X-Men Legacy #12

Writer: Simon Spurrier
Breakdowns: Paul Davidson
Finishes: Jay Leisten
Colorist: Cris Peter
Letterer: Cory Petit
Price: $2.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

"Invasive Exotic Part Three"

It is no secret that this has been one of my favorite titles over the past year. Simon Spurrier is making me love characters that have no reason to spark much interest in me. This issue continues to show me why I love this book so much.

We left off with David about to take a pill to basically put him in a comatose state so that he can't use his powers which is offered to him by the Institute of Bio-Social Studies (I.B.S.S.)which we found out last issue was run by Red Skull. Spurrier led us to believe that David wanted to go through with this no matter what to stop the future that he saw and chance having to kill the girl that he has fallen in love with, Ruth (Blindfold).

It ends up, David had no plan of taking the pill and he actually planned for the rescue that Ruth was putting together for him. His overall mission was to take down  the I.B.S.S. by allowing himself to be televised taking the pill (while not actually taking it) and using Santi Sardina to be there to take credit for everything that happened. If you don't remember, Santi's super power is to take credit for everything. After the team accidentally killed the crippled figure head of the I.B.S.S., Santi's presence confuses watchers so much that no one cares and hates mutants less overall.

The battle that ensues between the X-Men (David included) and Red Skull is great. We get a little more of David's internal struggle and he pays back the debt to his inner power that he had fallen into in previous issues. It all ties together neatly in the end, giving hope to Ruth and David's relationship and showing that he is regaining power of himself.

Twelve issues in and I am still impressed. Spurrier so easily throws me off of the scent of his story and yet keeps me so interested that it is impossible to put down. I crave this book monthly and honestly wish it came out twice a month. I know that is asking for a lot and I would hate to see the quality drop due to that; so for now, I will enjoy this book as I get it and I hope to see it never end.

Uncanny Avengers #9

Writer: Rick Remender
Aritst: Daniel Acuna
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

Okay, so someone stop me if I am wrong. The Apocalypse Twins are not with Kang anymore and are trying to rebel against him? To do this they are trying to wipe the planet of all life other than mutants and are making sorts of unorthodox choices while building their army. I think I finally have that part under control. If not, I am completely lost on that side of things. I am excited to finally see the four horsemen, even if I am uncertain if the choices that were made were the right ones.

As for the hero side of things, I am not surprised that there is so much resistance between the mutants and non-mutants. There has not been enough of a chance for anyone to gain real trust with one another and Wolverine is making it insanely hard for the Avengers to trust him. The reason there is it is now common knowledge what Wolverine did to Warren and Kid Apocalypse during his stint with X-Force. The schism within this team should build some interesting moments in the near future. I do like that Thor sided with Wolverine while the only mutants that stayed on the Avenger side were Scarlet Witch (no surprise there) and Alex.

Now that my confusion is starting to subside and that there are relationships forming within the team I am starting to get back into this title. I have said before that I will stick around for a while just because I like Remender and it is proving worthwhile so far. I am still concerned that there are a lot of little stories going on and I am not sure how they are all going to connect. With Red Skull out there, the tease for Onslaught and the Apocalypse Twins there is plenty of badness on its way. I just hope that I don't get lost on the journey.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #24

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Dave Marquez
Colors: Justin Ponsor
Lettering: Cory Petit
Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

"Spider-Man No More: Cloak and Dagger vs Bombshell"

Have I mentioned how much I love this title? Considering this book is Bendis' baby there is no surprise that he puts a lot of love and care into all of the characters he brings in. This issue is no exception. At the end of issue #23 we were introduced to Cloak and Dagger in the Ultimate Universe. The beauty of the Ultimate Universe is that you are never certain as to if the characters got their powers the same way or even if they are good or bad guys. Bendis really leaves no question here.

The book focuses heavily on the creation of Cloak and Dagger and very lightly on Miles. I do not have a problem with that considering how intrigued I was that they were being brought into the story. Bendis takes us back to the moment that Ty Johnson (Cloak) and Tandy Bowen (Dagger) meet a year previous. We get to see the accident that put them under the care of Roxxon and ultimately how they got their powers. It is dark, terrible and makes me hate Roxxon even more than I did before.

On the Miles side of things he informs Gwen that he is no longer Spider-Man and she is not happy with that choice. She makes herself very clear before she and Miles part ways. The issue ends with him holding his mask begging to not have to be Spider-Man anymore.

Seriously, this book can do no wrong. If you are reading anything in the Ultimate Universe, this had better be it.

The Superior Spider-Man #12

Writer: Dan Slott
Script: Christos Gage
Penciler: Giuseppe Camuncoli
Inkers: John Dell & Terry Pallot
Color Art: Antonio Fabela
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

"No Escape Part Two: Lockdown"

A bunch a villains trapped on The Raft with Spider-Man, J. Jonah Jameson and a group of other people is a recipe for a fun couple of issues. Dan Slott is not letting me down. This issue picks up with Smythe breaking free from his death penalty chamber while freeing Scorpion, Vulture and Boomerang after giving them extra powers. Spidey has his hands full.

I think beyond the explosions and punches, there is a lot going on here. Otto is really starting to get his Spider-Man business down pat and even uses his knowledge of being a villain to his benefit. He knows how easily people can be baited (because he had been baited so many times in the future), he knows how quickly arrogance goes to the brain and he knows that Smythe will easily fall for these things.

