New Excalibur: Battle for Eternity, Chris Claremont

"Chris Claremont makes his triumphant return to New Excalibur! The fight has begun. The battle that's been building since the very beginning of the series is finally coming to a head. Captain Britain must take on his opposite for a battle that will be waged upon many worlds. Plus: One of the team members suddenly succumbs to an all too real tragedy. The team must pull together and care for their fallen friend while their own lives fall to pieces. Collects New Excalibur #16-24."












If the Excalibur (or eXcalibur) of Warren Ellis was all grim and gritty spy fare with a dash of sci-fi thrown in, this is pure, unadulterated Claremontian superheroics.

Or at least it is AFTER the first few issues, which instead choose to focus on ... Nocturne suffering a stroke. If you can imagine the mood whiplash of that being the lead in to an alternate version 'evil' Captain Britain showing up to invade London with an alternate version 'evil' X-Men, whilst a diverse eXcalibur team battled against overwhelming odds to defeat them and save the Queen from execution. Well, actually, it's rather impossible to imagine that kind of mood change.

So if you do read this book after reading this, just skip those first few issues. It's not worth it. Much like the powerloss chapter about the depowered mutant who almost inadvertently dies because he can't fly anymore, it's a taste of the real world that certainly has a place in comics, but rarely works alongside the convention of capes and baddy punching.

Is it good? Rarely. Is it enjoyable? Assuredly so. Will you miss anything by not reading it. Not at all.

There's a lot of Claremont comics to get out there, this isn't even top 30.

Also Try:
Chris Claremont; X-Men
Mark Millar, Ultimate X-Men
Joss Whedon, Astonishing X-Men
Christos Gage, World War Hulk: X-Men

The Korvac Saga, Jim Shooter

"He hails from an unimaginable era: the 31st century. Fleeing through the timestream from the pursuing team of futuristic defenders known as the Guardians of the Galaxy, Korvac the Machine Man has established a secret presence on present-day Earth in the self-created persona of the mysterious Michael. Through such an unassuming guise, Korvac contemplates the elements of a universe he thirsts to command. Yet despite the subtlety of Michael's machinations, the world's greatest super-team - the mighty Avengers - catches wind of his cosmos-conquering scheme, thus drawing the two titanic forces into inevitable conflict."








I picked this up rather randomly in a little second hand Sci-Fi bookshop at the top of the street I work on, a shop notable more for it's devoted attempt to replicate the Black Books experience. To say that its proprietors are disinterested is to do them a grave disservice, they have elevated the idea of apathy to a laconic art form, barely shifting from their amply cushioned positions to extend an ungrateful hand for the cash that disturbs them from the daily routine of opening up, reading and closing time.

That having been said, they always have a weird array of old comics and an excellent back catalogue of trade paperbacks and pulp fiction. Having never read the Korvac saga before, or indeed much early Avengers, it was worth picking up a cheap pocketbook version just to get to grips with a character who is bigger in impact than in actual appearances.

In fact, the only real reference I've ever seen to him was a two part story in Avengers Academy where Korvac reappeared to fight almost every Avenger and trashed them with ease.

What's surprising about the Korvac saga is how little of it is actually related to Korvac. His appearance is scattered through multiple comics before he actually meets the Avengers - battles against the Collector, team-ups with the Guardians of the Galaxy, even Ultron shows up before we actually see Korvac. So whilst the actual fight sequence is amazing, an excellent demonstration of how overpowered the Avengers are by the cosmically fuelled being, it's a little bit of a let down.

In fact, the majority of the book is pretty dull really, which is definitely not what I expected. It doesn't help that the original Guardians of the Galaxy are one of the most dull teams to ever appear in comics, certainly if you have only the experience of seeing them appear alongside the far more interesting (and, importantly, starring) Avengers.

Ultimately, despite its status as a 'classic' this is an unsatisfying and laboured read, one which is hampered by an all over the place cast and a slow burn narrative that drags rather than exciting. Try other stuff first.

Also Try:
Christos Gage, Avengers Academy
Jonathan Hickman, Avengers
Stan Lee, Fantastic Four
Dan Abnett, Annihilation 

Avengers: The Last White Event, Jonathan Hickman

"The Avengers must scramble to deal with the threat of another Universal SYSTEM. The New Adam is transformed, and his true self revealed. And the most dangerous hero on Earth is created. The Avengers face off against the World Breaker. Discover the imminent threat to the Avengers World. Watch the first hints of the hidden connections between the events of Avengers and New Avengers. COLLECTING: Avengers 7-12."












These are incredibly handsome books - I commented about that on the last one of these, but they are just incredibly beautiful. Hickman has such a talent for the creation of spectacular designs, and nowhere is this clearer than here, where he can cut loose with stuff and Marvel seem content to build their branding around him. Even his creator owned work like Manhattan Projects, East of West and God is Dead don't have the same cohesive structure of Avengers.

The actual story is somewhat less stellar. It's a quick read, that boils down to a lot of punching. Hickman is more concerned with giant actions affecting the Universe at large than giant consequences for the characters. To quote Andrew Wheeler's review of Infinity over at comicsalliance:

"Hickman doesn’t seem to enjoy writing character moments. It’s not where he takes the action. He’s an odd contrast to Brian Michael Bendis, whose character moments are typically so strong that he sometimes spends issue after issue building on them before he remembers to tell a story."

