Kanan: The Last Padawan #7: Review

Kanan: The Last Padawan #7 | The Road to Episode VII @ Force of Geek.com

Kanan has been the unsung hero of Marvel’s Star Wars comic line. While it hasn’t appeared in the top ten selling comic books such Darth Vader or Shattered Empire, it’s the critical acclaim that has extended this book from a 5 issue mini-series to an ongoing series.

A lot of the credit goes to Greg Weisman who helped shape and establish the character of Kanan Jarrus when he was a writer on the first season of the Rebels animated series.

Kanan’s backstory if rife with many turbulent moments with the catalyst being the death of his master Depa Billaba. Seeing these moments in previous issues augmented Kanan’s current trust issues with clone trooper Captain Rex on the TV show. Continue reading “Kanan: The Last Padawan #7: Review” →

Planet Hulk # 1 Review

Sam Hunphries and Greg Pak hit comic book fans with a pretty snazzy 1-2 punch as they implement the beloved story arc of Planet Hulk into Marvel’s current big event, Secret Wars.

The other part of the combination deals with a gladiator Steve Rogers and his trusty steed in the form of a giant red t-Rex, Devil Dinosaur kicking ass and taking names.

I couldn’t help but notice the bump up in price compared to the other Secret Wars tie-in books. The book is certainly thicker, but does it add up in the realm of content? Of course, all things in Battleworld leads back to Doctor Doom, who is now referred to as God Doom.

Seeing a beaten down Steve Rogers being forced down at the feet of Doom harkens back to Secret Wars circa 1984. Doom obtained ultimate power in that outing, and Rogers got into his head by turning his own hubris against him.

Their interaction in this current state of affairs dropped some hints about whether or not Doom remembers everything before Marvel’s version of the big bang. It would make sense considering he is the shot caller, but many of the characters remember bits and traces of their past without realizing what it really means.

Enough about Doom and Rogers, though. The book is called Planet Hulk, and you want to hear about how they wreck shop and cause total destruction. Greenland is the name of this Gamma-infested region that has been carved out for Hulk-like beings.

Sam Humphries sets things up nicely by establishing how dangerous this place is as it is conveyed to be the most feared place in Battleworld.

Greg Pak writes a nice little back story that shows life in Greenland before, well, it turned green. The cover had a retro sixties vibe, which almost seemed like a gag at first.

However, even though Battleworld is a bastardization of reality, these are still real people who live their lives until things took a turn for the worst. Pak’s gives Planet Hulk perspective through this origin story.

Most of the time, tie-in books fail to add any real depth to the overarching story they are trying to enhance. While it would have been nice to see more of Planet Hulk in its current form, Humphries did a great job of establishing everyone’s role where green goliaths appear to play background noise to a much larger issue at hand.

Score: 4 out of 5

Secret Wars #0 Review

This was the most anticipated release of Free Comic Book Day as Marvel kicks off their big event of 2015. Secret Wars looks to change the Marvel Universe as we know it, which will include over 55 books between tie-in issues and special one-shots.

Jonathan Hickman has been the maestro wielding the creative force that has led to this moment with almost two years of back story that can be found in the pages of his run on Avengers and New Avengers.

Most of the story here shows Valeria Richards telling the Future Foundation about the world incursions that the Illuminati tried to prevent. Hickman makes the book new reader-friendly while giving current readers some nice reminders. I loved the artwork in this issue. It was just right and conveyed a sense of world-ending calamity.

There was also a bonus, which included the Marvel Universe heroes battling the gigantic humanoids of Attack on Titan. Manga really isn’t my cup of tea, but the show gets recommended to me daily. Three episodes in on Netflix, and I’m hooked, gave me a greater appreciation for what I had read earlier. The artwork and color were the stars of this particular show and were well realized.

If you’re a Marvel fan or you have been out of the loop for some time, this is the book you need to read. The primer for Secret Wars more than did its job, and you just might find yourself enamored with a completely new franchise.

