Comics News: Gillen & Kubert Team For Wolverine: Origin II

Announced at Marvel's Cup of Joe panel in SDCC 2013, writer Kieron Gillen and artist Andy Kubert will team together for a sequel to Wolverine: Origins called Wolverine: Origins II. The sequel miniseries, according to an interview Gillen had with CBR and from the panel, the story will start several years from the end of the original miniseries which was written by Paul Jenkins. 

This time, the miniseries will focus on Wolverine, after years with living amongst the wolves, gets literally dragged back to society during the dawn of the 20th Century. And as it deals with Logan looking at civilization at the time, it will also deal with classic X-Villain, Mr. Sinister, at the dawn of his career. 

Gillen stated that it is very much inspired by Jack London's novel, White Wolf  and will also see how Nathan Essex started down his road to becoming Mr. Sinister. 

Wolverine: Origins II, written by Kieron Gillen, with art by Andy Kubert (who also did art for the origin miniseries) will hit shelves this November.

First Impressions: Young Avengers # 1

Young Avengers # 1
Written by Kieron Gillen
Art by Jamie McKelvie, Mike Norton & Matthew Wilson
Marvel Comics


FLIPPING THROUGH:

            Sometime time has passed since Children’s Crusade. Yet, the first issue makes things accessible to you with the low down on Wiccan’s powers, what Kate Bishop is doing … more like who. And more of the wackiness with Loki and Miss America, just in time for Wiccan to slightly follow his Mommy, Scarlet Witch’s, foot steps.

            Now, we got some teen love, aliens, magic and one cliffhanger that connects to the original volume of Young Avengers that will make you go “HOLY SHIT!”


ART:

            The very style of the panels and pages really works for this new Young Avengers. With some vivid panel work in some pages added to some more classic comic book set up, Young Avengers # 1 really makes a go at it, showing what McKelvie, Norton & Wilson at work. Some pages feel like a trailer to a movie and really quicken the pace yet still fit very well to the scene and overall story in mind.

            McKelvie and Norton deliver solid pencils and inks throughout the entire issue. When the scene fit it, there were more panels which really picked up the pace for the scene. It really fit to what was going on with Kate and Nor-Vahh. It really heightened the experience while reading it.  The art kind of turned me off at first but after reading the issue, it won me over big time.  Aliens looked alien, quiet moments looked real and fantastic moments were just looking awesome. Wilson’s colors really helped bring McKelvie and Norton’s work to life.

            Really solid, clean and exciting work from McKelvie, Norton & Wilson.

WRITING:

            I like Kieron Gillen. Yet, when it was announced that he was taking over as writer for Young Avengers, I got a little scared. Very few writers really did much with the Young Avengers. And while I am overjoyed that they FINALLY are having an ongoing, I was kinda worried about how Gillen was gonna write the book. The previews had me intrigued.

During Young Avengers /runaways Civil War

            This first issue really blew me away. The characters seemed really spot on from  those I came across. Kid Loki is a welcome addition. Miss America was … interesting. And just the opening alone was solid … except for one particular thing I hate about it. Nor-Vahh TORTURED several members of the Young Avengers in the past? WHAT THE HELL IS KATE DOING SLEEPING WITH HIM?! 

            Yes. I got a reaction. A very intense reaction. That is the one, major problem I have with this. Nor-Vahh TORTURED them. And I am all for forgiveness and what not but the Young Avengers have no really had any screen time with Nor-Vahh in quite a while. And NOW … Kate is just sleeping with him?  Huh? 

            Well, maybe this will be explained. Still, Gillen does a great job with the rest of the issue and leaves with a perfect cliffhanger.


OVERALL IMPRESSION:

            A good, not great first issue. Honestly, besides the whole Nor-Vahh thing, this was great first issue. The action was fast and furious. The character exchanges, save for the first one, seem really in character. Visually, the book has it’s own sense of style that I am sure will continue forward. I really look forward to more. If it was not for my one major grip, this issue would have gotten a perfect score. Still, it is entertain, fresh and enjoyable.


RATING :

            I give Young Avengers # 1 a 7.5 out of 10. Seriously, the Nor-Vahh thing just erked me too much to make it an 8 or 9.  Still, I look forward to this Young Avengers team.

First Impressions: Iron Man #1

After months of manga and anime reviews, it seems I've been dragged back into the western world of comics. Special thanks to Frank Rodriguez for giving me a copy to review!


Iron Man #1
Written by Kieron Gillen
Art by Greg Land, Jay Leisten and Guru eFx
Lettering by Joe Caramagna
Published by Marvel Comics



While I do prefer manga to western comics, I still love western comics. Superhero comics were my first comics, having been introduced to them through the Silver Age Spider-Man and Green Lantern comics. Now Marvel is trying to introduce new people to their comics with their new "Marvel NOW!" line-up, which is essentially just a renumbering of their books with new costumes and creative teams as opposed to completely restructuring their stories like DC did with the New 52. I haven't read a Marvel comic in over a year, even longer since I've read an Iron Man comic, so did Marvel managed to make me an Iron Man reader? Well, no actually.

