A brief weekly rundown of recommendations of new releases I’m intrigued by, excited for and will be grabbing off the shelves to curl up with every new comics day before delving into them later in the week!
Have you hugged your local comic store owner today?
Powers of X #3- Marvel Comics
Without hyperbole, a handful of issues in and Hickman’s bold new take on Marvel’s Mutants is the most forward thinking and exciting X-Men series I have read in year and has the same visceral,shock to the system that New X-Men did over a decade ago as the writer continues to upend everything we know about Xavier’s misfit group to stunning jaw dropping effect.
Two series entwining with each, House of X and Powers of X takes the concept of Mutants forming it’s own safe haven, a nation of it’s own. While this isn’t new by stretch of the imagination Hickman takes it three steps further with the newly Established Krakoa not only being a hideaway for the mutants, but establishing itself on the worlds stage with trade and economy with three beneficial drugs offered to mankind. Seeing the mutants no longer on the back foot, but confident for the future and like Hickman himself, thinking long term. It’s been an interesting experience seeing these characters in a position of power as a community instead of being hunted and hated and found myself just for a few moments connecting with how general population of the Marvel Universe sees them and arrives at a place of fear None so evident as cyclops’ encounter with the Fanatic Four who despite their powerful abilities have a palpable sense of dread that permiates the encounter, dread practically oozing of the panels.
Anyone familiar with Hickman knows that he sets up his tenures with long time, far reaching plans that is all over his Fantastic Four and Avengers runs, with one eventually bringing about the end of the world. There’s a tantalisingly bigger picture that we are only seeing glimpses of so far, but it never looses sight of the here and now, delivering a solid story each issue that will have you thinking about it until the next issue comes out
Superman’s Pal: Jimmy Olsen #2- DC Comics
Promising to kill Jimmy in 12 issues, it gives the young reporter a hell lot longer than Man of Steel afforded him and instead of being embarrassed by one the many ridiculous element of Superman’s publication history, Fraction dives into Jimmy’s disguise kit and dusts off the Silver Age silliness,producing something that is gloriously fun! It would have been so easy to smooth down the weird edges off Jimmy to a truly modern take on the character in keeping with the rest of the DC Universes love of the gritty and real, which Fraction eschews from the first page, as we see Jimmy undergo an unexpected but trademark transformations. Who doesn’t want to see Superman catching a giant turtle jimmy hurtling towards Metropolis?
While I loved the the first issue of Ruka’s Lois Lane, it wouldn’t have worked for Superman’s pal and would have seemed like a pale imitation. It’s way more fun to think of these two supporting characters going in equally thrilling but radically different adventures when the big blue boy scout isn’t around. Lois is the serious, beating the streets hard journalism, while Fraction frames Olsen more at the buzzfeed, shock value end of the spectrum. Fractions love for Olsen’s silver age portrayal is plainly obvious, but even with the slight modern sensibility, the nods to legal troubles and Jimmy “tilting towards video”, he steadfastly keeps the reporter as the perennially happy, eager superhero pal that makes his character such a delight!
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