Considering that outside of the last 18 months or so BMB has written nearly every Avengers story for the past decade, that is a HUGE transition.

I still find myself terribly enjoying the book though, for all its lack of focus and love of action set pieces over anything like development. And I enjoy the large scale of cast, something which seemingly everyone else hates. I just wish we could get more Smasher, so luckily for me the next volume sets up Infinity, a space based event where the Shi'ar, and thus Smasher, are prominent.

Also Try:
Jonathan Hickman, The Manhattan Projects
Brian Michael Bendis, New Avengers vol. 1

X-Factor: Happenings in Vegas, Peter David

"Remember when we warned you about the shocking twist involving Madrox's baby? Remember when the return of Shatterstar wound up making every comics-related website? Well, that was just a warm-up for the shocking events in this volume. X-Factor gets a new client, a tall green-garbed woman with a deadly secret, but that's just a set-up for the jaw-dropping surprise to come."












X-Factor is a tonally strange comic to pin down, being, as it is, a detective comic with a cast of mutants and others than generally tends towards the soapier side of pulp fiction, and features some of the most character-led plot in the entire genre.

And that also, from time to time, features actual superheroes appearing and engaging in heroic battles, as though that were what this is a comic about.

But it isn't, it's not your general superhero battle book, although there are plenty of fight scenes. It's not Heroes for Hire, and it isn't the X-Men, it's a weird halfway house of both, and like the latter it is ALL ABOUT the character arcs.

This is a little disappointing then, because by and large this is a self-contained arc, featuring some set up for future stuff, some extra little conflicts on the side, and a main plot that features the X-Factor group teaming up with Thor to fight dead vikings in Las Vegas, a city which has almost no native heroes that I can think of but routinely gets trashed.

Oh, the Thor stuff is fine, but from a series that started off exploring sex crimes of the super people, or sent its main characters off into the future to fight in the Summers rebellion, a Noodle incident that had been referred to for decades beforehand, a vignette on how women are tricky things to understand and how Thor can hit things isn't quite as cool.

Also Try:
Peter David, X-Force: The Invisible Woman has Vanished, Madrox
J. Michael Straczynski, Thor

Tactics of Mistake, Gordon R. Dickson

"It's obvious that Cletus Graeme--limping, mild-mannered scholarly--doesn't belong on a battling field, but instead at a desk working on his fourth book on battle strategy and tactics. But Bakhalla has more battlefields than libraries, and Graeme sees his small force of Dorsai--soldiers of fortune--as the perfect opportunity to test his theories. But if his theories or his belief in the Dorsai lead him astray, he's a dead man."










I have no idea why this isn't up yet. I read it months ago (in August), so it's just general laziness at this point.

Basically, this book is great, and you should read it. You can do that here: http://library.worldtracker.org/English%20Literature/D/Dickson,%20Gordon/Gordon%20R.%20Dickson%20-%20Childe%20Cycle%2004%20-%20Tactics%20Of%20Mistake.pdf

Also Try:
Robert Heinlen, Starship Troopers
Joe Haldeman, The Forever War

Batman: The Black Mirror, Scott Snyder

"In "The Black Mirror," a series of brutal murders pushes Batman's detective skills to the limit and forces him to confront one of Gotham City's oldest evils. Helpless and trapped in the deadly Mirror House, Batman must fight for his life against one of Gotham City's oldest and most powerful evils!Then, in a second story called "Hungry City," the corpse of a killer whale shows up on the floor of one of Gotham City's foremost banks. The event begins a strange and deadly mystery that will bring Batman face-to-face with the new, terrifying faces of organized crime in Gotham.This volume collects Detective Comics #871-881."








There is so much to talk about with this one, so it's difficult to limit myself to making this just a bullet review.

First of all though -  Scott Snyder is currently knocking the ball out of the park with his Batman run. Court and Night of Owls was fantastic, Death of the Family managed to deliver some truly excellent moments despite it's general uneveness, and Zero Year has been surprisingly good. But Black Mirror is where he first established his credentials as a writer in the Gotham universe, serving up a deliciously twisted story focussing on Dick Grayson's Batman and Commissioner Gordon.

Even before that Snyder has been a writer I've tried to follow, since his excellent American Vampires debuted. He has a knack for picking artists that complement his creepy, horror-lite, style, and that look like nothing else around. Rafael Albuquerque on American Vampire and Francisco Francavilla and Jock here are more indie and creator owned icons than typical DC artists (in fact this was Francavilla's first DC role) - they certainly don't match the house style of DC and it works fantastically in creating a tale that undermines the preconceptions of the reader, presenting a fractured take that ties in to the psyche of the main antagonist, James Gordon Jr as the book hurtles towards its inevitable conclusion.

Like Geoff Johns and Grant Morrison, Snyder loves to use details and ephemera from stories past to add narrative weight to the tale he is telling, but the inclusion of James, a character rarely (if ever) seen since Year One, and who was pushed out by Sarah Essen and his more heroically inclined sister, is a lovely touch, especially contrasted to Grayson, the heroic 'son' of Batman, and the man who at one point was intimately connected to the Gordon family through Barbara.

Of course, there's more than just storytelling technique at hand here, and the collection tells an excellent tale, balanced with the wonderful artwork. If you're looking for a book for someone who loves Batman, this is perfect.

Scott Snyder, Court of Owls
Scott Snyder, American Vampire
Grant Morrison, Batman and Robin
Gail Simone, Batgirl