To Thrill A Mockingbird

West Coast Avengers #1
(limited series)

I've been a fan of Mockingbird since the days of the West Coast Avengers back in the 1980s, as that was one of my favorite series.  I also loved her as half of the Hawkeye/Mockingbird coupling.  

Hawkeye & Mockingbird #6

Cut to: 2010.  I was excited about the Hawkeye & Mockingbird series...only to be disappointed that they didn't reunite romantically and the series was canceled after only six issues.  

While I'm not crazy about the emphasis put on her involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D. in the past few years, I decided to pick up her latest comic, a one-shot, celebrating 50 Years of S.H.I.E.L.D.  As I started reading, I thought, "Who wrote this?" and "Why isn't this a regular series?"  It was unlike a lot of the action-packed and non-character-focused crap that I've read as of late.  Turns out, it's a new writer to comic books -- Chelsea Cain.  Ah, that explains it.  She hasn't been editorialized to death yet.  She's a published novelist and, because it was a one-shot issue, Marvel probably let her write whatever she wanted to.  And what she wrote was an excellent story of mystery, romance, and character development that left me wanting more.  It's a shame I can't slap down $4-$5 on a comic book and get the same quality time and time again. 

Mockingbird #1 (one-shot)

The back-up story introduced the Red Widow who has some connection to the Black Widow.  Meh.  After a lead-in like Cain's Mockingbird story, the Red Widow story by a YA novelist was doomed to fail.  I would have liked another story of Mockingbird. 

With Mockingbird becoming more and more known through ABC's Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series and Marvel wanting to increase the number of female-driven comics, I'd like to think it's only a matter of time before Mockingbird gets her own monthly series.  Let's just hope that Chelsea Cain writes it.

Hawkeye Misses His Target...AGAIN.

What's up with Hawkeye #22?  

Issue #21 was finally released in April 2015, five months after #20.  And there were several lapses in the comics prior to that.  Now instead of releasing (forever delayed) #22, Marvel Comics goes ahead and releases an "All-New" Hawkeye series?  FAIL.  

Who hires these bozos?  You can't meet a deadline?  Writer?  Artist?  Editor?  Etc.?  Did Kevin Smith write this book?  Hello?  Anyone home? 

Tell ya what, Marvel, you can keep Hawkeye #22.  My collection ended with #21.  

With the Avengers movies riding a huge financial wave, you'd think they'd want to capitalize on one of the main characters by producing a consistent series.  By the way, it also helps that when you have a Hawkeye comic, that you include that superhero (the Clint Barton version) instead of focusing on the "other" (lame) Hawkeye (Kate Bishop).  And just why can't she get her own moniker anyway?  So, Marvel, you can keep All-New Hawkeye, too, because I'm not buying into it when you can't even include the main character in his own book.   

I've always loved Hawkeye and was a HUGE fan of him during the West Coast Avengers days, so I was excited when he was included in the silver screen version of the Avengers and got his own series.  Sadly, while Marvel Studios seems to know what to do with Hawkeye, it seems Marvel Comics doesn't.

Hawkeye Goes to the Dogs

Why was the 2012 Hawkeye series canceled by Marvel Comics?  I'll tell you why:  it sucked.

Pizza Dog

Don't get me wrong; when the series first started, Matt Fraction and David Aja did a fantastic job.  I even hailed it in a previous review.  Sadly, it quickly went to the dogs.  (And I don't just mean Pizza Dog.)  

Pizza Dog himself was a great addition to the Hawkeye supporting cast.  Who wasn't?  "Hawkeye" Kate Bishop.  I'm pretty sure the reason Marvel gave Hawkeye his own series was due to his popularity in a tiny movie called The Avengers.   I don't recall ever seeing Kate Bishop in the movie. 

Shown above, the series originally promised us Clint Barton (a.k.a. Hawkeye) and his life outside of the Avengers.  Sadly, the series quickly became about some teenage chick that Fraction apparently has fantasies about who would never ever warrant her own book.  Heck, she can't even sustain a team book (Young Avengers).  That's how crappy her character is.  And do we even need a second Hawkeye?  Why not just call her Speedy or something?

