Marvel Zombies 2 #3
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Sean Phillips

‘Marvel Zombies’ used to be one of my favorites series.

Good ghoulish, zombie fun. No morality play. Just lots of superhero zombies eating as many people as they could.

But ‘Marvel Zombies 2’ seeks to explore the humanity of zombies. That the most heroic of spirits can control their cannibalistic urges.

An interesting approach, but one that takes the fun out of it, for me at least.

Because if Black Panther, Wasp, Spider-Man and Luke Cage can control their urges, then the rest of the zombie superheroes are weak-willed killers who have fallen prey to their weaknesses.

To put it another way, this plot point suggests that almost every Marvel superhero, when faced with enough adversity, will show that they are, in fact, not heroes at all.

And a morality play is not what I was hoping to get from a comic book about superhero zombies.

X-Men #206
‘Messiah CompleX, Chapter Nine’
Writer: Mike Carey
Penciler: Chris Bachalo
Inker: Tim Townsend and Jon Sibal

I’m impressed.

This crossover actually seems to be going somewhere.

Very nice effort by Mike Carey and Chris Bachalo.

See. I don’t hate everything.

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Ultimate Power #9
Writers: Brian Bendis; Michael Straczynski; Jeph Loeb
Pencils: Greg Land; Inks: Jay Leisten

After 9 issues and 15 months, the ‘Ultimate Power’ miniseries comes to a merciful end.

Let me start with the art.

Greg Land’s photo-realistic artwork style of impeccable makeup and brighteningly white teeth, not to mention the cheesecake poses and skimpy outfits give the feel of a Lingerie Bowl or Victoria’s Secret catalog and not the world of ‘Ultimate’ superheroes. Land’s art, while so refreshing when it first came out, feels shockingly out of place here.

And the story.

Nearly a year and a half ago, this story by Bendis, Straczynski and Loeb began with such promise before being ineptly and jarringly handed off from writer to writer to writer. Peel away the artwork and the countless publishing delays, and one finds a ridiculous plot where whole teams of superheroes disappear for issues at a time with no explanation. And the improbable resolution after such a long wait makes one hope that the promised destruction of the Ultimate Universe is not just another marketing ploy.

Giant-Size Avengers Special#1
“Memorial Day” among others
Writer: Matt Yocum
Artist: Paul Neary

A series of unrelated Avengers stories loosely tied together by an overarching narrative.

‘Memorial Day’ features a brief (and uneven) Wolverine cameo during the early days of the New Avengers.

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Marvel Holiday Special 2007 #1
“Piece of Cake”
Writer: Andrew Farago & Shaenon K. Garrity
Penciler: Lou Kang; Inker: Craig Yeung

This is an amusing little Christmas story with a nice little surprise at the end. Very well done.

I just wish Marvel would clean up their continuity. This story takes place a more classic Marvel universe with Peter Parker still working at the Daily Bugle. But instead of clearly defined worlds where every story can take place within continuity, Marvel now features stories nearly every week that seem to occur in worlds of their own. As a result, we feel no connection to the story or to the characters. It’s like reading a series of one-shots or comics strips.

And personally I don’t think it needs to be this way.

One of the reasons I became enamored by the Marvel universe was explained by Roy Thomas in the back of the first issue of What If?, “…these stories are ones which actually do take place – not in our dimension or time continuum, but in worlds coexisting alongside ours, of which there are theoretically untold billions. They’re as real, in their own way, as any of the parallel-world stories which have appeared in Fantastic Four, Avengers, or anywhere else.”

Would it really be that hard to set up a handful of worlds for these non-canons stories to appear? We already have 616, Ultimate, Zombies, Marvel Adventures. Why not add a few more and satisfy the purists out there?

Wolverine: Firebreak
Writer: Mike Carey
Penciler: Scott Kolins

Nothing special here.

Feels like a filler story for Wolverine that never got used.

Pedestrian story by Mike Carey, and artwork by Scott Kolins that sometimes looks like it was inked by Allen Milgrom.

“Little White Lies”
Writer: Macon Blair; Artist: Vasilis Lolos

A very weird ten-page backup story features disturbing artwork by Lolos and an offbeat story by Blair. Very funky.

Wolverine: Origins #20
“Our War, Conclusion”
Writer: Daniel Way
Artist: Steve Dillion

Another arc in this series is now finished, so I can pass judgment with being reprimanded for judging a storyline before it’s over.

I hated it.

I know what your thinking. Hey, don’t hold back.

This series has taken the fun out of Wolverine’s background. And not by revealing too much of his past.

Logan used to be a heroic figure in World War II, albeit one with a chip on his shoulder. This story reveals him to be thoroughly dislikable, dishonorable and a weasel.

We grew up liking Wolverine because he was a failed samurai who never stopped trying to become a better man. It was his indomitable spirit and will that we admired. Did he kill? Did he do things that were wrong? Sure. But he did them because he believed they were the right thing to do at the time. That sometimes, assassination is necessary. That sometimes killing is necessary for the greater good.

But in this series, Daniel Way has reduced Logan to a traitorous pawn who would betray anyone simply because he is told to. Shockingly, he seems no different than the Nazis running concentration camps, claiming simply to be ‘following orders.’

New X-Men #45
“Messiah CompleX, Chapter 8”
Writers: Craig Kyle and Chris Yost
Penciler: Humberto Ramos; Inker: Carlos Cuevas

Still haven’t been able to track down Chapter 7, but this is a good solid issue of fighting.

X-23 vs. Deathstrike is quite enjoyable especially under the expert pencil of Humberto Ramos.

Unfortunately there is a fairly cheesy scene near the end that reeks of editorial meddling, but as a whole, I was pleasantly surprised by this issue.

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Ultimate X-Men #89
“Shadow King”
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Salvador Larroca

Upon my first reading, I was sure I had missed an issue somewhere along the line. I mean, it starts in the middle of a battle and reads like the final issue of a five-part series.

After a quick check, I confirmed that I had not, in fact, missed an issue.

I was perplexed.

Robert Kirkman isn’t the sort of writer to do something like this.

Then it occurred to me.

Isn’t there a big Ultimate Ultimatum event coming up soon?

It makes me wonder if Kirkman had to speed up his story arcs and condense a traditional 5-part series into one to make time for an Ultimate media event in 2008.

A boatload of probable/possible Wolverine appearances scheduled to hit stores this Wednesday, 12/19/07:

-Wolverine: Origins #20 (Preview): “Our War, Part 5 of 5”
-Wolverine: Firebreak (Preview): Wolverine one-shot written by Mike Carey…
-New X-Men #45 (Cover/Details): “Messiah CompleX” Chapter 8…
-Marvel Holiday Special (Preview): Wolverine confirmed for the holidays…
-Exiles #100 (Preview): Last issue of the series may feature a Wolverine flashback since he appeared so frequently throughout the run… (Update: No Wolverine)
-Ultimate X-Men #89 (Preview): Shadow King storyline begins…
-Marvel Adventures The Avengers #19 (Cover/Details): No Wolverine on the cover… (Update: No Wolverine inside either)
-What If: Civil War (Preview): Wolverine will probably cameo at the very least… (Update: Sold out at my store)