COMIC SYNOPSIS : OCTOBER 12, 2011 - SUICIDE SQUAD 2, NEW AVENGERS 17, X-MEN: REGENESIS 1, UNCANNY X-FORCE 16, AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 671

SUICIDE SQUAD 2 :

Story starts with Deadshot talking to boss Waller via satellite feed. The team is at a football stadium that has been shut down for quarantine. A random fan comes up to Deadshot and explain the events that led up to now which include people turning into zombieish as they start devouring fellow fans and players. After the story Deadshot puts on in his head and notes that he was infected anyways. The team gets a few seconds to ponder what to do when a mob of infected people attack them. Deadshot ends up having some blood spilled on his skin. Team splits up to counter attack the group. Once together again they confront a woman that is not like the others and is pregnant and they presume she is the main carrier of the disease. She mutates into some type of blobish tentacle thing until King Sharks comes up behind and bites her head clean off. They figure out that the unborn baby was the purpose of their mission as it is immune to the disease. Deadshot is online with Waller again and they both know that their needs to be a culprit to tie all this together like a super-villain, Deadshot turns and kills Voltaic which makes him the fall guy. Waller is then informs him that evac is on hold for 3 hours and that Deadshot must not get caught or killed and must protect the baby at all costs and that the rest of the team is expendable.

Rating : 3/5 - A good issue with no slowing down and the story moving at a great pace. Art is perfect for the type of story that is being told though still a tad messy. This is the Squad that I enjoyed back in the day and this series shows promise for longevity after a slowish first issue.

NEW AVENGERS 17 :

Story jumps right in with the team going to a scene where a big robot is destroying all its surroundings. Iron Man is on the scene before they get there and though he warns them to stand down as they jump out of a plane to attack the robot they are pushed back by force from the robot. Iron Man explains that any energy force against will be repelled right back at them. As they attack it using non energy hits Wolverine goes in for the kill slashing away at its "heart" and is promptly attacked from behind by a smaller robot who slashes his neck and takes a big blood sample. It then leaves the scene through the air and before they can catch it, it basically goes super sonic and disappears. We then go to another aircraft and see A.I.M agents talking to Madame Hydra and Norman Osborn who escaped imprisonment last issue with their help. They debate on how long their robot should stay and fight the Avengers as each moment that it is there raises the odds of them being discovered they are behind the attack. Norman once getting Wolverine's blood gives the order for the robot to self destruct.

Rating : 3/5 - Now that we are out of the Fear Itself storyline that the Avengers were involved it we can back to good old action Avengers style and this issue does not disappoint. From the first page to the last it is non stop fighting. I like where this storyline is heading as Norman and his new group have join forces to take over the world. No more divide and conquer but combine and assault. Knowing that the Dark Avengers are coming in future issues and Wolverine's blood being taken here, I think the foreshadowing is being placed here. Look forward to more issues like this.

X-MEN: REGENESIS 1 :

Book starts off with a little recap on what happened in Schism and how Cyclops and Wolverine would like everyone to chose a side or go on your own. Wolverine visits Iceman to persuade him to join his side which he does with some kissing up and a beer. It works. Next up is Psylocke and while she agrees to stay with Wolverine on the X-Force team which she can do in secret she can't do the same for him at the school he is restarting and in turn informs Cyclops that she will stick with him at Utopia. Next up is the couple of Peter and Kitty which is split up with Peter staying with Cyclops and Kitty going with her father figure Wolverine. He feels that kids are not safe around him. Beast gets an email from Wolverine and calls him and joins his side. At a nice little dinner Wolverine meets up with Polaris and Havok and they decide to join his side by getting back with X-Factor. Hope is talking to Mystique about staying with Cyclops but what to do with Idie. Though conflicted she feels that Wolverine can take better care of her than she has recently. Though never really in doubt Emma stays with Cyclops so she continue to work in San Francisco. On to some lesser mutants as they decide which way they are going until we get to the last big one which is Storm. She tells Cyclops she is going as she does not believe in what he is planning on doing. Through alot of begging she agrees to stay. The teams are set and onto a new chapter in the X-Men saga.

Rating : 3/5 - Good book. Obviously not really a story issue as it is all set up for what is upcoming in all X books. Art is good and interactions and reasoning behind all decisions are handled well. I look forward to how this plays out in the next year or so. A good starting point read.