Surprisingly, that wasn't the worst thing about the series.  Yes, I'm talking about issue #17.  The summary for that book is as follows:  

Who could forget that time when Clint Barton let his neighbor's kids watched a holiday cartoon at his place?  At long last, this issue is pretty much the cartoon they all watch.

And they are correct.  Not only are we subjected to Kate Bishop instead of Clint Barton, but now we're given a joke for our $2.99.  It had to be one of the worst comics I've ever read in 30 years.  With issue #18, the story returned to -- you guessed it -- Kate Bishop.  

And THAT, my friends, is why this series was canceled.  Who wants to continue reading this garbage?  

Now Marvel (or is that Marvel NOW!?) is putting out the All-New Hawkeye in 2015, restarting the series with #1.  Naturally, that's not uncommon nowadays for Marvel (sigh...), and it's probably meant to coincide with the release of the next Avengers movie. 

In the first issue's summary, we're told that we'll be getting "a fresh new look into the life of everyone's favorite Avenger."  Then the next sentence starts, "With Kate Bishop, his trusted ward and protégé back at his side..."  I guess Marvel hasn't learned their lesson.  Have you?  I have.  I won't be spending $3.99 now for a series that still can't get it right.  

 

Santa Claws

Let's face it:  Wolverine is everywhere.  Not only does he have two of his own solo comic book series (Wolverine and Savage Wolverine) but he's also a member of several X-teams and Avengers teams, plus appears in the other self-titled Wolverine and the X-Men (and these don't even include the alternate versions of him in the Ultimate Universe or Wolverine: MAX).  It's especially -- for lack of a better word -- interesting when the storylines don't even intersect.  He can be in outer space with the Avengers, fighting solo in Madripoor, taking on Sentinels with the X-Men in New York, or just sometimes...DEAD in hell.  ALL AT THE SAME TIME.  Now, one man cannot seriously be in all of these places at once.  So, naturally, I've come to the conclusion that, like Santa Claus, there must be several actors playing the Wolverine character (or, as I like to call him, Santa Claws) in order to make this a reality.  I'm waiting for the day when Marvel comes out with Wolverine, Inc. with all of the Wolverines from around the world and across the galaxy and puts them all in one double-sized, bi-monthly comic. 

I hate to sound like that grumpy old man in the corner that people talk about, but I remember when there was ONE Wolverine and he appeared in Uncanny X-Men.  Period.  And we liked it.  Then in 1982 he got his very own mini-series.  And we loved it.  Then he finally got his very own monthly series in 1988.  And there was a collective "Meh."  I read it for a few issues, got bored, and removed it from my pull list.  

In 2013, we now have his fourth solo self-titled series, so I decided to give him another try.  I enjoyed Paul Cornell's take on Lex Luthor in Action Comics, so I looked forward to what he was going to do scripting Wolverine.  After reading several issues of the new series, I've been less than impressed.  There's little characterization.  It's just Wolverine doing what he does best: fighting.  There's no emotion in the comics.  The storylines are otherworldly.  And there's no personal connection for the reader.  Maybe Cornell had a ghost writer for Lex Luthor?  Frankly, any generic writer who has no background in comic book characters could have written the first several issues of the latest incarnation of Wolverine.  And what's with all of the guest stars, from Nick Fury to S.H.I.E.L.D. to Black Panther to other X-Men?  If Marvel is worried that Wolverine can't carry his own series, then why give him a series?   I already see Wolverine interacting with several different characters in several different monthly comic books.  Shouldn't a solo title be focused on his experiences exclusive of others in the Marvel Universe, a la Hawkeye?

I haven't even picked up an issue of Savage Wolverine.  Why?  I'm already oversaturated with Wolverine in EVERY comic book and, to be honest, with that much exposure he just becomes boring.  Yes, I said it.  Wolverine now bores me.  How about getting back to basics with Wolverine?  Giving him stories that really bring out and develop his personality?  There's so much depth to him, but all anyone wants to use him for is being the angry guy and slicing up people and things.  He's Marvel's cash cow, so they figure that just by throwing him in every comic he'll generate increased revenue.  

