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That's the one I've waited the most impatiently this month. And... well, it's not exactly what I expected.
X-Men 203 'Blinded by the Light, part 4'
Let's start with the good things. Iceman and Cannonball get a major spotlight this month, since they happen to be the only X-Men capable of fighting back at the moment. Iceman is my most precious baby, you write him the right way and give him lots of panels, you are automatically in my good graces. Which is the main reason why Carey, while demoted from his god status I granted him just a month ago, still enjoys a very high ranking on my personal list. Well, that and the fact that he's generally good. Anyway, Bobby handles himself quite admirably here. He acts competently, uses his powers inventively, takes down half the Marauders and gets in a dig at Mystique ('You're not scheming. Working to a plan. You're just rabid' - a nice one, Drake). Also, he's barefoot through the entire issue and that's just cute. On the whole, he makes me very happy this month.
Other happy, not Iceman-related, moments include Colossus flipping through emergency Beast holograms with a remote, White Queen's 'Shall I give you an inspirational speech about how hardship builds character?' and Cannonball's 'No thanks, just play some muzak in the background', Emma refusing to drool on her chin even in crisis situations, Sunfire not liking Mystique, Mystique not liking Gambit, the old Marauders not liking the new ones and basically them all not being a big happy family at all, and Blindfold talking nutty some more, which never stops being entertaining. Oh, and the sound effects. The sound effects were fantastic this month. SKRUNT, FRVASSH, FLAAAMMMM and my favorite: REKKA REKKA. That one still cracks me up.
So, Carey definitely wins on Iceman and little moments but he, sadly, loses at the main plot. It pains me to say that, especially that the story was shaping up exceptionally well up to this point.
Firstly, we were promised answers. We get no answers. Twenty two pages fly past and we know exactly as much as we did in last issue. Granted, there is an epilogue scheduled for next month so this story might yet get tied up together properly but that still leaves the fact that this issue accomplishes nothing. Other than making Cannonball possibly brain-dead, but that's nothing to brag about.
Secondly, this issue makes Sinister look like a twat. I hate incompetent villains. Unless they are insane/delusional/dumb by nature because then it's not only ok but also enjoyable. Sinister is a certified genius and a cold-blooded bastard. He's not allowed to act witless.
Ok, perhaps he doesn't do anything drastically stupid here but he certainly doesn't shine either. I don't even mind that he showed up completely out of the blue and knocked out Iceman and Cannonball in a way that he really wasn't supposed to, given his powers profile (I've decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he was just using that telepathy of his in a interestingly offensive manner there). My main grumble is that he showed up personally to do the dirty work and, in the end, he got nothing done. The diaries were easily within his reach but they got stupidly destroyed. Which was also, incidentally, the most messy panel sequence that I've ever seen. Panel 1: Cannonball lying on the ground, Gambit standing over him, Scalphunter telling Gambit to shove aside because it's his kill and Mystigue standing good three meters away with the diaries at her feet. Panel 2: Sam looking up at Remy with a non-defined expression. Panel 3: Remy looking down at Sam with a non-defined expression. Panel 4: Gambit throwing his cards at Cannonball, Cannonball apparently performing a vertical take-off to reveal the diaries that are now suddenly right beneath him. Panel 5: lots of pink light and FLAAAMMMM. Next page: the diaries are now in tatters. Ramos did a shitty job there.
Ok, back to the point. It would have made so much more sense if Sam just destroyed them himself before anyone else could reach for them. This whole stunt was probably supposed to convey that Gambit is not a bad guy and has his own agenda but it was so clumsy that, when Sinister accepts Gambit's flimsy excuse that he was thrown off his aim and it was not his fault, it makes Sinister look like a moron. And if Gambit actually is a bad guy after all and it was an honest mistake on his part, then he's a staggeringly inept villain. Neither option works.
Thirdly, if the Marauders come up against Iceman and Cannonball again and are all surprised that they are still alive I swear I'm gonna scream. They left Mystique to 'take care of them'. That she spared Iceman because a) she's still on X-Men's side and/or b) she's fond of him is even beside the point. How do you 'take care' of Iceman with a gun? The man can explode and put himself back together with barely any effort, how can a bullet possibly kill him? Yes, she shot off his arm and he hasn't made himself a new one yet but that's probably because he's still reeling from Sinister's whammy. I really don't think that a shot in the head would have been much more effective. I like the conversation between the two of them, it's good they got to have a private tete-a-tete after all that went down three issues ago, but the circumstances around it just don't hold up.