UNCANNY X-FORCE 16 :

Part 6 of the Dark Angel Saga begins with Archangel readying the troops as members of X-Force try to break into the compound to stop him. Back in E.V.A. we see the recuperating Wolverine with Famine in who is handcuffed but not powerless as he blows up everything within and leaves Wolverine to burn. We see Archangel talking to the imprisoned Psylocke tell her to join him once more in the new world he is remaking. While Fantomex and Deadpool continue within the compound Blob falls from the sky and lands on Fantomex while Deadpool uses all his bullets to try to get him off of Fantomex. Up top we see Famine about to unleash some of his power til Wolverine, a tad healed from the blast, walk up behind him and slice off both of his hands. Archangel and Psylocke walk about and talk on how her love for him helped him ascend in secrecy but she responds by saying its her love that will bring him back. As he shows her what he plans to do Genocide's mother approaches and is mad that Archangel has allowed her son to become what has become. He silences her but slicing her in half. Wolverine mind links with Psylocke and discuss how this needs to end now as it is getting close to the point of no return. She takes a shot at him and misses. He knocks her out. We see Deathlok attempting to stop Dark Beast and Genocide begin the process of expanding Archangel's vision. Deathlok is knocked out by War from behind. Wolverine scales on outside wall trying to get to Psylocke who we see is being carried by Archangel to sacrifice slab. He lays her on it and injects the life seed into her back and proclaims she will be his Queen Death. We are left with Fantomex within E.V.A. contemplating what to do next.

Rating : 3.5/5 - Continuing a great run is hard to do but this book always delivers. Story is briskly moving with solid dialogue and art. This book makes Wolverine not the main character which I think makes him a better character within a team book. Though this story takes place before Schism and we know Pyslocke makes it through it is interesting to see how she will be affected by what is happening to her by a past love. Can't wait for next month.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 671 :

Right into the action as we see MJ with her new powers swinging into help some bystanders being attacked by a spider. Back to Spider-Man as he trys to restrain J.J. After accomplishing that he decides to go to Horizon where Reed Richards continues to work on a cure. Reed has his first patient to test the possible cure on but she is under the control of the Spider Queen which instructs her by mind to attack which she does. He is able to inject the serum and she changes back and we go back to Spider Queen who is infuriated that she has been cured when she was guaranteed by Jackal that any type of cure was impossible. Back at Horizon we see Anti-Venom being prepared to lose all his powers so all may be saved. This is being done by the mysterious number Six scientist up til now has been not been revealed to who they are. He starts the process with a hand scan on the computer which shows Moribus. Is this who it really is or is he just helping out this one time and moving on? Either way, he starts the process and leaves the building via the sewers. As Spidey swings towards the lab he comes across fellow heroes protecting the jammers that are keeping all the spider beings within the city limits. We pan back to the lab and it has been discovered that the same jammers holding the spider beings in is what caused Spider-Man to lose his spider sense. They decide that need to find a way to redirect it so Spider-Man can get his sense back. Spider-Man approaches the lab and trys to enter via hand scan but it says he is already logged in and before he can even finish his thought he is blindsided by the Spider-King aka Tarantula aka Kaine aka Peter's clone with the same DNA. The fight moves indoors and next to the vat of vaccine made of Anti-Venom's cells. We see Eddie Brock on the sidelines dazed and confused apparently un Anti-Venomed. Spider King attempts to contaminate the cure but Spider-Man webs up the capsule. Right before Spider-King drops him and the capsule into the vat Spider-Man's spider sense comes back in full force and he is able to overpower Spider-King and push him into the vat. He comes out healed from the Queen's control and mutation but it is revealed by doing all this has amplified the Queen's power and she now has the power of a God as she apparently she kills the Jackal for not doing his job. To Be Concluded.....

Rating : 3/5 - A lot of stuff going on here and to a point too much. The story has way too many parts and even though it works it is a tad overwhelming. The story has been solid but I think the whole is better than the parts. Seeing MJ for only two pages was a major disappointment considering she is on the cover. Next issue brings this all to an explosive end. Art is constent if not great.

COMIC SYNOPSIS : SEPTEMBER 14, 2011 - SUICIDE SQUAD 1, ACTION COMICS 1, BATWOMAN 1 , AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 669, UNCANNY X-FORCE 15, NEW AVENGERS 16, FEAR ITSELF 6

First off let me start of with a shout out and thanks to my LCS ( local comicbook shop/store ) Pulp Fiction in Long Beach. I have my pull list at this store and each week I run and get my weekly reads and out the store within 5 mins. Always pleasant. This month only for subscription members they have been giving out free copies of DCnU issue #1 with every issue #1 that is on your pull list. So even though I don't read Superman/Action and Batwoman I will review these as well. Thanks again to Pulp Fiction.