Wolverine deserves better.  He deserves to be properly explored with excellent written stories, and he deserves to be illustrated with excellent artwork, neither of which he's gotten in a long, long time.  Most of all, he deserves to be given to readers in smaller, natural quality doses, not shoved down our throats like gallons of artificial High Fructose Corn Syrup. 

Cajun Turd

Ever since Gambit first appeared in the X-Men comics in 1990, I thought he was a pretty cool character, despite rarely being able to understand what he's saying because of his Cajun accent.  I loved the flirtation between he and Rogue, before she got into daddy figures (see: Magneto).  Plus, you've gotta admire a straight dude that can pull off purple (see also: Hawkeye).  But what's with the long overcoat?  Doesn't that get in the way of battle...or make the Louisiana Bayou heat even more unbearable?

Unfortunately, Marvel hasn't really done Gambit justice, evidenced by the numerous attempts at solo series for him.  The latest (2012) attempt isn't any better.  After reading the first seven issues, I'm all, "A sphincter says what?"  I couldn't even follow what was going on from issue to issue because I was so disinterested.  There was battle sequence after battle sequence with little to no character or story development.  Sure, we got to see some Gambit nips as his costume was destroyed, but that hardly makes up for the lack of decent storytelling.  Now he's supposed to be some sort of international James Bond?  I just don't get it.  And, frankly, I don't have to.  This is just another Gambit series headed for cancellation due to lameness.  Mon Dieu!

Avengers Academy Closes Its Doors

I knew it was coming.  Marvel Comics kept saying that the storyline titled "Final Exam" didn't mean the end of Avengers Academy.  Sadly, they lied.  What a shame, too.  This was one of Marvel's best written books.  It dealt with real human issues and interactions.  It offered character development and not just boring action sequences.  These were real kids with real problems...on an elevated level.  All thanks to writer Christos Gage.  With Tigra, Hawkeye, and Giant Man as instructors at the academy, it was even getting close to being the line-up of the original West Coast Avengers, my favorite Avengers-related comic of all time.  The academy was even based at the old WCA compound! 

It's sad to say goodbye to old friends.  I'm not too confident in the Academy's replacement: Avengers Arena.  It's the younger Avengers in a Hunger Games setting.  Haven't we seen this before?  Waaaaaaaaay too many times?  Secret Wars.  Dark Side Club.  Murderworld.  Just to name a few.  

Just what we need.  A comic that's all about battle sequences with a cast of dozens.  Goodbye, character development and interaction.  Hello, boredom and uncreativity.  

Wake me when it's over.

Shooting for 9

Hawkeye #2 (2012)

Long before Hawkeye was a popular movie character played by Jeremy Renner, he was one of my favorite comic book characters.  It's not every guy who can pull off wearing purple.  I loved the West Coast Avengers so much more than the regular Avengers (wait, was I the only one?) and he was a big part why.  I also enjoyed his dynamic with Mockingbird.  Although Marvel will deny it, it was obvious that Hawkeye and Mockingbird were modeled after DC's Green Arrow and Black Canary, but they felt like a totally different couple.  

After numerous mini-series and short-lived attempts a couple of monthly series, with his popularity surging from the Avengers movie, Hawkeye finally gets his own solo monthly comic book series.  Again.  (Hey, to be a success and be his longest running series EVER, it only has to last more than eight issues.) 

Immediately by looking at the covers, you can tell that this is a different Hawkeye.  They have a retro-mod look to them.  The letters are all in lower case.  The colors are minimal, but there is that predominance of Hawkeye's signature color, purple.  I wasn't sure, though, how David Aja's minimalist cover art would translate to an entire comic.  And, upon starting the first issue of the series, I seriously had my doubts. The art seemed too rough and rudimentary.  However, after reading the first two issues, I really think it works. And I love the heavy use and different shades of purple. 

The issues introduce Hawkeye with the promise that the series will be about his non-Avengers adventures:

I hope that the writer, Matt Fraction, keeps this promise.  Hawkeye is a strong enough character that he doesn't need his teammates always stopping by.  He doesn't need crossovers.  He has stories that can be told without intertwining them with other series.  So far, with the first two issues, Fraction has kept his promise.  Hawkeye's biggest worry has been taking care of the other residents in his apartment building from the big, evil landlord.  Let's hope that he continues to deal with these more human issues and interactions.  And, of course, canine issues (Clint adopts an injured dog that he rescues). 