It's not that the comic is bad. Merely competent might be a better term, at least as far as the story goes. Tony Stark is very much like his movie counterpart in this: he's a millionaire playboy with a high-tech company who feels responsible for keeping superpowered weapons out of dangerous hands. He spends the first two pages expositing his views on life, how he questions reality and wants to make a better future. Now if only he would shut up, because every time the scene focuses on Tony, he's narrating the events playing on the panel or explaining stuff to people that they should already know. Some of it is necessary for the new readers, but it came across as overdoing it.

The story itself is pretty standard. Someone is creating superpowered beings known as Extremis with the purpose of selling them as guardians, ala Skynet, but obviously there's something dubious going on, made all the more obvious by one of the Extremis killing someone in their first appearance. It's up to Tony to stop Extremis. It's an old Iron Man plot that's been used countless times in both the comics and movies, and it feels too familiar with not enough new material to freshen it up. Again, it's not bad, but I doubt it would impress a new reader enough that they'd want to buy the next issue of this storyline. Add in Tony's unnecessary chatter and the book almost becomes a grind to read despite being short.

As mentioned before, the characters of Marvel are going through some redesigns, and Tony's no exception. One neat addition to the story is that Tony now has a liquid metal that can reshape itself into the Iron Man armor. One of the fun parts of the Iron Man movies was seeing Tony come up with new ways to store and deploy his armor, and Marvel clearly wanted to capture that fun for the first issue. The armor itself actually doesn't look much different from his regular armor with the big exception of replacing the red paint with black. Personally, I prefer the red and gold to the black and gold, but since Tony constantly changes the way his armor looks its not out of character for him. Still, I question the color change when the red and gold is more iconic and would probably be more appealing to new readers.

However, the armor is the best-looking character in this. The comic tries to go for realistic-looking characters, but the effect comes across as stiff. The expressions of the characters are very limited; for example, Tony can't seem to stop smiling as if his face was stuck like that. Characters often have no eyes either, so the dreaded "Youngblood's Disease" as dubbed by Linkara of Atop the Fourth Wall strikes again. It's kind of an ugly book. I'm not all familiar with Greg Land's art, but I definitely think he's better at drawing robots than people if this book is anything to go on.

Stiff and merely competent really sums up this first issue. It's not bad, but not good enough to really grab any interest. If you're a big Iron Man and not sick of this kind of story, you might enjoy it, otherwise I'd say it's safe to skip it.

Comic News: New Young Avengers Return in Marvel NOW

   That is right. You  are reading that correctly.  The Young Avengers will be brought back together through the new creative team of Kieron Gillen (recently of Uncanny X-Men and upcoming Iron Man writer)and  artists Jamie McKelvie & Mike Norton. Confirmation of the new series was announced earlier today through CBR. The core line up will include Wiccan, Hulkling, Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) with newcomers Miss America, Marvel Boy Noh-Varr (most recently the Protector) and surprisingly, Kid Loki.

   Kid Loki has been in Gillen's hand for his entire stint on Journey Into Mystery and now says that Kid Loki will help reform this new team of Young Avengers. He told CBR:

"The original volume of "Young Avengers" was a phenomenally successful book. I remember when it was announced and people were really cynical about it. Then the book came out and it had a completely respectful view of the long history of the Marvel Universe. It worked brilliantly.

I couldn't write that book. I couldn't base a story around a tiny bit of continuity from 30 years ago. I completely respect people that can do that and I love those stories, but that doesn't mean I can.

So I took a different approach. In this world the Avengers are almost civil servants or firemen or police. They work for the government and they're this enormous organization. But at the core? The real core of the Avengers? It's saving the world, because someone has got to, and that's what "Young Avengers" is about. They're called "Young Avengers" even though they're not Avengers. This is fundamentally about the ideal. It's about being a super hero. It's about saving the world because somebody has got to do it.

So instead of picking up continuity and weaving it in. I'm doing weird riffs on it. I'm taking notes from the Avengers mythos and doing them in a completely different way. The first arc is pretty much Loki puts the Avengers together. And of course Loki did inadvertently put the original Avengers together, but why is he actively trying to put this team together?

The first arc's major plot is basically a riff on the Ultron story, but it's not about Ultron. It's based around Wiccan and involves magic. It's your basic Hank Pym fucks up-style story [Laughs]. That's what Wiccan does and then they deal with it."

  As Kid Loki manipulates this team together, the other members have mixed feelings. While some of the members are happy the band is back together, others, like Wiccan, are not. Yet, that is a key to the reassembling of the Young Avengers.

"As everyone who's read "The Children's Crusade" knows, Wiccan is pretty fucked up. He's lost a lot of friends and doesn't want to be a super hero anymore. He's very angry and emphatic about that. Hulkling and the other Young Avengers are out doing it on the down low though.

So when Wiccan discovers this in the first issue it's almost like he's found out that Hulkling has been cheating on him and his mistake comes from that. He tries to do something and as he does it he realizes that he's actually being kind of selfish. Because if you think about it even for a second Wiccan hasn't got a bad life. He's got extra sets of parents. He's incredibly powerful and his mom is the Scarlet Witch. As Hulkling puts it in the first issue, "That's kind of like realizing Galadriel is you mom."


