in Uncanny X-Men. It was however fitting that they were added to this issue, especially due to the fact that they are going to be a part of the WATX story that follows Battle of the Atom. There appearance as a whole in this issue however didn't really do a lot for this issue, yet again setting up the conclusion, though all this set-up should allow the conclusion to flow smoother.

Final Verdict

This was yet another issue that didn't quite live up to it's potential, as although it went out with a bang, setting up the story's conclusion perfectly, it was slow at the start, having some unnecessary interactions, overall feeling like a set-up issue. It did however have some very exciting moments, and has me very excited for the finale next week, but I can't help but wonder how brilliant this story would have been had it been a bit shorter. Due to this I'd highly recommend it for people who've been following the story so far, but otherwise it'd be best to wait for the trade to come out.

Rating: 7/10

Wolverine and the X-Men #36 Review

WARNING: THIS REVIEW WILL SPOIL THE EVENTS OF BATTLE OF THE ATOM SO FAR!

Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Giuseppe Camuncoli

I have really been enjoying Battle of the Atom so far, as although it has dropped slightly over the last few issues it has still been a very good story, being both exciting and interesting. This series has also been good as of late as although it has been very inconsistent over the thirty five issues prior to this, it is certainly starting to get better again.

Plot

As the future Jean Grey psychically battles her younger self, Emma Frost and the Stepford Cuckoos the other X-Men battle between each other over whether the younger X-Men should stay or go back to their own time.

Review

This was a very good issue, and although it isn't one of the better issues in this storyline so far it was still a brilliant issue, being slightly better than the last instalment. Jason Aaron does a good job of continuing the story in this issue, but for the most of the issue it felt slightly laggy as although it was very exciting and dramatic it didn't seem like a lot was going to happen for most of this issue. I also didn't really feel the Wolverine and the X-Men vibe in this issue as all the other issues managed to both follow the story whilst keep the same feel, and although we got to see Broo in this issue, it still didn't feel much like an WATX issue. It did however have brilliant suspense and a bit of mystery, and overall it was a very good issue.

The art in this issue was overall very good and Giuseppe Camuncoli did an amazing job. I was actually slightly dreading how his artwork would be, as although I've enjoyed it on Spider-Man and Batman stories in the past I've never been the biggest fan of his X-Men artwork. The detail in his artwork was simply brilliant, with it being very consistent throughout. I also really enjoyed the layout of Camuncoli's artwork, though I did feel that the backgrounds were a bit plain at times. The other thing that bugged me about the art (which is something that usually annoys me about Camuncoli's art) was the facial expressions which looked a bit awkward at times, as although it suited Wolverine, it didn't suit the other characters.

One of the big things that I was looking forward to during this issue was seeing the future Jean square off against Emma in a psychic battle. Now the battle itself was very exciting and dramatic, but following the dramatic way that it was set-up at the end of the last instalment it didn't quite live to my expectations. I did however really enjoy the interaction throughout this battle, and felt that it added a lot of depth and drama to the sequence. I also liked how both Emma's group and future Jean were split by psychic colour, as although I didn't quite know why they needed to be different, it added some vibrancy to the fight, as well as helped to separate the two sides.

Whilst this was happening the rest of the X-Men would be fighting amongst themselves to a certain extent as to whether the younger X-Men should return to the past or not. Now most of this was rather dull and tedious, feeling like the same old argument that has been going on throughout the story so far. I did however find a couple of moments to be rather interesting, and enjoyed the interaction between Wolverine and the two Cyclops'. I was also happy to see the younger Beast and Iceman during this issue, and was happy to see Shogo with them.

WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD!

Now I don't like giving away spoilers for comics, and still won't give too much away in this spoiler, but this was something that I wanted to talk about as it was the most interesting part of the issue. Now near the end of this issue it would be revealed the future X-Men haven't been totally honest with what they said. Now I won't go into any more details, but I found this extremely interesting and it was the perfect development point to keep this story going as I was starting to worry that it would drag along till the end of the storyline.

Final Verdict

This was a very good issue and the second half of this story has been set-up perfectly. The issue itself was however slightly laggy, as until the end it felt like there wasn't going to be much progression in this issue. It was however still exciting at times, also having some mystery to it. Due to this I'd recommend this issue as although it wasn't the best in the story so far it has set-up the next part perfectly.

Rating: 7/10

Marvel Teases "The End!" and "Global" as Part of All-New Marvel NOW!

Marvel released yet another two teasers today for their All-New Marvel NOW! with another project written by Dan Slott teased as "The End" featuring artwork from Giuseppe Camuncoli, and a project written by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Spencer teased as "Global" featuring artwork from Stefano Caselli. Also like the previous teasers full details won't be released until the New York Comic Con.