Star Wars #4 Review

Star Wars #4 serves as the beginning of a new story arc dealing with the fallout of the Empire’s weapons factory on Cymoon 1 being destroyed.

The majority of the book takes place on Tatooine as Darth Vader arrogantly keeps Jabba the Hutt in check while maintaining the assurance of Imperial supplies provided by the mammoth gangster.

Jason Aaron was able to keep the dialogue between the two villains interesting. Vader was steadfast in his demands while Hutt surgically picked his spots to rub salt on the wound of recent Imperial damages. It reminded me of how one would book a match/story in professional wrestling with the idea being one person wins without the loser taking any damage to their credibility or character. Continue reading “Star Wars #4 Review” →

Rocket Raccoon #7 Review

The creativity of Skottie Young and the hijinks of Rocket Raccoon are a perfect match that can’t be denied.

The diversity of this series is produced like a variety show that has something for everyone. In this particular outing,

Rocket and Groot and stranded on the dreaded Winter Planet. Groot is angry at Rocket for breaking off a piece of his body to use as firewood.

Sure, the furry Guardian didn’t ask permission, but that’s ok, they need to stay warm. Ice giants looking to clobber the two outlanders halts the humorous banter.

Fun action turns into a grave situation for Groot. Young seamlessly tears away Rocket’s tough exterior as bravado is replaced with gut-wrenching concern for his best friend.

“I don’t need no stupid ice ninja’s help” is a spit in the face of adversity when the locals try to convince Rocket that Groot will not survive.

Filipe Andrade’s artwork is fun to examine and works extremely well with the stories multi toned approach due to his expressive style. This is a pivotal stop on Rocket’s journey towards a redemption of sorts.

The thought of losing the one constant in his life after discovering he is the last of his kind drives him to new heroic heights.

Score: 3.5 out of 5

Ant-Man #1 Review

Marvel timed the release of this book perfectly as the teaser trailer for this summer’s Ant-Man film recently debuted. More people are talking about the micro-hero than ever before. Hank Pym is the predecessor of this insect mantel, but this new generation will predominately associate the name Scott Lang with the character. Continue reading “Ant-Man #1 Review” →

Silver Surfer #7 Review

The childhood me would have hated everything about this book because of the cosmic friendship Dan Slott has developed between Silver Surfer and Dawn, along with random craziness such as lady bug space creatures.

However, now that I’m in my mid-thirties, married with three cats, a dog, and some amazing nieces and nephews, I find myself saying the word “cute” more than is probably socially acceptable among my comrades, but that’s the first word that comes to mind when reading this book. Continue reading “Silver Surfer #7 Review” →

The Death of Wolverine: Deadpool and Captain America #1 Review

In the wake of Wolverine’s passing, Captain America and Deadpool take on the task of eliminating their compatriot’s DNA so no razor-clawed clones can be created.

Deadpool writer Gerry Duggan was the perfect choice to helm this story. His team-up issues are pure fun, not only because of his expertise with the loud mouth mutant, but also because of his understanding of other characters and how they interact with such an…interesting personality. Continue reading “The Death of Wolverine: Deadpool and Captain America #1 Review” →

Rocket Raccoon #4 Review

I have been a junkie for Skottie Young variant covers over the past couple of years now. His work on the critically acclaimed The Wonderful Wizard of Oz series laid the ground work for his writing and drawing the Rocket Raccoon series which has been an excellent pairing thus far. Continue reading “Rocket Raccoon #4 Review” →

All New X-Men #32 Guest Starring Miles Morales

The displaced X-Men have found themselves displaced even farther forward in time and have landed into the Ultimate Universe.

While Beast, Iceman, and X-23 all have some interesting adventures ahead of them, the heart of the story is Jean Grey’s meeting Miles Morales. Being the writer of Morales’ Spider-Man series gives Bendis a distinct advantage in make this cross over something tangible by giving both characters time to shine as their interaction takes center stage. Continue reading “All New X-Men #32 Guest Starring Miles Morales” →