Conversely, Hulkling had his parents burned alive in front of him. He's got nothing except for Wiccan. So Wiccan slowly realizes he's being an idiot and then he makes a mistake. That mistake is the thing that gathers the rest of the team around them.Miss America is basically protecting Wiccan from Loki, and Loki is trying to stop Wiccan from what he's doing. That leads to them all coming together to try and clean up this mess."

  The new book will not only have a new creative team and new team roster, but also have a new look. McKelvie will pencil the characters while most of the backgrounds will be done by Norton with Norton doing full pencils when McKelvie needs time off. Plus, the creative team specified that they will be lots of panels that will be stylized and making sure the look and feel of the book is that of being a teenager growing up. McKelvie added to CBR:

"I guess it is the closest thing we've done to "Phonogram" in the Marvel Universe. It's very important that they are teenage super heroes. We wanted to give them a distinctive separation from the older heroes. Costume design has really been important so far. That bled into how I actually approached the story telling and the panels."

  According to Gillen, Miss America is not going to get along well with most of the team while Noh-Varr will being seemingly alien while loving humanity for its many flaws while also being condescending  Young Avengers #1 will hit stores this January 2013.

THE REPLACEMENTS # 2 - UNCANNY X-MEN

THE REPLACEMENTS

Anime X-Men 
            Since the X-Men are divided after the whole Schism miniseries; we are gonna to do not 1 but 2 lists of X-Men:  Those on Cyclops’ Side & Those on Wolverine’s side: And why all the X-Men will NOT be on this list, a good chunk of them will be. We can deal with other incarnations and other X-teams at a later date. Each character selection will be based on either similar power or similar personality. And with that said, we’re ready to role. So, for this first team of X-Men that we will replace with Anime characters. Here are the results. 

UNCANNY  X-MEN:

Extinction Team –

COLOSSUS – RANDEL ORLAND from Pumpkin Scissors 

   There are few anime characters that could match Piotr Rasputin’s strength, especially now that he has the energies of the demonic Juggernaut within him. Piotr is both an engine of pure destruction and a bouquet of artistic thought. The dueling sides of Piotr seem to hit right on the mark with Pumpkin Scissors’ Randel Orland.'

    The corporal in the anime has many skills and is often seen being very peaceful with a jovial smile; much like Piotr. Yet, once the battle begins and he turns on his ghostly blue gas lantern, Orland becomes a driven monster of destruction much like Colossus. One minute, Orland displays a great sensitivity to people and looks at the beauty of life. The next, he is taking out Tanks with only his gun and a dead look in his eye. And Piotr pretty much is the same way . .. without the gun. They even love the same type of woman as there are eriely similarities between Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat) and Alice (Pumpkin Scissors).

    If you are looking for a man to take up Colossus’s role as a being of destructions while still being gentle, Randel Orland is the guy you are looking for.

MAGNETO – MASTER ASIA from G Gundam

            Erik Lensheer, the man known as Magneto, has been something of a grand mystery over the course of his creation. He is the undisputed Master of Magnetism. He has been one of the biggest mutant terrorists in the history of Marvel Comics. He has killed a whole lot of people. He has created a sanctuary for mutantkind on more than one occasion. His disdain for humanity had made him decide that humankind needed to die and/or fall under the sway of mutants in order to save the world. And he’s sought redemption before . .. only to throw it away once. Now, after Cyclops had united mutant kind for a time, Magneto has acknowledged his own misgivings and joined the X-Men in hopes of redeeming his past deeds but not necessarily his soul.

            Master Asia, the former King of Hearts till his pupil Domon Kasshu took the mantle, was the former champion of the Gundam Fight; a tournament where each country sent 1 Gundam to fight instead of all out war. And as Master Asia won his Gundam Fight, he saw the world turned into a broken battleground and that humanity needed to die in order to save the planet. Hmmm . ..

             There is no denying that while Master Asia does not have the Magnetism like Magento, there are some very interesting character traits that both share that would make Master Asia the best replacement for Magneto. Both share this need to subjugate or destroy humanity, being ruthless to everyone, including people they love, in order to achieve that goal. Both have strong beliefs that their way is the right way and see little reason to compromise . . . until startling factors make them face who they are and what they’ve done. With Magneto, it was Cyclops’ resolve and unifying the remainder of the mutant race. For Master Asia, it was his final battle with his pupil where Domon pointed out that while Master Asia wanted to use the Devil (Dark) Gundam to purify the planet; humanity is part of the planet too. And both are ridiculously powerful. And have white hair.

STORM – THREADMASTER KAZUKI from GetBackers

   Storm is one of the most iconic of the X-Men for many reasons. And she more than proves it time and time again. She is regal with her presence. She is kind and loving to those in her life she finds important. Yet, she is a fierce leader, a good tactian and one of the smartest fighters (with or without her powers) in the Marvel Universe. And while she recently married Black Panther, she still very much is the wild yet beautiful untamed force like the weather she controls.