My Thoughts

Both of these seem rather obvious to me. The first teaser, "The End" has to be Spider-Man related as besides the fact that further details will be revealed at the Superior Spider-Man panel at New York Comic Con, Camuncoli has been a long time artist on the series even prior to it changing to Superior Spider-Man. I personally believe it will see the last stand of Otto Octavius as Spider-Man, and given the fact the teaser is in purple I believe it will be at the hands of the Green Goblin as with the build-up in recent months it is going to happen so why not then. The other teaser, " Global" has to be a continuation of the Avengers seeing them get a new team which will have members from around the globe.

Thanks for taking the time to view this article and please leave any comments, as well as your thoughts on these teasers bellow.

Batman: War Crimes Review

Writers: Bill Willingham, Andersen Gabrych, Bruce Jones & Will Pfeifer

Artists: Pete Woods, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Eddy Barrows, Ron Randall & Tom Derenick

I'm back to doing my Batman reviews, and I still plan on reviewing the remaining key Batman stories up until the start of the New 52. This is also my eighth review on the series with my last review being on Batman: Under The Red Hood.

Plot

It's one year since Gotham City's Gang War, and Arturo Rodriguez is reporting new information surrounding Stephanie Brown's death. There is also someone out to give Batman a bad name, going around dressed as him, committing terrible crimes.

Review

This was a fantastic story, and a terrific follow-up to the War Games crossover. The main writers on this book would be Bill Willingham, and Andersen Gabrych, with Bruce Jones, and Will Pfeifer also working on short stories at the start of the book. Both Willingham, and Gabrych did a terrific job of continuing from where War Games left off, as although a year has past, it felt very natural, having the exact same feel as it. The storyline itself was also very exciting, and dramatic, having a lot of suspense, and mystery around it. I also loved seeing Batman doing some detective work, as although it's not uncommon, it doesn't happen too regularly, and at the time due to having Oracle (Barbara Gordon) he didn't need to be a detective as much, so it was nice to see this again. The earlier stories in this book were also interesting, especially "Taking Sides" which was also written by Gabrych, but they were overshadowed by the main story.

The main artwork on this story would be shared by Pete Woods, and Giuseppe Camuncoli, with Eddy Barrows, Ron Randall, and Tom Derenick also working on the short stories at the start of the book. I felt that both Woods, and Camuncoli's art was amazing, but this time round I much preferred Camuncoli's art, as although I preferred Wood's art on Batman: War Games Act One: Outbreak, Camuncoli's art much suits Batman as a character and was only slight poorer that Woods during War Games due to his art focusing on Robin (Tim Drake). Both artists put a tremendous amount of detail into their artwork, and I really enjoyed how they managed to give the dark, and brooding tone to the Dark Knight (especially Camuncoli). I was however not a fan of Wood's Joker, and also felt that besides Batman that the characters expressions looked a bit awkward in Camuncoli's art, but besides that both were brilliant.

The main story in this book was remembering the gang war that happened throughout War Games, with it being one year since all that carnage. I personally really enjoyed War Games, with it being one of the better Batman crossover events, so the fact that they made a follow-up to it was amazing. I especially enjoyed how they went on to talk about Stephanie Brown more, as this would be the first sign that her death has had an affect on people. I also enjoyed seeing Arturo Rodriguez, but found his complete change of attitude strange, even though it was apparent that his views on Batman were different.

There would be a key question made throughout this story, and that was whether it's right for Batman to have all these children fighting crime in his name? Now in the real world this would be a simple no, but due to it being Batman's world things are different. To be fair he shouldn't have kids fighting alongside him, especially considering how many of them have died (three since Damian Wayne died). I do however feel that for his character he needs these children working with him, as having grew up with no parents, he feels the need to be a father figure, and feels the affect of every death. It is still a sticky question however, but due to it ultimately being fiction it doesn't really matter as long as we get great comics out of it (which we do).

A familiar villain from War Games would feature in this story, with the Black Mask once again making life difficult for Batman. This Black Mask was such a great villain for Batman, and I loved how he managed to get involved in so many stories. I also loved his character, and this story would continue to show it perfectly, showing how he's both power hungry, whilst deep down a bit of a coward. I also loved seeing Black Mask battle Batman in this story, and especially considering the amazing dialogue that was written, with the brilliant references to War Games.