Kudos to the start of what I hope will be an 9+ issue series! 

Lost Your Own Series? Come Join the Avengers Academy!

I caught up with Avengers Academy over the weekend.  (I was about five or six issues behind!)  I have to say that AA is probably my current favorite Marvel comic.  It's very fresh and relevant and, thanks to writer Christos Gage, the characters become more and more developed with each issue, as they explore their relationships with one another.  Gage gives each member their own personality, incorporating diversity in a subtle (or not so subtle) way. 

Avengers Academy #1

During Marvel's Avengers explosion of 2010, I sampled each new Avengers comic, only sticking with the Academy after the dust settled.  They were the only team to offer something different, and they reminded me of the New Mutants when they first debuted in 1983.  And, having been a huge West Coast Avengers fan back in the day, I was happy to see Tigra used again, this time as a teacher to young Avengers-in-training.  

I liked the possibilities of characters Veil, Hazmat, Mettle, and Reptil during the first several issues.  However, I felt that Finesse and Striker were too generic, both in their codenames and their personalities.   The name "Striker" reminds me of a character from the Airplane! movies, while "Finesse" sounds like a hair product.  They also have black and white costumes to match their bland, angry personalities.  

When it came time to shake things up during a roster change (circa issue #20), I was disappointed that Veil was the one to go.  She was my favorite character and had what I thought was the best costume.  What about Striker or Finesse?  I felt like they could leave and nobody would even notice they were gone.  

New additions to the team were -- surprise! -- Lightspeed (from one of my favorite 1980s comics, Power Pack) and White Tiger, whom I had never heard of, but I liked the costume, despite being black and white, colors already in abundance at the Academy.  I was excited to see Julie Power join and grateful that at least one of the Power kids was finally being used in a series and allowed to grow up outside of the confines of the Fantastic Four's Baxter Building.  She's more a teenager now with a more adult costume (hello, bare midriff!).  (Note to FF:  let the other Power kids grow up a bit, too!)  She also comes with secrets that I never would have guessed (more on that later).   Additionally, I was pleased to see series-canceled teens Spider-Girl, X-23, and She-Hulk (Lyra) joined the Academy.  I guess they have to go somewhere, right?  The new Avengers Academy recruiting slogan should be:  "Lost Your Own Series?  Come Join the Avengers Academy!"

Not only were there good additions to the team, but the team also added Hawkeye as a full-time teacher AND moved to the old digs of the West Coast Avengers!  How psyched was I?!  It was like a WCA reunion! 

The Avengers Academy series gets a bit bogged down during the crossover events (I'm talking to you, Fear Itself) and is at its strongest when dealing with one-on-one character interaction.  I love the relationship struggle between Mettle and Hazmat.  It reminds me of the torture that Colossus and Kitty Pryde went through for years and years, with a little bit of The Thing and Alicia Masters thrown in for good measure.  And Mettle's kind of sexy in his own, skinless way.  

Mettle and Hazmat

Most recently, I loved the very personal conversation between Striker and newcomer Lightspeed.  (SPOILER ALERT!  Just warning ya.)  Striker gay?  Lightspeed bisexual?  Whoa... Thanks for making me appreciate Striker more, Christos.  He's not just a pompous ass; he's confused and insecure!  Can we change the generic codename, though?  And, come to think of it, Julie always was pretty butch back in her Power Pack days.  Now, she's more of a lipstick lesbian -- er, bisexual.  I'm still not crazy about Finesse, though.  Can we kill her off?

I look forward to the continuation of Avengers Academy with characters that aren't popular enough to support their own series, but as a team do pretty damn well.  After The Children's Crusade, how about adding Hulkling and Wiccan to the school?  (Hint, hint.)