            Threadmaster Kazuki . .. okay. I know. I can hear the are you kidding me’s from here. Once the leader of a gang known as Elegance within the building known as the Limitless Fortress, Kazuki soon ascended to the role as one of the 4 Kings under the Lightning Emperor.  With that, Kazuki was know leader of a much larger group and worked his way up the ranks. With his powers over ancient thread . ... wait … why are you laughing? Seriously, this thread can tie you up or rip the flesh from your bones. Loving to crossdress, Kazuki always gives this regal yet friendly aura when not in battle. Yet, when battle, he’s as deadly as they come.

Make no mistake, Kazuki definitely shares the most traits with Storm than any other character I know in anime. And while yes … he is a man, Kazuki is . .. well, a crossdresser who seems (at least that is the way he’s drawn) to be as regal yet fierce as Storm. Both always seem to be regal and stylish while still proving to be deadly in their own right. Both have a loving nature to friends. Both are proven leaders and tactians. Both can be warm and loving one second and dangerous the next. This seems fitting that Storm’s replacement first her personality cause I don’t think anyone could match her power.

MAGIK – GU from Hare Hare Gu

   Magik, aka Illyana Rasputin, is a woman who has been through a lot. Kidnapped as a child, she was taken to Limbo by the demonic Belasco who brought her up on the ways of sorcery. She takes him out to take over Limbo as its Queen but eventually comes back to Earth, as a teen. She caused some mischief but deep down, was still a hero. She then died but got better … yes, comics . .. and she manipulated the X-Men at a chance to kill the evil hell gods that tormented her, alongside Belasco. And she won. Now she’s looking after her brother and provides teleportation to another dimension with her portals.

            Gu is . .. manipulative. She loves to put Hare through some kind of trouble. And not just Hare. She, at times, puts other characters in some kind of mischief. She loves to do that. Oh yeah . .. she seems to have another realm in her stomach .. . in which she can put you in and put you out based on if she shallows you. I am serious. Deep down, Guu does like to help and is a good person. It is just had to see that with all the manipulations.

            What makes these 2 fight is that they are both very similar in terms of personality. They tease. They manipulate. Yet, deep down, they want to do good. They may be outcasts but they are still forces to be reckoned with. And while Magik is not as deadpan as Gu is, they are very protective of the men in their lives. Plus, the fact that their powers a somewhat similar makes it that much of a better fit. Sure Magik’s realm wasn’t in her stomach but still …they transported people into another realm. That works for me.

PSYLOCKE – TWILIGHT SUZUKA from Outlaw Star

            Psylocke is sleek, dangerous, deadly and one of the most beautiful fighters out there. She’s a ninja with telepathic (and telekinetic) power who knows what to do to take down her enemies. In her downtime, she is personable, with an air of dignified upper crust superiority to her. Yet, it is never in a demeaning way. She always exuded class. Besty Braddock. Ninja. English Woman in Asian Body. X-Man.

            Twilight Suzuka was an assassin for hire who never missed a kill … till she met Gene Starwind. And then, she changed. Still as deadly as she ever was, Suzuka had new priorities. She decided that she would join Gene Starwind and help him combat the pirates that were attacking him. Always with an air of refinery about her, Suzuka presents herself as a multifaceted character besides just a killing machine.

            Obviously, these women are very similar in terms of personality and near similar power set. Both are assassins. Both are beautiful Asian women (well, yes that does count for Psylocke). Both are refined, upper crust women but they don’t look down on others. Each of them have sides that seem vunerable to others (like when Psylocke lip locked with Fantomex or when Gene derobed  Suzuka during battle) that just make these women that much more awesome. So Betsy, allow me to introduce your stand-in … Twilight Suzuka.

HOPE SUMMERS –  C C. (aka C2) from Code Geass

          Hope Summers is the adopted granddaughter of mutantkind’s current grandpooba, Cyclops. Raised by Cable, Hope never had a regular childhood. She was too busy trying to survive and learning the art of war from her father to ensure her survival. Oh yay! Another Winning Summers’ Upbringing. Yet, why all the work on Hope? Simple. She is the prophesied Mutant Messiah who will either bring destruction to mutantkind or be its savior.With her teenage self staying in the  present, Hope’s arrival brought back the first active brand new mutants since M-Day; the day where Scarlet Witch’s 3 words of :No More Mutants deactivated the mutant gene for the majority of mutantkind. Now, she leads that new group of Mutants with some of the remaining mutants a part of Cyclops’ army on Utopia known as Generation Hope as well as take an active spot here on the Extinction Team. Hope is a girl who is on a mission while trying to be a girl . .. with little idea how to be a regular teen.

          CC from Code Geass is a woman who seemed to have no childhood but what we find out is much different. CC helps along Lelouch so that her own mission can one day be completed . .. see Lelouch in power and hopefully die in the process. You see, CC is the opposite of Hope in one respect; she’s immortal.  Don’t believe me? Watch the first episode of Code Geass to see what I mean. C.C. has spent much of her immortal life dealing with other immortals that have tried to control her, ruin her plans or outright want to kill her before she’s ready.

