AVENGERS: HALLOWEEN SPECIAL #1Written by Jay Baruchel, Gerry Duggan, Rob Fee, Jen Soska, Sylvia Soska, moreArt by Laura Braga, Luca Pizzari, Robert Quinn
The Halloween Special contains five 6-page short stories, each with an element of horror. The initial Daredevil story was the best and the rest all fell far short for me. While the 6-page format allows for more stories, they all failed to recreate the quality of work like those found in Strange Tales. It feels like little creative plotting went into the construction of this.
Rating: 3 out of 10
HEROES IN CRISIS #3Written by Tom KingArt by Clay Mann
This series is thoughtfully written and paced perfectly. The artwork is realistic and polished. We learn more about how the heroes in the Sanctuary might have been killed, and about Sanctuary’s purpose. Heroes in Crisis is some of King‘s best work and plotting, as he portrays characters more lifelike with emotions than his previous comics. The only miss for me is when Harley got a jump on Batman while Superman was present and failed to intervene in time. Either this is a plot hole, Superman was ok with Batman being subdued, or Superman‘s ability to perceive and move quickly is severely downgraded in Heroes in Crisis, which doesn’t make sense given the power level of other characters that are portrayed in the comic. Anyone looking for a limited series that requires no prerequisite reading should consider picking this up. DC clearly put a lot of resources into making this title a worthy book. It’s not a hastily produced cash-grab like we see in so many other limited series.
Rating: 10 out of 10
HEX WIVES #1Written by Ben BlackerArt by Mirka Andolfo
Split into two parts, Hex Wives is first about a coven of witches and those trying to hunt them generation after generation as they are continually reborn. The second part is about a spell cast by their adversaries where the witches have been tricked into becoming mundane housewives in the 50s. Although the story is about witches, there is little witchcraft, potions, and spells, as most of the action panels involve brute force violence that is uncharacteristic of the genre. The dialogue and story ramble on unnecessarily and doesn’t maintain enough inertia to hold my interest.
Rating: 5 out of 10
MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #11Written by Chip ZdarskyArt by Ramon Perez
The Thing visits another universe with Reed and meets a friendly Doctor Doom. Ben and Reed work out their feelings regarding Reeds disappearance. The pace has slowed down and I feel like Chip is trying to stretch his story out longer than he should. There is far too much dialogue without any meaningful events. The knowledge gained in this issue could be summarized in a few sentences and you wouldn’t be missing any plot advancements.
Rating: 4 out of 10
WHAT IF?: MAGIK #1Written by Leah WilliamsArt by Filipe Andrade
Doctor Strange takes on Magik as his apprentice for the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme as they both fight her previous master. Filipe Andrade's artwork has two great pages with a style that honors the classic Steve Ditko style of Doctor Strange. This issue has it's fair share of humor with good chemistry between Magik, Stephen Strange, and his faithful assistant Wong.
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pick of the Week: Heroes in Crisis #2