I don't actually think Sinister wants the X-Men dead. He wants them out of his way and he surely wouldn't hesitate to kill them if he didn't have any other choice, but, with so few mutants left, he'd probably view it as a waste of valuable resources. And I'm pretty sure at least some of them figure in his grand plan. I'm willing to make all this assumptions because I still have a lot of goodwill left for this title and this storyline. A few more issues like that, though, even that's gonna run dry. Fix it, Carey. Make the villain smart again and you might yet get your God button back. And, again, thanks for Iceman.
In 'Endangered Species' segment Beast is - surprise surprise - still not even an inch closer to the answer. Instead, he and Dark Beast have a catfight. In which Beast is Morally Superior and Dark Beast is, naturally, Morally Repugnant. And then Lucinda Guthrie shoots the monkey one with a shotgun. Which is kind of awesome. And then Beast has a quiet nervous breakdown and decides he's had enough and is finished. There are still four parts left so I have a hard time believing it.
'X-Men First Class' is, unsurprisingly, adorable again. Bobby and Hank go on a road trip. It's really as simple as that. They visit weird places, go to a casino, eat boiled peanuts, camp, gossip on their friends' love lives, help a few people run from a hurricane and bond. Not even one villain in sight. I love it. And Julia Bax' art looks remarkably similar to that of Roger Cruz so there is no jarring shift here. I still prefer Cruz but I think I actually like Bax' Hank better. And she drew this little picture of Scott with a Yay!face, which is too perfect for words:
'Cable & Deadpool' takes us into WWII to meet Captain America and his teenage sidekick, Bucky ('Seriously, who gives a teenage kid a machine gun and says, "Go get them"?' - word, Bob). It's good issue. Bob acts twitchy, Deadpool, amazingly, manages to hold a serious conversation with Captain America and Bucky the bloodthirsty, foul-mouthed psycho sidekick is thoroughly entertaining ('He's a lot feistier that the history books said'). However, as much as I like Bob the Agent of Hydra, I miss Deadpool doing the recap page. And narrating of course, but I'm pretty sure Bob's square thought boxes stint was just a one-off. He whines quite amusingly, though: 'We walk for miles. Captain America and Wade never get tired. Apparently, Bucky refuses to. I'm very tired and my feet hurt. I watched 'Band of Brothers' and this feels nothing like that.' Hee.
The murder investigation plotline in 'Iron Man' man is definitely starting to heat up and I'm positively intrigued now. Points on great character design with Gadget and how nicely it ties with the Mandarin plot. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to like this 'talking to the dead' thing but so far I'm still willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. Oh, and Roberto de la Torre's art is as breathtaking as ever.
'Avengers The Initiative' continues to be great fun. I like the twist in the end. I like how the on-going threads with MVP not being quite dead, Hardball kinda working for evil people get handled. I like Gauntlet's family and big bunny, little bunny. I like neurotic Gyrich and his 'I frickin' hate that woman. You run a full background check. See if she's paid all her taxes'. I like 'the clue in the locker' move. I actually like everything here. Even Steve Uy's art. Even though his Tigra and Sally Floyd are obviously wrong. And his black people should be blacker. Otherwise, it's just dandy.
'The Order' is visibly a book with an certain formula that will probably get annoying if they keep it up for too long but, for now, it works perfectly. And Matt Fraction made himself the most interestingly fucked-up team in the whole Marvel Universe (ok, other than 'Thunderbolts' but they are all psychos so it's easier for them). The best issue yet, hands down.
'Immortal Iron Fist' is practically a kung fu movie in a comic version. A good kung fu movie in a comic version. A good kung-fu movie in a beautifully drawn comic version, even. In other words, I'm quite delighted. And Danny's duel with Fat Cobra is easily wins The Best Fight of the Month Award. Oh, and there is this great Heroes for Hire cameo (I'm less delighted with the annual, partly because it has Howard Chaykin and I hate Howard Chaykin and his square jaws, partly because it makes a great deal of how Danny going to see this historian dude is crucial for his immediate survival and how he needs some answers right freaking now because otherwise the world is doomed and then he doesn't even ask any questions. Where is the logic in that? Also, I'm really not that fond of flashbacks.
As for the tv eps that I managed to catch already, 'Shark' was, as usual, pretty bland (and I don't like the new guy since the Young, Brash and Angry Hotshot thing doesn't really work for me here and, also, Sam Page was prettier), 'Grey's Anatomy' was more or less alright (on the one hand it got back that light and quirky vibe it was famous for, on the other, I don't like that Lexie girl, they are mistreating Callie and Alex had bad hair) and 'House' was so great I almost didn't miss Chase at all (it has the Janitor the Emergency Duckling, House and Wilson biggest power play ever and, to boot, a genuinely interesting medical case with a surprise ending, what more could you possibly want? oh, right, Chase). Now I'm gonna get my hands on 'Bionic Woman'. It has Starbuck, it can't be bad.
