This is a blog by an old, retired, no longer for hire Space Pirate. He covers things like Pop Culture. Politics, Sex, Money, Wrestling, People and whatever other silly things pop into that brain of his. We're not sure if he really is old. Or if he has truly retired from being a Pirate in Space. But we are sure of one thing, he loves talking about whatever is on his mind. Check out his old blog Geek-a-Tron on Google to see what he's done.
The book is more Captain Marvel than it is an Avengers book. It tries to establish that she has villains who are able to defeat her but they actually come across as generic. The art doesn’t work as the different artists are either poor or the shift from one to another is distracting. Overall this is a force your way through kind of book.
This closed off Jason Aaron’s run on Thor and not fast enough. I didn’t care for his tun on the character. This was an average book by itself but overall his run wasn’t good. It did influence the fourth Thor movie but you can see why that movie wasn’t good. There were and have been better Thor stories then this one so read one of those instead.
In time Warren Ellis would become a better writer. This book has little bits of that potential spread in it but it’s far from good. The art by Deodato gets better later as well but in this book the gigantic hair is distracting. The story makes no sense but thankfully it’s short. Overall the book is readable but also forgettable.
Scarlet Witch by James Robinson: The Complete Collection by James Robinson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars This book suffers from inconsistent artwork. Most of it is ugly, no other way to say it. Parts of it look good and enhance the story but the majority of it is difficult to look at. This ends up taking away from the story which is just an average story. The book being unable to bring together a good story with good art lowers the overall quality of the book. The covers are by the same artist which is good but the rest of this book is too chaotic to enjoy.
This is a book trying to go in many directions but hoping to end up at one destination. While it’s not terrible it’s also not worth reading more then once. The story is wish fulfillment gone wrong since it’s a wish that starts and ends the book. At some point the art gets confusing since there are so many artists contributing to the book. The What If concept is fine in a short story but this book is proof that doing this in a long form story is a bad idea. Maybe someone could do it right but that didn’t happen in this story.
If you enjoyed the Avengers movie then this book is an important comic to read. For everything that happened in the movies to lead to the ideas that came from this story shows how great this story is. If there is one flaw to this story its the change in art midway through the book. The shift in art throws off the balance of the book slightly. Still the importance of this book so many years later is a testament to how good the story is.
The story is convoluted at some points but there's a reason why. The story of Kang is a simple one, what would you do for love. Kang grew in a world where love was unnecessary. What Kang wants is a passion that he can throw himself into. Here is a character that wants to feel what has been denied to him his entire life. Eventually what he wants takes the form of a woman. A woman who embodies everything he thinks he's always wanted. That's the trap. What he actually wants is what he eventually gets but the price is what you find by reading the story.
While this was a good attempt to bring a bigger spotlight to the Black Knight the book is mostly boring. The art didn’t work well with the writing. There wasn’t any reason to care about the Black Knight. The Avengers were forced into the story just because Dane is also an Avenger. Through it all the story just didn’t come together.
There are many storylines in this book. The end doesn’t make any sense. You have Thanos on one side, Builders on the other, multiverse incursion on a small side and the Illuminate having secrets just because that sounds mysterious. In the end it has moments but everything doesn’t come together. It is one of those must read, big Avengers stories but there are better stories then this one.
This book gives me a clear feeling. That feeling can be summed up in one word. That word is, meh. The writer wrote a story that is for a woke, pro-(insert cause here), anti-(whatever the cause of the moment). The messaging in the book makes the characters annoying. This takes away from the actual story which is so basic it makes me wonder what could a better writer have done with this character. It's not difficult to read the book but it's not enjoyable either.
That's decent in my opinion. It's apart of Johns run on Avengers but by itself you miss out on the full context of the story. The many times the King Thor story has been used all follow the template that started around this era. So, the stories since all fall short of this eras. The rest is just decent.
Meh!!! Whatever man. Thankfully this spelled the end of the Brian Bendis era of Avengers. Was, this book flat? Yes, it was flat. Did it feel pointless? Yes, it did. But for those of us who remember this book was the culmination of Bendis run which felt like it was 1,000 years of endless exposition. The book starts that way but mid-way through the book Bendis stopped caring made a hero a villain for no reason. Then tried to imitate the end of Alan Moores run on MiracleMan by stealing part of the ending . In other words the whole thing was, Meh.
There's no point in writing a review about the Black Panther movie. If you have not seen it yet there's nothing I will say that will change your mind. What I will say is that it was a good movie. No, it was not the greatest movie of all time. No, it wasn't the best Marvel movie. No, it wasn't even my favorite black superhero movie. Okay, that last one has changed. It's my favorite black superhero movie now, sorry Blade. But did is it really a paradigm shift in comic book movies?
I think it's a interesting thing it's done as well as it's done. Thinking back to before it came out I'll admit I was worried. As a comic reader, movie watcher, as a black heterosexual male living in the United States of America anytime a movie starring a black superhero comes out I get worried. You have to understand, contrary to current popular belief Black Panther isn't the most successful comic character on his own. The character has had his best moments in team books. So when I here he's getting his own movie it worried me. The movie ended those worries but what comes next?
We are getting more Wakanda this year if you are not aware. The next Avengers movie has Black Panther and his people play a big role in it. I think because the story has Thanos looking for the Infinity Stones. The most important stone is the Soul Gem. Yes, Wakanda in Africa is probably where the gem of Soul lies. A little chessy but whatever. There's another Avengers movie after this and then we get a change to the Marvel movies that no one is telling you about.