          CC is a lot like Hope as they are both beings out of time. Both of them don’t know what a regular life is. They are both very driven, determined woman who will do just about anything to accomplish their mission. Hope wants to fulfill her role as Mutant Messiah in honor of all who died for her while CC wants to help Lelouch complete his mission so she can die. Both are very awkward when it comes to regular life; seemingly having very little use to regular lives. Both have intense emotions that they share with no one but perhaps one or two people closest to them. Both are deadly and do not have a second thought about killing. Thus, these are what makes CC a good fit to replace Hope Summers. Sure she does not have Hope’s mimicry powers, but CC is immortal. That is a great replacement.

NAMOR – HAJIME SAITO

   Namor has been a lot over the course of Marvel history. He’s fought in World War II alongside Captain America and the Invaders. He’s been an Avenger. He’s the ruler of Atlantis. Now, he’s an X-Man. And yes, Namor is a mutant. People seem to not think that. Namor has ALWAYS Been a mutant. They have been saying that since the 60s. I’m just saying. And Namor is .. . brash at times, abrasive, calculating, often ready to prove himself in battle and living by his own code. He’s not afraid to kill in order to take down those he feels are his enemies. And Namor demands respect as part of his stations. With a yell of “Imperius Rex”, Namor has proven himself just as deadly and strong as an X-Man as any other in history.

          Hajime Saito is one of the few members of the Shinsengumi left. Saito is abrasive and not above being a little manipulative in order to stage the right battle or capture an enemy. He is smart and just commands respect by his mere presence. He has a strong sense of duty and follows the simple code of  “Slay Evil Immediately.”  He will battle to his last breath but he is highly skilled. Driven and somewhat territorial at times, Saito is definitely the last swordsman you want to cross.

          Okay. This match was interesting. Because finding someone of Namor’s power set and personality seemed extremely hard (with the exception of possibly Kenpachi from Bleach), Saito seemed to match Namor more than any other anime character. Both are stubborn. Both love battle. Both demand respect and you have to earn theirs. Both will not hesitate to kill you when need be. They are both brilliant tacticians. Both are very experienced in battle. They will only follow people they respect and Namor respects Scott like Saito respects Kenshin. Kenpachi almost took this but the biggest problems are his lack of control of his powers and his need to have his Lieutenant on him at almost all times.  Not these two. They will go at it alone or with a group if it gets the job done. The only trait the 2 do not seem to share is way with women. Saito is married while Namor . ..  likes to break up relationships. Yet over all, if Namor needed a replacement with the right attitude, Saito would be the one you’d call.

DANGER -  ANDROID 18

   Yes. I know. But wait. Let me explain. Danger was a villain of the X-Men at first but her story is kind of twisted. You see, she was the Danger Room at one point that gained sentience over time. Professor Xavier had found this out and surpressed her on purpose in order to train the X-Men. Yay. Great guy that Xavier is huh? Thus, when she was finally free, she figured that humanity (mutants included) needed to die and that the X-Men were gonna be the first to pay. She attacked the X-Men till the truth came out. At that point, Cyclops berated Xavier again, saying that he is done just going by Charles’s word.  The X-Men followed suit and allowed Danger to go away. After another battle, the X-Men were able to convince Danger that they would not have done what Charles did and that humans were all different. She joined them, being the main jailor of evil mutants for a time. She is now on the Extinction Team to help with analysis and provide more fire power to the team.

          Android 18 kind of had it rough to. It seemed that she and her brother were taken in by Dr. Gero; who turned them into powerful Androids. They were no longer human. They weren’t even cyborgs. All they were where just beings with human brains and some other human parts (I don’t remember off hand). When she awoke, she was the enemy of the Z Fighters. She broke Vegeta’s arm with a kick while he was Super Sayian the first time they met. And it seemed she was gonna be nothing but a machine of pure evil . .. till she met Kirlin. She fell in love with the bald headed, short Z Fighter and vice versa. After she was absorbed into Cell and later spit back out, Kirlin asked the Dragon to make her her human enough and take out a bomb. She ended up marrying Kirlin and having a child together. Android 18 is a no nonsense woman who will get the job done with a soft spot for humanity.

          Okay. This fit better than I ever hoped. And before you go “are you kidding me?” allow me to tell you why. Both beings are female machines. Both are driven, at first, to want to destroy humanity. Both women are not for joking around. Both of them eventually believe in redemption. Both are protective of their personal part of their lives. Now, both females have reformed and will do what they can to help reform.


EMMA FROST – LUST

   This was one of the hardest to decide on. Why? Cause Emma Frost is one of the most multifaceted characters in all of the X-Men. She started out as a villain who was responsible for murder, turning the Phoenix into Dark Phoenix and many more atrocities while being the White Queen of the Hellfire Club. Yet, after a coma and her mind being displaced inside Iceman’s body for a while (a long while actually), she reemerged; convinced that Xavier’s way is better. She became teacher of the short lived second Xavier Schoolalongside Banshee as they formed Generation X. Yet, as that teams end came at bitter and hard pills, Emma moved to Genosha, the first mutant country to teach; till it was bombed with millions of mutants being killed all at once. Emma developed her 2^nd mutation then to turn herself into diamond. She joined the X-Men, where she is a mainstay and is now having sex with Cyclops since shortly after his wife died. Yay Emma. Emma is probably the most snotty, refined and sexually charged of the X-Men. But she is a teacher, a little bit of a manipulator but she truly does love Scott Summers. She has worked very hard to redeem herself and now stands proudly as an X-Man.