SUICIDE SQUAD 1:

We open up with Deadshot being severely tortured by a man under a potato sack. Page pans out and we see that more members of the squad are in the room on separate tables. While being tortured, Deadshot thinks back to a hit that went wrong as Batman interrupted the hit. He says to himself that was his first failure as a hit man. Next we see El Diablo on another table literally having salt poured onto wounds. He thinks back to an incident with him going into a house to punish some drug runners but find out while killing them he killed innocent babies. The devil with a conscience? Harley Quinn is up next and she remembers the good old days of being with the Joker and being heartbroken of being separated from him. King Shark is off to the side and the captors inquire to see if he is dead as there is no movement. Bad decision as one of them gets too close and loses a limb. Lastly we see Savant and it appears he is about to break as he starts with a back story of the Squad. He talks about how the Squad came to be and went on their first mission together to retrieve a rogue agent hiding out in the woods. The swarm the cabin and kill what they think is their target but upon closer review they realize that it is a robot of the target. They tried to exit the cabin but the robot explodes and the next thing they know they are here being tortured. Savant then asks to be released. The captors due that by killing him. Hours later the remaining members are awakened and asked for a final time who sent them. After each refuse it is then revealed that all this was a test and out of 37 only 6 didn't crack and they are now officially the Suicide Squad which is head by Amanda Waller. Their first mission is to kill 60,000 people in a sports arena.

Rating : 2.5/5 - Nothing much of substance in the issue as it is totally a set up for the series. Seeing as I always liked villain comics I will give this series at least 6 issues and go from there. Art is choppy at times so that needs to improve. I remain optimistic that this series will be good.

ACTION COMICS 1 :

As solicited this all happens 5 years in the past. We are introduced to Superman as he is interrogating a "business man" in his penthouse. He trys to get him to give a full confession to his unlawful deeds while standing over the edge. The local police barge in on the scene and tell Superman to put the guy down while he continues to defy Superman. After a little drop from the ledge he gets what he came for and Superman leaves the scene while the police try to detain him. Some underground group is seen tracking Superman and notes how he has grown faster, stronger since first appearing within the city. The group controls a demolition ball to destroy a run down building with people in it which draws Superman's attention. As he saves them tanks converge to the area to fire upon Superman. Obviously all a plan to bring him down. The group of people that Superman saved though stand up for them and block the tanks which allows just enough time for him to escape. He flys to his residence and changes into civilian alias Clark Kent. After some chit chat with the landlady and rent past due he calls his buddy Jimmy Olsen who happens to be with Lois Lane. They are on a bullet train that is has been rigged to blow and Superman races to stop that from happening. He gets in front of it and manages to stop it but at a cost as he is now pinned to the offices of the Daily Planet.

Rating : 2/5 - Never been a Superman fan ( Batman is my cup of tea ) so going in this did not hold my interest and the issues held ups it's side. I find the Superman in JL more entertaining than this and though I know this is an "origin" story don't we all know what that is and how he became to be? This is just a re introducing to the world. A fast paced issue with no lagging but nothing of interest or at least not for this reader. So for the Superman enthusiast it would be good but for me it was just meh.

BATWOMAN 1 :

Book opens up with a couple at a police station talking to Detective Swayer on an incident that happened where their three young children where taken from them by some "ghostly" entities. The couple states that Batwoman has promised to find them and return to them but the detective says she can't make the same promise but she does promise to never stop looking for them. As they leave the detective runs into Kate Kane and they flirt back and forth and say they will meet later in the evening. Obviously just some playing the game as they both reconvene at Kate's house and they both change as it is revealed that Kate is Batwoman. We are taken to a building where there is this skull faced figure that is talking to an Agent Chase and informs her that she has a new assignment to track down Batwoman. Now we see the police at a lake fishing out a 13 year old child that went missing. Commissioner Gordon is also there and is informed that people have taken to calling the killer/kidnapper The Weeping Woman. As Batwoman and Detective Sawyer go back to the house after a night's out of crime fighting Kate's father walks in. They discuss how her twin sister is dead and how her father didn't help out in trying to rescue her. She walks out and next we see her back at the lake where the dead child was found. As she is looking for clues Batman walks up and says he has a proposition for her.

Rating : 2.5/5 - I like that there is "different" feel to this "Bat" book than the rest of the family. I don't know much about Batwoman but this has me intrigued to where it will lead to. Having Batman involved doesn't hurt but they can't use that crutch forever. The art is the Vertigo style which is good for the tone of the book. This is a series to keep your eye on.