There will be no more Iron Man movies, no more Captain Americas, no more Thor movies. These were the big single lead movies that Marvel had in its arsenal. Without them a new set of single lead movies have to fill the void. That's where Black Panther comes in. Along with Doctor Strange 2 Marvel has to get another Black Panther movie ready to go. Marvel just announced that there will be a sequel. It helps that it just made $1 billion dollars at the box office. I think this will speed up the creative process for a sequel. Having Black Panther, Doctor Strange and Captain Marvel lead the charge for Marvel is a big deal. But the pressure on Black Panther is different then the other two.
Black Panther has positioned itself as the lead series for the next phase of Marvel movies by making so much money. The problem is I think they emptied the load as far as it's villains are concerned. When Klaw was introduced in the second Avengers movie I figured he would be the main villain for the first Black Panther movie. I thought M'Baku would be the lead in the sequel. The third movie would have Kilmonger as the lead. Well that's not gonna happened obviously. So the next movie will be as much of a surprise to me as it will be for you. Black Panther doesn't have a large rogues gallery at all. This leads me to wonder if Black Panther can really carry the weight of the future expectations of the lead Marvel movie.
I've seen this happen before from Marvel and so have you. Remember the Blade movies starring Wesley Snipes? Those were the first official Marvel Studios movie. If you remember those movies than you'll remember what happened. The first movie was dope. It was a movie that kicked ass. The second movie was so-so. The third movie was a waste but it did finish the Blade story. Now I worry that Black Panther may follow the same path that Blade took. If so then the other Marvel movies may or may not be affected but it will be a case of some people saying, see we knew the Black movie couldn't carry the Marvel legacy.
That's the other side of things that people won't tell you about. As a black man I encourage enjoying this moment. We had a movie where a black superhero with ninja powers is a King. Yes, his powers could be taken away by grape juice but so what. Yes, he was doing a Nelson Mandela accent while playing the role of Dr. King. Yes, his main adversary was playing the role of Brother Malcolm meets Tupac. We know this but we also know that when this moment passes, and it will, we have to get ready for the next thing. If the next Black Panther movie drops the ball even a little bit it'll be like we all dropped the ball. We know that won't be true but the feeling will be there. We don't get superheroes that look like us often so we get sensitive about their succeeding but their perceived failures weight heavier on us.
This is why I wonder if this movie truly was a paradigm shift in superhero movies. Superheros that star black superheroes male or female especially. Here's something to think about, DC Comics Cyborg has a movie planned for him. Do you think he'll match Black Panthers success? After you stop laughing think about what will happen when it's failure is measured against the rest of the DC movies. That poor reflection won't help get that movie a sequel. It certainly won't help other potential movies starring superheroes who are not caucasian.
I enjoyed Black Panther enough to watch it twice in theaters. I just didn't get carried away with it. I'm glad it was good but for the sequel I hope it does what the Captain America movies did. The first one was good, second one better and the third was great. I hope the next ones follow and even exceed those expectations. The team behind the movie set themselves up in a way I can't see through. I have a few ideas about where they can go but that's not enough to make even half a movie. Now try to make a sequel that matches the $1 Billion that this movie made. That's going to take some serious powers that I hope the Black Panther has otherwise the paradigm shifts back to where it use to be which I hope does not happen. Wakanda Forever. Enjoy.
Avengers by Jonathan Hickman, Vol. 1 by Jonathan Hickman
Avengers: The Enemy Within by Kelly Sue DeConnick
King Thor by Jason Aaron
Thor: Worldengine by Warren Ellis
Scarlet Witch by James Robinson: The Complete Collection by James Robinson
Secret Empire by Nick Spencer
Infinity Gauntlet by Jim Starlin
Kang the Conqueror: Only Myself Left to Conquer by Collin Kelly
Black Knight: The Fall of Dane Whitman by Frank Tieri
Infinity by Jonathan Hickman
Captain Marvel, Volume 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More by Kelly Sue DeConnick
Captain Marvel Vol. 2: Down by Kelly Sue DeConnick
Avengers: Standoff by Geoff Johns
Siege by Brian Michael Bendis
Avengers: The Complete Collection by Geoff Johns Vol. 2 by Geoff Johns
Captain Marvel, Volume 1: In Pursuit of Flight by Kelly Sue DeConnick
The New Avengers: Illuminati by Brian Michael Bendis
This is why I wonder if this movie truly was a paradigm shift in superhero movies. Superheros that star black superheroes male or female especially. Here's something to think about, DC Comics Cyborg has a movie planned for him. Do you think he'll match Black Panthers success? After you stop laughing think about what will happen when it's failure is measured against the rest of the DC movies. That poor reflection won't help get that movie a sequel. It certainly won't help other potential movies starring superheroes who are not caucasian.
I enjoyed Black Panther enough to watch it twice in theaters. I just didn't get carried away with it. I'm glad it was good but for the sequel I hope it does what the Captain America movies did. The first one was good, second one better and the third was great. I hope the next ones follow and even exceed those expectations. The team behind the movie set themselves up in a way I can't see through. I have a few ideas about where they can go but that's not enough to make even half a movie. Now try to make a sequel that matches the $1 Billion that this movie made. That's going to take some serious powers that I hope the Black Panther has otherwise the paradigm shifts back to where it use to be which I hope does not happen. Wakanda Forever. Enjoy.
Captain America: Living Legend by Andy Diggle