Boy, it still feels weird that Brian Michael Bendis isn’t at Marvel anymore. Like the dude or hate him—and there is plenty of material to support either decision—he WAS Marvel for, like, fifteen years. And now he’s on the other side of the tracks. Wild. I met Bendis at a Con waaaay back when Ultimate Spider-Man was less than a dozen issues in, and he … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: Age of Ultron
Heroes in Crisis has ended! Tom King’s latest mini-series has indeed wrapped its nine issue run, and it has joined the ranks of Vision, Mr. Miracle, and Omega Men among the short-term works for which the writer has become known. Ultimately, Heroes in Crisis was the story of how post-traumatic stress disorder affects the very real human beings behind the colorful costumes and bombastic powers of the DC Universe. … Continue reading Characters Vs Creators – Which Means More to You?
It’s probably me. I’m probably the sucker. I really just enjoy continuity in my funnybooks. I want things that happened before to MATTER. Elseworlds and What If’s are fun, but ultimately, I want there to be a big, long line of continuity that carries through the “main” books of a comics universe. If what happened before doesn’t make a difference to what matters now, then… … Continue reading Top Ten: Best Comics’ Alternate Universes
Who would win in a fight? Superman or Goku? How about the Flash or the Hulk? And who would come out on top if Dr. Doom pitted wits against Brainiac? (Sidenote: “Brainiac” is one of the those names that have existed in comics lore for decades that we all just accept when we really shouldn’t. Really? An interstellar, cunning alien/robot who uses his intellect to … Continue reading In Defense of Battle Boards
What the hell, right? I just did an X-Book last week! Where has the variety gone? Well, as of this writing (and I say the a lot knowing I’m writing batches of these at a time without really keeping track of when they will be posted), this has been the week from hell. Most notably, my cat died out of nowhere from a heart…thing (wait, … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: X-Tinction Agenda
It’s been a long way to the top, but since we do, in fact, want to rock ‘n roll, we have all successfully made it. After the past two weekends of tension-building action where I gave you my favorite comics #11-#15 and then #6-#10, I can tell that your anticipation is at an absolute fever pitch! But never let it be said that I don’t satisfy my readers … Continue reading My Top Fifteen Stories Ever: #5 to #1!
What would you put as the Over/Under on how many iterations of X-Men #1 there have been over the years? Like, factoring in all the various adjectives, color qualifiers, and other name addendums? Uncanncy, Blue, Gold, X-Treme, and the like? How many versions of X-Men #1 have there been over the years? It’s got to be more than 20, right? I’m not even counting other … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: X-Men Volume 4
I turned 40 recently. I know it’s “just a number” and “you are as old as you feel” and all (which… isn’t useful ever since I fell down the stairs in December and hurt my back; I feel 65), but it’s still a whole thing, right? Turning FORTY, man. Thirty is no big deal; you’re just “more of an adult” at that point. Fifty is … Continue reading Top Ten: Best Comic Book Characters Since 1981
As of this writing, Marvel’s most recent event story, Secret Empire has concluded, and the sentiment seems to be… poor. I did not read it; I have a bad habit of only buying comics in trade because then I can cherry-pick stories that I have already heard good things about. It’s almost a shame… Marvel does event stories more often than I eat three meals a day, … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: Hawkeye
I take no pride in being something of a harsh grader when it comes to comic books. I am not really sure why it is–I tend to grade out movies much more generously than I do comics for whatever reason–but if you look at my grading history, it is easy to see I am typically likely to score books relatively lower than others might. The … Continue reading Tough Grading, The Elusive A+, And My Top 15 Stories EVER
I haven’t done enough “older” comics on these reviews, and I recognize that. There’s a perfectly good reason for it, though, and it’s that, uh, I don’t tend to love them. And I judge them more harshly because of that. It’s not an across-the-board thing, obviously—what is?—but it’s there. A lot of 60’s and 70’s era titles have similar conventions running through them that just … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: Ms. Marvel
Nobody liked 2020. I mean, it’s even kind of boring as a meme at this point, but yeah, we all know it… 2020 was kind of a dogshit year. That’s brutal, but honest. My 2020 more-or-less started with appendicitis (and that, having happened in January, genuinely feels like an eternity ago), and really… everything just went downhill from there. But don’t worry! It’s all over … Continue reading The Top Fifteen Jubilee Comics
Welcome back, everyone! You know what I’m a fan of? For one thing, not ending sentences in prepositions! So let’s try again: You know of what I am a fan (Whoof, proper grammar is unwieldy)? Free Comic Book Day! First weekend in May every year, just like clockwork. Good old Free Comic Book Day. And I will tell ya: for a day with “free” right … Continue reading Stew’s Reviews: Venom by Rick Remender
Previously, I had discussed the recent disdain I have found for both Marvel and DC; a disdain which led to my culling all of the titles from each publisher from my current pull list at my comic shop. I went on and into what I see as the inevitable future of the industry–an online-only model that replaces expensive and less profitable printed books with subscription … Continue reading Heroes Of Manga
Well, it’s official. As of this past weekend, I no longer have any Marvel or DC books on my Pull List at my local comic shop. (Which is not to say I have any indie books because I don’t. I have… my pull list is zero. It is no list.) I finally put my money where my mouth is and dropped the remaining titles from … Continue reading Marvel and DC… No More!
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