Comic Book Day: July 17 Comic Book Reviews

For me, this week has been smaller than the past few weeks. In more ways than just the new comics I picked up. Things are starting to slow down for me a little and since this summer has been busy and hectic, I am welcoming the chance to sit down and take a look at new titles that I have been meaning to read. As well as Young Avengers, Hawkeye, Captain Marvel and X-Men I have since added Guardians of the Galaxy, and East of West to my weekly pulls. I definitely look forward to reading more of these series as they come out, This week's reviews features a new title as well, at least new for me. So without further ado, let's get to it!

Warning: Potential Spoilers Ahead.

Avengers Assemble #17 

Avengers Assemble #17 cover by
Joe Quinones
Image courtesy of Marvel Wiki

This Avengers Assemble brings readers part 4 of The Enemy Within event happening across Captain Marvel and Avengers Assemble. I don't quite understand why an event surrounding one character (Captain Marvel) is spread out over three different books but that's just me complaining about nothing. One thing that Kelly Sue DeConnick has done masterfully over this current arc has been to create Carol Danvers as an "unreliable narrator," of sorts. No where is this seen more than in this book, when Carol even asks herself if the conflict with this mysterious enemy (I won't give it away) is all in her head. With the other instances throughout the books, like things disappearing and appearing out of nowhere, I found myself questioning the validity of Carol's mental state as the main character. DeConnick really has done a wonderful job in sowing those seeds of doubt in the reader, making you think that this could all be for nothing. Matteo Buffagni's art really does add to the book as well. His characters seem to be popping off the page, and I absolutely love the page design and layout. Buffagni brings an energy to the characters that feels as though it's lifting off the page and finding a home inside your brain. My personal favorite panel from this book was the team up with Captain Marvel and Captain America. Buffagni really captures the bad ass feeling of these two heroes teaming up in the middle of New York just the way that we wanted to see it.

Verdict: 7.5 out of 10. DeConnick and Buffagni are packing this crossover event with some really good stuff. Definitely looking forward to reading the finale.

That's really it for comic book reviews for this week. I'm trying to catch up on some series that I left in the dust and want to start reading again. Hopefully I'll have more next week. Also, I'll be announcing a fun surprise next Wednesday, so be on the lookout for that!

Comic Book Day: July 10 Comic Book Reviews

I realize that I am a little behind with my reviews for the week. As most of my readers know I have been very busy with working for Vox Magazine and the Columbia Missourian, both of which cause me to spend most of my time during the week working on stories and articles. This week's pull was definitely smaller (since I didn't have to catch up on Hawkeye any more) and I didn't have the funds to get the last few issues of Avengers, Daredevil, or FF. With an extremely small pull this week I felt like I could focus more on what these latest issues of Young Avengers and Hawkeye had to offer than I normally could.

As always, I give readers warning to FULL SPOILERS ahead. Proceed with caution.

Young Avengers Vol. 2 Issue #7 "Breakfast Meat" 

Young Avengers #7 cover by
Jamie McKelvie
Image courtesy of Marvel Wiki

How does Kieron Gillen cover the 3 month jump in time from the end of issue #5 to issue #7? Through the use of social media of course! While the use of social media to cover the missing plot is fantastic, this book has the feeling of being stagnant since the action hasn't moved forward in terms of what happened at the end of issue #7. This book does offer plenty of character goodies that Gillen has proven to be very adept at inserting into the narrative. Particularly with Kate Bishop. In the scene with the diner when Prodigy finally catches up with the Young Avengers, we see Kate fully accept her role as the team leader. She's cautious, strong and dives head first into being there for her team. The nuances between the team members shows a level of comfortableness that they have definitely reached. And with the return of Jamie McKelvie after his brief absence, he fully emphasizes that dynamic between the characters.  McKelvie's art once again knocks it out of the park. The montage of Prodigy tracking down the Young Avengers is definitely my favorite design of a page to date. This book offers so many little details that even I didn't catch until reading Gillen's writer notes that explained his decisions behind the script. If you aren't following Gillen on tumblr for that insight into his mind, then you really are missing out on an excellent look into the details and crafting of a great comic book in the Marvel NOW! line up.

Verdict: 8 out of 10.  The book hasn't moved too far forward in terms of plot, but there is some fantastic character growth and dynamics going on here.

Hawkeye Issue #12

Hawkeye #12 cover by
Francesco Francavilla
Image courtesy of
fuckyeahavengingarcher.tumblr.com

While Francesco Francavilla brings a 180 switch in art style to this issue, Hawkeye #12 is still visually stunning. The lines are less blurry, the coloring is darker and the issue takes a step away from the light hearted, whimsical feel of David Aja's art. Overall, this issue offers an overarching narrative to Hawkeye's life that we haven't fully received in the past issues. We get to see the beginnings of what has made Clint Barton become the Clint Barton we know and love. Even with Clint taking a back seat in this issue, since he is only seen around the end of the book, the story adds another facet to Clint's life. Coming from a broken family with an abusive father, we see the trail that he has walked and how it ties into what he has become. While the issue can feel a bit removed from the rest of the series, we still have the continuity with the tracksuit mafia and even a short appearance from Lucky (AKA Pizza Dog). Without having direct interaction with Hawkeye in the book, these are the best ways that Fraction and Francavilla still keep the feel of the past issues going. I'm excited to see what comes next with Barney Barton and the back story that we are finally seeing on Hawkeye. Fraction keeps these stories coming and he continues to impress.



Verdict: 9 out of 10. I loved getting to see a book dedicated to where Hawkeye came from. As I always say with Matt Fraction... more please?