I am a little concerned that Otto had a spider-bot record Jameson giving him permission to kill Smythe. I am not sure if he wants that there for when he kills the man or if he wants it to hold it against Jameson in the future. On top of that, I am concerned that Otto is letting his anger get to him a bit and that he will too readily ignore innocence to get revenge on his enemies. Lastly, I am intrigued that The Lizard is now free and will more than likely be an ally to Spider-Man before being a foe.

This run of Spider-Man has been so much fun to read because Otto is unpredictable as the web-head. He breaks protocol, he thinks way too far ahead and he has badness inside of him. I really want to see how this plays out because I think it will be a turning point in Otto's life as Spider-Man. Bravo again Slott and Gage, way to keep me reading.

Cable and X-Force #10

Writer: Dennis Hopeless
Artist: Salvador Larroca
Color Artist: Frank D"Armata
Letterer: Joe Sabino
Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

I am glad to see that we are continuing to get more about what Hope is up to while her father is out there trying to stop visions. I was worried that we would only get one issue with her and then not see her for a while again. I am interested to see where her investigation takes her because it has already got her into some trouble as of this issue.

Cable's team is currently taking some down time to try to get Cable back into one piece (as much as he can be in one piece) and to make a game plan for what to do next. Cable is currently battling with about five visions and is unsure how to handle them. Domino, who is taking almost a second in command, voice of reason role, convinces him to use his teams and break the missions between them all. Sadly, before the group can part ways the Uncanny Avengers pop in and give them some grief.

The fight with the Uncanny Avengers is fun and shows that Cable's team isn't quite as powerful and put together as it should be as of now. Considering the team consists (for the most part) of b-list mutants that rarely have any sort of leading role, this is not surprising. The powerhouse of the team is able to save the group but at the cost of being captured himself.

This book is still very back and forth for me. This issue wasn't bad at all but it still left me wanting a little more. I think the bouncing back and forth between writers is hurting it a little. Oh well, let's see what next month brings.

Age of Ultron #10

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artists: Alex Maleev, Bryan Hith & Paul Neary, Butch Guice, Brandon Peterson, Carlos Pacheco & Roger Bonet w/ Tom Palmer, David Marquez, Joe Quesada
Color Artists: Paul Mounts & Richard Isanove
Letterer: Cory Petit
Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 19th, 2013

Finally we get the conclusion to an event that has been a bit short of enjoyable through the duration. Regardless of that, there are some things that are well done in this final issue. This review requires me to use spoilers so if you want to stay away from them until you read it, please stop reading now.

The first thing I liked about this book is that we finally see how Ultron actually came back and started his attack on the Earth. Granted, we are seeing an edited version that Pym and the rest of the Avengers were a bit prepared for but at least we see the before Age of Ultron moment. The handling of Ultron was not surprising considering in earlier issues we already saw a conversation between Pym and Wolverine discussing what they were going to do, so it felt a bit stretched out and not needed to be explained a second time.

I was a little sad to see Ultron go down so quickly. If anything could have been stretched during this event, it could have been that fight. I know a lot of people reading this event was waiting for Ultron and it was a bit sad to see him taken care of in ten pages. I guess the point was that he had to be dealt with quickly, but this story could have been told much more quickly.

The thing that was to shock the whole Marvel Universe was also not surprising. It had been mentioned throughout the last few issues that Wolverine and Sue Storm's bouncing around within the timeline could cause a fracture between universes. So, when the final jump happened I wasn't surprised to see a crack in the timelines. I have to admit, I was happy to get a little tease of Miles Morales standing in front of Galactus but I find it hard to want to read another Age of Ultron book (Hunger) plainly based on my love for Miles.

I also can't forget to mention Angela. They have been teasing that she would be introduced during this event and she was, but it wasn't anything amazing. Shocker, she slipped in through the fractured timelines and is not happy to have been brought in. I just hope that she isn't ridiculous and is actually a good added member to The Guardians of the Galaxy and not a one trick pony.

Overall, this ending wasn't terrible but I feel like a broken record saying that. The whole event was sub-par and predictable. It felt dragged on and just sort of there. If you want to read it, see if you can find a sucker like me who already purchased it. If you can't find someone who did that is willing to lend it to you, wait for the trade, then wait for the trade to drop in price a little. I am sad to say that overall this event was mediocre. I had high hopes. Hopefully Infinity will be better...but I am pretty certain I will take a break from events during that and wait for a trade.

Weekly pulls for 06/19/13

Another week in comics and another choice made. This week I decided to leave A + X on the shelf at my comic shop. As you all know, I have been debating dropping that book now for months but kept clinging to the concept because one, there were some redeeming factors and two, I thought it was a limited title. I learned fairly recently that the book was going to continue on and the stories just kept feeling more and more pointless. As my comic shop owner said, 'There is always a book after an event that gets fans, that one got you." So with very little remorse, A + X has been dropped from my pull list.

Other than that, we finally get the last actual issue of Age of Ultron this week. It was sold in a dust cover, hiding the cover. I am not sure what the marketing purpose of that was. There was nothing surprising on the cover and if people were going to buy book ten, they already made that choice. There was no need for any bells and whistles. It was just a waste of plastic.

So, with my dropping of one book I still had a respectable six comics come into my possession this week:

Age of Ultron #10
Cable and X-Force #10
The Superior Spider-Man #12
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #24
Uncanny Avengers #9
X-Men Legacy#12

As you can see, it is the normal spattering of mutants and Spider-men. I am trying to figure out some other titles that I can part with so that I can start reading some new stuff and not feel it in my bank account. Hopefully I can make some hard choices in the near future. Oh well, reviews will follow soon. Until then, happy reading comic fans.