.
X-Men 203 'Blinded by the Light, part 4'
Let's start with the good things. Iceman and Cannonball get a major spotlight this month, since they happen to be the only X-Men capable of fighting back at the moment. Iceman is my most precious baby, you write him the right way and give him lots of panels, you are automatically in my good graces. Which is the main reason why Carey, while demoted from his god status I granted him just a month ago, still enjoys a very high ranking on my personal list. Well, that and the fact that he's generally good. Anyway, Bobby handles himself quite admirably here. He acts competently, uses his powers inventively, takes down half the Marauders and gets in a dig at Mystique ('You're not scheming. Working to a plan. You're just rabid' - a nice one, Drake). Also, he's barefoot through the entire issue and that's just cute. On the whole, he makes me very happy this month.
Other happy, not Iceman-related, moments include Colossus flipping through emergency Beast holograms with a remote, White Queen's 'Shall I give you an inspirational speech about how hardship builds character?' and Cannonball's 'No thanks, just play some muzak in the background', Emma refusing to drool on her chin even in crisis situations, Sunfire not liking Mystique, Mystique not liking Gambit, the old Marauders not liking the new ones and basically them all not being a big happy family at all, and Blindfold talking nutty some more, which never stops being entertaining. Oh, and the sound effects. The sound effects were fantastic this month. SKRUNT, FRVASSH, FLAAAMMMM and my favorite: REKKA REKKA. That one still cracks me up.
So, Carey definitely wins on Iceman and little moments but he, sadly, loses at the main plot. It pains me to say that, especially that the story was shaping up exceptionally well up to this point.
Firstly, we were promised answers. We get no answers. Twenty two pages fly past and we know exactly as much as we did in last issue. Granted, there is an epilogue scheduled for next month so this story might yet get tied up together properly but that still leaves the fact that this issue accomplishes nothing. Other than making Cannonball possibly brain-dead, but that's nothing to brag about.
Secondly, this issue makes Sinister look like a twat. I hate incompetent villains. Unless they are insane/delusional/dumb by nature because then it's not only ok but also enjoyable. Sinister is a certified genius and a cold-blooded bastard. He's not allowed to act witless.
Ok, perhaps he doesn't do anything drastically stupid here but he certainly doesn't shine either. I don't even mind that he showed up completely out of the blue and knocked out Iceman and Cannonball in a way that he really wasn't supposed to, given his powers profile (I've decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he was just using that telepathy of his in a interestingly offensive manner there). My main grumble is that he showed up personally to do the dirty work and, in the end, he got nothing done. The diaries were easily within his reach but they got stupidly destroyed. Which was also, incidentally, the most messy panel sequence that I've ever seen. Panel 1: Cannonball lying on the ground, Gambit standing over him, Scalphunter telling Gambit to shove aside because it's his kill and Mystigue standing good three meters away with the diaries at her feet. Panel 2: Sam looking up at Remy with a non-defined expression. Panel 3: Remy looking down at Sam with a non-defined expression. Panel 4: Gambit throwing his cards at Cannonball, Cannonball apparently performing a vertical take-off to reveal the diaries that are now suddenly right beneath him. Panel 5: lots of pink light and FLAAAMMMM. Next page: the diaries are now in tatters. Ramos did a shitty job there.
Ok, back to the point. It would have made so much more sense if Sam just destroyed them himself before anyone else could reach for them. This whole stunt was probably supposed to convey that Gambit is not a bad guy and has his own agenda but it was so clumsy that, when Sinister accepts Gambit's flimsy excuse that he was thrown off his aim and it was not his fault, it makes Sinister look like a moron. And if Gambit actually is a bad guy after all and it was an honest mistake on his part, then he's a staggeringly inept villain. Neither option works.
Thirdly, if the Marauders come up against Iceman and Cannonball again and are all surprised that they are still alive I swear I'm gonna scream. They left Mystique to 'take care of them'. That she spared Iceman because a) she's still on X-Men's side and/or b) she's fond of him is even beside the point. How do you 'take care' of Iceman with a gun? The man can explode and put himself back together with barely any effort, how can a bullet possibly kill him? Yes, she shot off his arm and he hasn't made himself a new one yet but that's probably because he's still reeling from Sinister's whammy. I really don't think that a shot in the head would have been much more effective. I like the conversation between the two of them, it's good they got to have a private tete-a-tete after all that went down three issues ago, but the circumstances around it just don't hold up.