Gone Too Soon

Lately, Marvel Comics seems to be canceling its new ongoing series without any notice.  Kinda like showing up at work one day and being given a pink slip (does anybody really have these "pink slips" anymore?).  Case in point:  Young Allies.  Canceled abruptly after six issues.  Hawkeye & Mockingbird.  Canceled abruptly after six issues.  And now Black Widow.  Canceled abruptly after eight issues.  You can breathe normally, though, X-Men fans.  Your sixteen different series about the same X-Men team members in sixteen different simultaneously occurring situations still survive...and I'm sure there are more to come.  

There is the new four-issue limited series called Widowmaker that stars Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Black Widow, but so far (having only read issue #1) it's as lame as the Hawkeye & Mockingbird series was.  I guess Marvel was trying to combine readers from the two series to see if they had a market and could increase their sales numbers? 

The Black Widow series was started back in the spring, around the same time that Iron Man 2 was released in the theaters.  I guess Marvel wanted to capitalize on her appearance in the film and was hoping that would translate to book sales.  Apparently, it did not.  And that's a shame.  Black Widow was one of the best character-driven series to come along in quite some time.  The stories weren't really superhero-ish; they were more James Bond-ish or Alias-ish.  The issues focused on the stories and characters, not any special powers.  The first five issues featured a storyline about someone trying to frame Black Widow for their crimes.  It also dug up parts of Black Widow's secret past (SPOILER: dead baby) that she'd rather keep hidden.  The last three issues' storyline felt like an international/political thriller.  All eight issues were great.  The finale tries to segue the reader into the new Widowmaker limited series.  

Naturally, I bought Widowmaker because I love all three main characters.  I loved Hawkeye and Mockingbird back in their West Coast Avengers days (unfortunately, their new canceled ongoing series didn't capture the magic they used to have) and I've always been a fan of Black Widow, despite her seemingly lack of good stories.  So it only seemed like a given that I'd like a series with all three.  Wrong.  Widowmaker has all the flair that Hawkeye & Mockingbird did, that is to say: not much.  Black Widow does better on her own without the superhero influence. 

RIP, Black Widow.  I hardly knew ye.  At least there's still Scarlet. 

Mike Mayhew, Artist Extraordinaire

I decided to start picking up and reading The New Avengers by Marvel because it looked like their team contained a lot of the original Avengers that I knew and loved from the 80s, especially Hawkeye (now "Ronin" -- dumb name) and Mockingbird, both from the old West Coast Avengers series when it was in its heyday. Thankfully, my expectations were met and there was an actual enjoyable storyline that could stand alone outside the goings-on of the Marvel Universe.

I also picked up The New Avengers Annual #3 since it came out around the same time I started looking into The New Avengers monthly series. All I can say is: WOW. The art is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Who is this Mike Mayhew and why am I one of the last to discover how fantastic and realistic his art is? I spent longer reading this particular annual than I did other comics, just for the art alone. I had to absorb the detail and realism that Mayhew put into it. Otherwise, I wouldn't have done the comic justice. Of course, it helped that Hawkeye (Clint Barton) was naked in a chair, a la Daniel Craig in Casino Royale.

Sadly, I soon discovered that Marvel is cancelling The New Avengers...along with all their other Avengers comics. I'm not sure what they have planned, but let's hope those plans include Mike Mayhew!

Mockingbird:

Captain America:

Here Comes the "Reign" Again

Continuing with the "Dark Reign" storyline that Marvel Comics has basically spread throughout all of their series, I've picked up a few of the series that focus on the individuals within Norman Osborn's "Dark Avengers." You know the ones: they vaguely resemble and dress up like actual Marvel superheroes, so everyone thinks that they're the real deal, despite the obvious differences (like swearing, maiming, killing, destroying property) and the fact that the real superheroes are...actually still doing their thing. Anyway, once you suspend your disbelief at this ridiculous notion, there are some pretty decent stories going on...and some rather horrible ones.