FEAR ITSELF 6 :

We have reached the second to last issue of this mini-series.and it opens up where we left off with Thor being carried out of the battle zone after his fight with the powered up Hulk. The make there way to Asgard where Thor says Odin can heal him and they can continue to fight. Cap and his men make it to Asgard and demand that Odin fixes Thor to which Odin is none too pleased with Cap's tone and teleports them away as he takes Thor back to his chambers. We go to Spider-Man out looking for Aunt May and he finally finds her while she is being evacuated from the city. Back to Asgard and we see Odin and Thor talking about how grim things have become. Thor says he must do what his dad can't do and that is to kill the Serpent. Though still injured he is outfitted with new body armor and instead of his traditional hammer he is given the Odinsword. They go and see Tony Stark as he has been building weapons for the upcoming battle and states he is ready. He jumps into a pool to be transformed into a weapon ( seen in previews ). We go back to Earth as we see Cap picking up a gun and manning the front line. The Serpent arrives and final battle is about to begin.

Rating : 3/5 - Overall not a bad issue but not much action. A lot of talking and not much else. I would like to see a more even balance but at least the story moved forward unlike a couple of issues ago. I expect balls to the wall in the next issue. Cap is being pushed to the extremes and Gods and Man are forced to worked together. What possibly could go wrong?

NEW AVENGERS 16 :

Well we are back again for the "interview" type of issue which compare to the last Secret Avenger issue (see past review) is a way better alternative. The team is discussing what is an "Avenger" and what it takes. Each with a negative point on their own record to prove anybody can earn that title. They are all talking about Daredevil and how on the surface he doesn't fit the profile. We now see (obviously the past) Daredevil fighting more of the Serpent's armed forces. Battle rages on with Daredevil even taking up guns. In the distance he notices Avengers Tower going down and knows he has to go there as there are no Avengers in the area. Now we shift to Avengers Mansion where it was under attacked last issue with Squirrel girl babysitting Luke and Jessica's baby. Daredevil leads them to an underground bunker. We fast forward three weeks and we see Daredevil taking an offer from Luke Cage to join the Avengers.

Rating 3/5 - I like these interview type of issues but I know this is now the last one. Good action in between the dialogue. Daredevil doesn't really fit the Avengers mold but that is the whole reason for the story and I am open to seeing how Bendis (writer) takes this further. Art is above average as usual. This and the main Avengers book are still a step above Secret Avengers and both are good reads.

UNCANNY X-FORCE 15 :

Opens up with Archangel and his cronies still at ground zero of the total devastation of the town they blew up last issue. Dark Beast plants "The World" that Fantomex was protecting in the center of the town. It is explained that this is where it all starts. Within "The World" they will open it up our world and integrated it and they will pick a time of there choosing to start anew for everybody. They watch as 130 million years of evolution happens within 24 hours our time. As this is happening Psylocke is trying to escape her captors and try to stop what Archangel is doing. Fantomex and Deadpool make it to ground zero but instead of seeing destruction of a town they see a jungle that is growing. Archangel confronts them a battle ensues with Fantomex actually hurting him with a sentient bullet to the head. Genocide comes to Archangel's side while Fanotmex makes his escape to meet up with Deadpool. Archangel meets up with Dark Beast in San Francisco which is being monitored by a Celestial which has summoned them to discuss matters. Archangel must chose a guardian and successor to him and states it is a simple choice as the last panel is focused back on Psylocke.

Rating : 3.5/5 - Still the best X book out there in my opinion. Issue moves briskly and advances the story at a great pace. The compliments the story. Even though the story is now 5 issues long it has been a good read throughout.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 669 :

Story starts off where we left off with Peter and Carlie breaking into a Jackal hideout and being attacked by super powered villains that were waiting for them. Carlie takes one on the chin and Peter reacts by taking the whole crew out in a quick minute. They are being watched by Jackal via remote camera in an unknown place. Jackal again is seen talking to an unnamed woman who now referred to her as "us". We are taken around the city in various areas with the Avengers handling some powered up civilians and Mary Jane watching in awe of everybody swinging around. We see J.J. being informed by Reed Richards that the virus is now airborne and bound to affect everyone. Anti-Venom is out "healing" people by taking away their powers which is not going over well with said people. Madame is being consumed by all the "spider" activity around the city. Carlie meets up with Spider-Man to discuss the Jackal situation and is miffed that Peter is not around. She asks if she matches teeth marks on Spidey's sandwich he is eating if they would match with Peter's? She is starting to put two plus plus together. They swing away to investigate an area when they are confronted by a now six armed Shocker. He reveals that he is trying to get help to change back to what he was. He doesn't want the Spidey powers. We pan back to Carlie and see her mutate into more of a spider as her face has been transformed. Last page we see Jackal kneeling before his master, Spider-Queen.

Rating : 3/5 - Good overall issue though not a lot of movement in story. Art is good as always but with the big reveal at the end I think things will pick up next month. Mary Jane not having her powers yet is interesting as through previews we know she acquires them. Are they dormant or just not acquired yet?