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Quick Critiques for 10/06/2004
There's no way that Randy and I can cover all of the material we have for review in full reviews, so these capsule reviews will offer some brief comments on other recent releases.
ALPHA FLIGHT #8
by Scott Lobdell, Dave Ross & Mark McKenna
(Marvel Comics)
 As this series progresses, it's becoming increasingly clear what the goal is: to achieve the sort of entertaining mix of slapstick comedy and traditional super-hero action such as what we saw in Formerly Known as the Justice League, written by Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis. Scott Lobdell fails to match those writers' efforts, though. the villain's abilities and those granted to the wax "Marvels" are ill-defined, and it's not his powers that are funny, but his motives. Unfortunately, the script only touches upon those lightly. Ultimately, I'm not even sure why these heroes are still a team, save for the fact that the title demands there be one. Dave Ross adapts his style to capture the goofier, more cartoony tone that regular penciller Clayton Crain established before, but this sort of lighter fare just doesn't work well with Ross's work. He tells the story clearly, though, and handles the crowd scenes well. 4/10
CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON #8
by Priest, Andrea Di Vito & Scott Koblish
(Marvel Comics)
 We've reached that point in the story when the pieces of the puzzle are finally falling into place. Priest's writing always pays off in the long run, and that's proving to be the case here. We may be in the third story arc as far as the story's title goes, but really, Priest is in the midst of a single, year-long arc. He manages to transform the ridiculous MODOK into a vision of terror by focusing on the last three letters in his name and what they signify. What's really got my attention, though, is what's going on with the Falcon. Priest as done an amazing job of treating him as something other than a generic super-hero or sidekick. Di Vito's artwork conveys the story clearly, but it lacks the edge Joe Bennett was bringing to the title. The art here is conventional in tone, but what Priest is doing with the characters is not. Di Vito deserves credit, though, for reinforcing Priest's chilling portrayal of MODOK. 8/10
THE MONOLITH #9
by Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray & Phil Winslade
(DC Comics)
 On the surface, this is a stereotypical super-hero story in which an evil mirror image of the hero arises to create conflict. In other words, the title character gets his own Bizarro, the sort of plot we've seen time and time again. Fortunately, the strength of the script brings credibility and tension to this old standard. The greatest strength of this title is the parallel storytelling, allowing the plot to unfold in two radically different timelines. The writers also establish a far more edgy mood than the typical super-hero fare with a creepy opening scene that focuses on the type of criminal that perhaps society fears the most: sexual predators who target children. There's also a certain credibility to the simple explanation offered for the return of the corrupt iron golem after so many years. Winslade brings humanity to the title character. When the Monolith isn't decimating evildoers, there's a peaceful, child-like quality that falls over the character. The artist also captures the older period, 1930s New York, incredibly well. 8/10
NYX #5
by Joe Quesada, Robert Teranishi, Nelson & Sotocolor (Marvel Comics)
 The big news here, other than the fact that this long overdue issue has finally been released, is the change in artists. Unfortunately, the news is not good, as the book suffers greatly as a result of the shift. Teranishi tries to replicte the airy style of previous artist Joshua Middleton here, but his efforts pale in comparison. The grace we saw in the characters before is lost, and in their place are awkward figures. Furthermore, Tatiana's first animal form looks rather silly, and that works against the tension Quesada is trying to foster in the climactic scene. The plot here is meandering. Quesada has clearly embraced the decrompressed plotting approach that's been prominent at Marvel as of late. The problem is that this title's sporadic schedule aggravates the slow pace. I see where he's going here, though. He's setting up a street version of the X-Men, complete with a teacher. I find it odd, though, that there are no male mutants in the world of NYX, though. 4/10
UNCANNY X-MEN #450
by Chris Claremont, Alan Davis & Mark Farmer
(Marvel Comics)
 Forget teleporting terrorists. Forget the internal operations of a fledgling mutant police force. Forget the resurrection of Jaspers and the mystery of Braddock Manor. You ought to forget about all of that, because it sure seems like Chris Claremont has. The writer seems to take as much care and attention to plotting as Yosemite Sam does when it comes to shooting his pistols. Claremont ignores several dangling plot threads to focus on a Kewl new character, X-23, previously introduced in NYX (though that title hasn't finished in fleshing out her character yet). Another new element the writer offers up here is a love triangle among Nightcrawler, Storm and Marvel Girl. The romantic entanglement makes no sense. It's just there, a potential source of conflict that seems more than a little forced. The saving grace of this issue is the artwork. This is Alan Davis's strongest work in this stint on the title so far. The swashbuckling scene early in the issue is absolutely lovely. 4/10
Email Don MacPherson with your comments about this review.
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