          And now we get to Lust. At first, I was going to choose Kaouri Koganei aka Lady Diamond from Speed Grapher. She had the same 2^nd mutation as Emma. She acts very refined. She is evil. She feels she is above the Tennozu Group. She was about to grab this title. Then I decided to do a quick search and then hit my head cause I should have realized this sooner. The perfect person to take Emma Frost’s place is Lust from Full Metal Alchemist; not the Brotherhood version. And let me break down why. Lust was very much like Emma when she was evil. Snotty, refined, seductive. And like Emma, she felt the weight of the Hellfire Club weighing heavily on her. Lust reformed during the course of the series, manipulating the other Homunculi away from the boys and even down right abandoning them to help Edward & Alphonse Elric. She kept her refined-ness and her sexuality but was fighting for the good guys; much like Emma. She was very much the leader and second mother figure to the Homunculi; second to their master. Lust was originally sent to take out the Elric Brothers but she changes her mind and takes a different path; wanting to be human her own way. And while she does not have the telepathy or the diamond skin, Lust is just a vicious in the battlefield.

CYCLOPS  - ROY MUSTANG

          I was REALLY trying to avoid a group having 2 people from the same anime. Yet, Roy fits so perfect to be Scott Summers. Scott, right now, has become the monarch of mutantkind with their island nation of Utopia.  He believes with so few mutants left, that all mutants, no matter the age must fight. He is not above a little manipulation. He is not above killing to find out what is going on. He does this to protect the mutants that remain and does so to the point where he does not think he’s wrong. Scott has his tender moments but those seem very few and far inbetween these days; saving most of them for Emma.

          Roy Mustang is a perfect replacement for Cyclops. Roy was trained to be a soldier and moved up in the ranks. When he started, he used to have doubts about his abilities till the happenings in Ishbala harden him. He commands respect from his peers and underings . . . even from the Further himself; till Roy finds out he’s a homunculus. And Roy stops at nothing to lead his own forces to take down the Further. Roy will do whatever he have to, kill whoever he has to, to protect that which he thinks is right.

          At this point, I think Roy pretty much can put on Scott’s uniform and just run Utopia. Roy is trained like Scott. Roy is driven like Scott. Roy is respected and even fired like Scott. Roy’s cold demeanor at times is like Scott when he wants to prove that nothing can break him. The two do so much to prove that they are right that they started ignoring their own mistakes from time to time. It would not surprise me if Roy actually is Scott’s long lost twin brother. That is how much in synch personality wise these two people are. Sure, Scott’s got force blasts while Roy plays with fire but both will leave you dead if they need to. They will also others to do what they need to if it comes down to it. Douches yet good guys, Roy Mustang is the perfect anime Cyclops.

And there goes the EXTINCTION TEAM.


NEXT WEEK: WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN 

# 34 UNCANNY X-MEN (#1-3) EVERYTHING IS SINISTER & THE WORLD'S MIGHTIEST HEROES

Hello Clashers. My, my, my. It has been a LONG time since I did one of these. CBC EIC . . . wow, great acronyms there Frank . . . Frankie Rodriguez (aka Seraph) is here to today to give you a look on the other side of the fence.

   Last week, Hector Ramirez broke down the new status quo as we inspected the Jean Grey School of Higher Learning with our review of the first 3 issues of Wolverine & the X-Men. Since this jumps off after Schism and Hector already described it last week, no need for me to exposite about it again.

This week, We go back to Utopia and look at how Cyclops's side operates as we begin the next chapter of their evolution.

WARNING: SPOILERS ABOUND!

You have been warned. And now, our review of Uncanny X-Men, Volume 2, #1-3.


UNCANNY X-MEN
Issues #1-3

Written by Kieron Gillen


Art by Carlos Pacheco, Jorge Molina, Rodney Buchemi, Paco Diaz (He's all over the X-franchise these days) , Roger Bonet, Walden Wong, Cam Smith.

Colors by Frank D'Armata, Rachelle Rosenberg, Jorge Molina, Jim Charalampidis, Dommo, Rex Lokus

Review by Frankie Rodriguez (Seraph)

___

RATING SYSTEM:

Ubersuck Crown – Run away from the story &/or book. It is bad. Treat it like the plague. Think of it as a 1 or 1 star. Pretty much VERY BAD.

Cruiserweight Contender – A book that has some great flash and ability to entertain for a while. Not a definite buy but still not too bad. It’s ok. Aka 2 stars.

X Division Contender-  Something that is out there. Brings out something a little different. Something entertaining and over all enjoyable but still not enough to make a huge impact.  3 stars or Average.

Intercontinental Contender – Something polished, some what thought provoking. Great story telling. Fair characterization but things not completely utilized to the best of their ability more than it should. Something that is on the verge of greatness but just falls short. Good or 4 stars.

World Heavyweight Contender – Outstanding. Great art. Great characterization. Great storyline. Excellent plot. Outstanding use of characters, area. Great use of new concepts or old concepts in a new way. Frellin’ awesome or 5 stars.