I don't actually think Sinister wants the X-Men dead. He wants them out of his way and he surely wouldn't hesitate to kill them if he didn't have any other choice, but, with so few mutants left, he'd probably view it as a waste of valuable resources. And I'm pretty sure at least some of them figure in his grand plan. I'm willing to make all this assumptions because I still have a lot of goodwill left for this title and this storyline. A few more issues like that, though, even that's gonna run dry. Fix it, Carey. Make the villain smart again and you might yet get your God button back. And, again, thanks for Iceman.
In 'Endangered Species' segment Beast is - surprise surprise - still not even an inch closer to the answer. Instead, he and Dark Beast have a catfight. In which Beast is Morally Superior and Dark Beast is, naturally, Morally Repugnant. And then Lucinda Guthrie shoots the monkey one with a shotgun. Which is kind of awesome. And then Beast has a quiet nervous breakdown and decides he's had enough and is finished. There are still four parts left so I have a hard time believing it.
'X-Men First Class' is, unsurprisingly, adorable again. Bobby and Hank go on a road trip. It's really as simple as that. They visit weird places, go to a casino, eat boiled peanuts, camp, gossip on their friends' love lives, help a few people run from a hurricane and bond. Not even one villain in sight. I love it. And Julia Bax' art looks remarkably similar to that of Roger Cruz so there is no jarring shift here. I still prefer Cruz but I think I actually like Bax' Hank better. And she drew this little picture of Scott with a Yay!face, which is too perfect for words:
'Cable & Deadpool' takes us into WWII to meet Captain America and his teenage sidekick, Bucky ('Seriously, who gives a teenage kid a machine gun and says, "Go get them"?' - word, Bob). It's good issue. Bob acts twitchy, Deadpool, amazingly, manages to hold a serious conversation with Captain America and Bucky the bloodthirsty, foul-mouthed psycho sidekick is thoroughly entertaining ('He's a lot feistier that the history books said'). However, as much as I like Bob the Agent of Hydra, I miss Deadpool doing the recap page. And narrating of course, but I'm pretty sure Bob's square thought boxes stint was just a one-off. He whines quite amusingly, though: 'We walk for miles. Captain America and Wade never get tired. Apparently, Bucky refuses to. I'm very tired and my feet hurt. I watched 'Band of Brothers' and this feels nothing like that.' Hee.
The murder investigation plotline in 'Iron Man' man is definitely starting to heat up and I'm positively intrigued now. Points on great character design with Gadget and how nicely it ties with the Mandarin plot. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to like this 'talking to the dead' thing but so far I'm still willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. Oh, and Roberto de la Torre's art is as breathtaking as ever.
'Avengers The Initiative' continues to be great fun. I like the twist in the end. I like how the on-going threads with MVP not being quite dead, Hardball kinda working for evil people get handled. I like Gauntlet's family and big bunny, little bunny. I like neurotic Gyrich and his 'I frickin' hate that woman. You run a full background check. See if she's paid all her taxes'. I like 'the clue in the locker' move. I actually like everything here. Even Steve Uy's art. Even though his Tigra and Sally Floyd are obviously wrong. And his black people should be blacker. Otherwise, it's just dandy.
'The Order' is visibly a book with an certain formula that will probably get annoying if they keep it up for too long but, for now, it works perfectly. And Matt Fraction made himself the most interestingly fucked-up team in the whole Marvel Universe (ok, other than 'Thunderbolts' but they are all psychos so it's easier for them). The best issue yet, hands down.
'Immortal Iron Fist' is practically a kung fu movie in a comic version. A good kung fu movie in a comic version. A good kung-fu movie in a beautifully drawn comic version, even. In other words, I'm quite delighted. And Danny's duel with Fat Cobra is easily wins The Best Fight of the Month Award. Oh, and there is this great Heroes for Hire cameo (I'm less delighted with the annual, partly because it has Howard Chaykin and I hate Howard Chaykin and his square jaws, partly because it makes a great deal of how Danny going to see this historian dude is crucial for his immediate survival and how he needs some answers right freaking now because otherwise the world is doomed and then he doesn't even ask any questions. Where is the logic in that? Also, I'm really not that fond of flashbacks.
As for the tv eps that I managed to catch already, 'Shark' was, as usual, pretty bland (and I don't like the new guy since the Young, Brash and Angry Hotshot thing doesn't really work for me here and, also, Sam Page was prettier), 'Grey's Anatomy' was more or less alright (on the one hand it got back that light and quirky vibe it was famous for, on the other, I don't like that Lexie girl, they are mistreating Callie and Alex had bad hair) and 'House' was so great I almost didn't miss Chase at all (it has the Janitor the Emergency Duckling, House and Wilson biggest power play ever and, to boot, a genuinely interesting medical case with a surprise ending, what more could you possibly want? oh, right, Chase). Now I'm gonna get my hands on 'Bionic Woman'. It has Starbuck, it can't be bad.
.