The GOOD:
The Wolverine series has become a playground for "Dark Wolverine" instead of the normal, lovable (?), fuzzy, one-of-a-kind Wolverine. Dark Wolverine (blecch! I can't stand the "Dark" titles in every name and/or group) is actually Wolverine's son. Wolverine was apparently married long ago to a Japanese woman (but not the famous Mariko from his first limited series back in the 1980s) and had a child that he thought long since dead. Daken (Dark Wolverine) is all grown up now and sports a mohawk and tattoos underneath his mask and costume. He has similar mutant powers to Wolverine, plus a unique pheromone manipulation ability, which I find very intriguing. It's something unique that I haven't seen in comic books before. He is also struggling with his own identity, and between good and evil. Lastly, Daken seems pretty comfortable in his sexuality...whatever it may be. He made a couple of joking sexual innuendos to "Sinister Spider-Man" and The Thing to f**k with their heads, using his pheromone ability. For all of these reasons, he is a very interesting character and not just the child of a superhero with the same abilities. I hope Wolverine gets his own series back and Daken goes on to new adventures in his own series. I'd definitely invest my reading time in finding out more about him.

The BAD:
In the tradition of the new "Dark" Hawkeye limited series comes Sinister Spider-Man. Why "sinister" instead of "dark" like everyone else? Other than for alliteration purposes, who knows!? Anywho, this new Sinister Spider-Man posing as Spider-Man is actually...Venom. I know, I know. It's pretty hard to believe considering he's actually wearing the black and white Venom symbiote costume while posing as Spider-Man. It would be like me walking into work wearing a rubber Obama mask, toting myself as our President. Deceptive, right?

Apparently there have been some changes to Venom over the years. He's no longer Eddie Brock. He's now Mac Gargan, formerly the Scorpion. This in itself is kind of sad, because I always liked the idea of the Scorpion as a villain. Maybe another one is in the works. But I digress...

I read Sinister Spider-Man and all I can say is {YAWN}. It's a four-issue limited series by writer Brian Reed and artist Chris Bachalo. Reed says, "the whole Marvel Universe thinks Spider-Man is living in Avengers Tower, when it's really Mac Gargan, who has a long history as a sociopath." Venom...er, Sinister Spider-Man...er, "Spider-Man" is a womanizer, a killer, and an all-around a-hole. He's the male equivalent of a Black Widow spider. He bites the heads off the women he f**ks. And it's all on the news. So, you can see why people would naturally believe him to be the real Spider-Man. Especially with the real Spider-Man out there swinging around in his red and blue tights. After the first issue, I didn't want to read the rest (and had wished I hadn't already purchased them), but I did anyway. The story of Sinister Spider-Man felt rushed and randomly thrown together, unlike Dark Wolverine or Dark Reign: Hawkeye (previously reviewed), just to sell comics.

The UGLY:

The artwork on Sinister Spider-Man. With all the talented, unused artists out there looking for employment, why settle for mediocre?

Hawkeye Returns! (Sort of...)

I first fell in love with the character of Hawkeye (Marvel's version of DC's Green Arrow) when the limited series of the West Coast Avengers came out in 1984. He was brightly clad, led the new (and, in my opinion, much better) Avengers team, and had an interesting love-hate relationship with Mockingbird (Marvel's version of DC's Black Canary). I followed him through the years until I stopped reading comic books somewhere around 1993.

Rejoining the world of comics books a year ago, I was excited to find a mini-series titled New Avengers: the Reunion coming out devoted solely to Hawkeye and Mockingbird. Yea! Unfortunately, Hawkeye (Clint Barton) is now called Ronin, whom I last recalled as being a samurai character in the DC Universe created by Frank Miller. It was jarring to say the least, but I'll roll with it, hoping that he'll lose that persona and go back to his original by the end of the series. Still, at least it's the same two characters, and I'm enjoying their reunion, as rocky as it may be.

Now (in Spring 2009) comes a mini-series called Dark Reign: Hawkeye. Yea! Come to find out, it's not Clint Barton in the blue and purple costume. It's Bullseye masquerading as Hawkeye in an attempt to discredit the Avengers. For example, Hawkeye (aka Bullseye) saves a woman from getting raped (yea!). When she asks him for an autograph, he stabs her in the eye with the pen (ouch!). The first two issues have been pretty good, but this is not your 1980s Hawkeye series. It's darker. It's grittier. And it's obviously much more violent! Here's hoping Clint Barton makes an appearance in the final issue and wrestles the Hawkeye title from Bullseye.