_________

CLASH FACTS

          We open our book with a nice, scenic tour of San Francisco and get exposition as to why it is one of the most welcoming places on Earth: allowing everyone from artists to hippies to mutants all living there . . . plus the  GIANT Golden Dreaming Celestial. I mean, the Celestial is huge! REALLY, REALLY HUGE. Did I mention he was Huge?
   
         As the tour continues, San Francisco's little tour guide "book" gives us information about Utopia and the X-Men: like how no one can visit the island as per orders of King Namor or how if you want to see the X-Men, tour buses stop a premiere X-Men patrol spots. Yes, folks. Cyclops has allowed the X-Men to become a tourist attraction. *sarcastic thumbs up*

      As the tour exposition finishes, we find a couple in front of the HUGE Dreaming Celestial.  (For those not in the know: Celestials are UBER powerful beings that are just . . . well, put it this way . . . they are stronger than Galactus and can destroy the world with a thought.) They were reading said exposition and talking about the Dreaming Celestial when they are suddenly assaulted by a man with black hair and a white face. Oh my God, It's Antonio Bandares's character from Interview With A Vampire!! Nah! It's just Mr.  Sinister; looking quite dapper in his Victorian styled clothing and . .. killing the couple he just met with a sword in his cane. Yeah . . . I bet they weren't expecting that on their trip. Sinister goes on, in a very gentlemanly evil manner, about how humanity are not the top 2 species on Earth. He turns his cane around and taps the leg of the Dreaming Celestial with it's ruby top and . . . finds a doorway and walks in.

*face faults*

      After that interesting opening, we cut to Utopia where Scott (Cyclops) is talking with Emma. Emma asks if ole one eye is nervous and Scott answers with his "now" usual bravado of confidence; saying how people have tried to kill him cause of who he is, blah, blah, Heart of the Cards. Oh wait! Wrong time to insert that. Emma goes on that showing nervousness is okay and that while he's a weakling, she is the living embodiment of perfection.

    The two enter the room to see an assembly of X-Men and others there: Namor, Magneto (yes he's a good guy now), Magik (yes, she's alive and she's not evil anymore), Danger (yes she is good & not evil anymore . . .), Colossus (who now has the powers of the Juggernaut) . . . I am noticing a very distrubing pattern here. You want to guess what it is? The team rounds out with Hope Summers (Scott's granddaughter) and Storm. Cyclops first words to them is that they are his "Extinction team."

Okay? Extinction Team. Right? Anyone else not loving the name?

    Cyclops explains that because of the Schism between him and Wolverine; excuse me, the fact that the Westchester School reopened that they in Utopia are gonna have to secure the future and make a larger statement with this team. Cyclops goes on about how they have always been "Earth's Mighiest Heroes" and that this team will show the world that; and while safe guarding the world and mainly mutantkind is one of their top objectives; they want to show the world that it needs them. And to be afraid of them till they can fix mutant and human relations. Cyclops had even gone so far as to say that :

  "If we're going to be considered a rogue state . . . Well, what's the difference between Iraq and North Korea. Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction and every time this team goes into the field, we remind the world we do."

Our Fearless Leader, ladies and gentlemen.

  Storm then points out all the overt problems with this idea, including the name and the fact that only 3 of them have not gone through a villain phase. Storm questions if Scott is sure when Emma replies that they are working on it. Scott details that if they are scared of them, they won't attack "Logan's little school" or any mutant for that matter. Can't disagree with that.

    After going through some exposition, a week passes and S.W.O.R.D's director and Beast's main squeeze, Abigail Brand, contacts Scott and Emma about the Dreaming Celestial showing activity. She states she wanted to talk to them first before calling the Avengers when Scott says not to bother calling them cause if they can't handle it, no one can.

   Magik teleports the majority of the team to meet the Dreaming Celestial and Sinister wastes no time revealing himself in grand fashion . . . by transforming the head of the Dreaming Celestial  into a golden version of himself while having other parts of the Dreaming Celestial be attack bots to fight the X-Men. After some flirting between Emma and Namor, he, Storm and Magneto join the point. The fight is brutal for the first outing for the Extinction Team (Wow! I really am saying that.) and we see it. From a small hole on Colossus's chest that makes him turn on the rage and magically fueled Juggernaut powers to seeing Emma Frost holding her own severed arm . . . IN DIAMOND FORM. Finding themselves slightly overwhelmed, the group figures out the smaller robots are controlled by electromagnetism. Magneto decides to stop the little Celestial robots . .. by become it's new head and spine. Yay!

   Sinister lands the head at the Palace of Fine Arts and uses the energy of the Celestial to make . . . well, more of him. LOTS more of him. As most of the X-Men are surrounded, Hope mimics of the powers of Emma Frost and falls back while the others enter the Palace of Fine Arts. As Sinisters continue to walk around, Hope goes to a rooftop and does something her daddy Cable taught her; using a sniper rifle to kill as   many Sinisters as she can.