Black Mask wasn't the only villain in this, as Batman's greatest nemesis the Joker would also appear, having a mysterious objective. It's always nice to see Joker, and especially when he's used properly. Now this may not go down as one of Joker's greatest appearance, but I actually rather liked seeing him take a back seat, especially considering he still had a lot of attention, as most writers that add him without making him the main villain neglect him, which ultimately ruins his characteristic in the story. The witty dialogue from Joker was also amazing, and when his real agenda was revealed I was so excited, with it adding a lot more tone, and drama to that part of the story.

Final Verdict

A brilliant story, and a fantastic follow-on from the outstanding War Games crossover. This showed just how much War Games affected the Batverse, and how everyone is dealing with it one year later. It was however still a very unique story, not just using the event of War Games for the sake of it, being very deep, and independent. Due to all this I'd easily recommend this to anyone, especially if you've read War Games, and if not I'd also recommend reading that as well.

Rating: 9/10

The next Batman book I'll be reviewing will be Batman: Face the Face.

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 #697

Writers: Dan Slott & Christos Gage
Artist: Giuseppe Camuncoli

SPOILERS BLOCKED OUT IN WHITE! 
(Highlight White Areas to Reveal Spoilers)

I have been a Spider-Man fan all my life and have been enjoying this series for the best part since J. Michael Straczynski's run and although some of the stories are much better than the others and some have been poor the majority of them have been very good. I have really enjoyed what Dan Slott has been doing with the character and am really looking forward to issue 700, and can't remember being this excited reading AMS in a long time.

Plot

This issue sees Peter Parker and Max Modell (who are in possession of the Goblin Key which will open Norman Osborn's workshop) running for their lives from the original Hobgoblin (Kingsley) and the current Hobgoblin (Phil Urich). They eventually find the location of Norman's workshop and get in before the Hobgoblins get there but Osborn has a self destruct mode for anyone unauthorised to enter.

Review

An amazing issue and a brilliant way to end this story. Slott has done a tremendous job on this series and he keeps producing brilliant story after brilliant story utilising some of Spider-Man's most famous villains. What I also like about Slott's writing is that even if the story isn't brilliant it's still near enough guaranteed to be fun. Slott also has a great understanding of both Spider-Man and all his villains in this series and I have enjoyed that he's brought a more serious and focused Spider-Man to this series.

Giuseppe Camuncoli's art was once again brilliant and although I prefer Humberto Ramos' art more I think Camuncoli's suits this story and the Hobgoblin's more. The detail in all the characters, equipment and the fight scenes is extraordinary and although his backgrounds aren't quiet as detailed as some of the other artist's the detail in the featured characters and equipment is that good you wouldn't notice unless like me you look at each page very closely.

There was also a cameo appearance from Harry Osborn this issue and although he's bald and has a beard it was nice to see him again. Harry hasn't been in the series since Origin of the Species (if I remember correctly) so it was nice to see him again and how he's changed since having Stanley to look after. I hope that we get to see Harry again sometime down the line as although he didn't usually have a big role in the series prior it was nice that Peter had someone he could talk to that he's known most of his life.

The action throughout this issue was amazing whether it be the Hobgoblin's fighting each other or them working together to fight Spider-Man. The unpredictability during the fight was brilliant and I loved the expression on Urich's face when he realises that Stone's device wasn't working was brilliant. I also liked the attitude change in Urich when Kingsley says he's going to kill Norah Winters (who he's got a drone loaded with C4 trailing) as it's hard to tell if he is angry, upset, both or neither at this (although I think he's both upset and angry).

When I fist noticed that Max Modell was going to have a bigger role in this story than he's had in the past I thought it would slow the story down but he proved this issue that it was right having him in the story as he added some humour to it whilst trying to play a modest hero at times. Due to Peter doing most of the inventing in this series it's easy to forget that the other members of Horizon Labs and Max in particular are brilliant inventors in their own rights and I liked that this issue showed that.

The Spider-Glider was also a nice touch to this issue and it made the fight between Spider-Man and the Hobgoblin's look more even and symmetric. I've never seen the glider before so now having seen it for the first time think it's very well designed and looks almost exactly like what I'd imagine the Goblin Glider would have looked like if Spider-Man had invented it.

The interaction between the two Hobgoblin's in this issue was brilliant and I loved how at certain parts during the issue they'd turn on each other showing that neither of them can trust each other whilst each time eventually realizing that they are better off working together. I also like that you can tell easily which one is which due to the way they speak and the words they choice.

Final Verdict

This was a great issue and a superb ending to the Danger Zone story. I would highly recommend both this issue and the story it'self and am really looking forward to the remaining issues between now and issue 700.

Rating: 5/5