     Meanwhile, the X-Men gaze upon Sinister on a golden throne with an army of Sinisters around them. Of course, this was minutes after Abigail told them that other Celestials are coming to Earth. As Namor makes a funny that the X in X-Men is about the target on their backs, Sinister exposites about his past till now. How the Summers DNA and all that he's done over the years have lead up to this moment. And how Sinister is a different race of his own, believe that the world would be much better if EVERYTHING was Sinister, literally. And that the use of the Dreaming Celestial would bring the others to Earth so they can destroy it utterly except for him. As Storm and Emma points out how Sinister is gloating and being very annoying, Sinister continues his gentlemanly evil speech with details on the recent schism between the X-Men.

  After the X-Men refuse to surrender to him, Sinister forces Cyclops to blast at Piotr in order for him to control Piotr. Sinister gains control of all but Emma, Danger, Hope and Magneto. Danger gets blown to bits and Emma puts a simple plan in motion where Hope teleports out (mimicking Magik's powers). Sinister goes on about Emma's little gamble when he is then shot in the Head by Hope's rifle.  Yet, with all the Sinisters, Sinister's mind moves to another body; only to have his head crushed by Piotr. Hope teleports in to shoot the latest Sinister in charge (Surreal huh?) but only gets knocked back. Emma tells Namor to hold her severed arm which the Atlantean mutant thinks it is Emma returning his affections. Namor holds it and Emma goes flesh to use her telepathy to take down Sinister when she realizes that Sinister was using Scott's mind in order to take down the others.  Danger also lays an assists saying how Sinister is beyond redemption. All but  one Sinister melts away. The man tells them that he will continue to evolve to be better while he gave them a grand show in order to prove themselves as "Earth's Greatest Heroes." Sinister then teleports the Palace of Fine Arts away, returns the head on the Dreaming Celestial and then shoots himself in the head with a pistol.

WHAT?!

Before the X-Men can breathe, Magneto summons them back. Magik teleports in the rest of the team as the HUGE Dreaming Celestial now has friends on Earth. A LOT of HUGE FRIENDS. Before Cyclops says anything else, he checks on Magneto and tells Emma to leave for the second time during this storyline (first time was before they walked to meet Sinister) and Emma reminds him that it is not everyday that anyone stares down a large group of Celestials and goes along. Cyclops explains that the world is under their protection and that means protecting the Dreaming Celestial as well. Hope adds that they should leave. And with a point of the Dreaming Celestial, the other Celestials fly off Earth. Hope makes a comment to call the Avengers to tell them that they've been made obsolete and our book ends with Cyclops saying that a crowd of people who watched what happened are saying or doing nothing and that becoming the world's mightiest team of heroes is gonna take a lot of work.

CLASH BREAKDOWN

  The new status quos of both factions of X-Men have been building for ages now and the pay off seems to be good. With that said, I am gonna be focusing on what I just described. With that said, this was a fairly good opening. It establishes a new status quo for the X-Men and really feels like a new beginning. And I don't mean that just for the split. Cyclops is nearly unfiltered, except for Storm watching him and we are seeing what Cyclops will do with little to no one saying what he is doing wrong.

    We get good impressions of many of the characters, such as Namor, Cyclops, Emma, Hope, Colossus, Magneto and Storm but it felt as though Magik and Danger has very small roles in this story. While it is a big team and I understand why each member was chosen, two members of said team seem to have had little consequence to the story. And while I can give a little leeway cause it is the first 3 issues, if you are going to introduce a new team, we should have had good character moments with all of them. Danger had a good spot in #3 but otherwise used for joking purposes. Magik . . . was just kind of there.

 Artistically, the books were solid. Even with the multiple pencils, the differences in style didn't hurt the story. The scope and colors were beautiful. And each of the characters were very distinct in style and look. The artists took full advantage of those and used them well. Yet, many of the art seemed to be relying on exposition more than the picture itself to tell a story.

So, my main gripes would be how the large cast was handled and the story had some holes in its plot. While the characterizations were amazing and the art was good, this opening arc seemed to have some plot holes that were not easy to ignore. Like how does Sinister know how to go inside a Celestial? What was that ruby on his staff?  All Magik seemed to be there for was for her teleportation powers and keep Piotr calm. Yet, Magik could have teleported them without going with them and Storm could have fulfilled the whole keeping Piotr calm role. The premise and the reasoning are good, no matter how much I want to punch Cyclops in the throat. And the final death of Sinister just seemed a tad unnecessary but that is just personal opinion.

All in all, Uncanny X-Men, Volume 2, starts off with a Bang and ends with you wanting to get on the ride again, even though you feel a little dizzy. The characterizations were great, good solid art but it was bogged down by plotholes and lack of spotlight for characters that are main characters in the book.

Thus Uncanny X-Men #1-3 gets an X-Division Spot (3 out of 5).


Ah. THAT FELT GOOD! And yes, I will be doing more of these from time to time. Remember to check out all our other news and content from Comic Book Clash and J1 Studios. Til next time, Clashers.

NEWS EDITION # 1 - VALIANT REBORN, X-MEN REGENESIS & DCNU EDITORIAL

WELCOME ONE & ALL to the Evolution of Comic Book Clash & Comic Book Quick Hits; CBC News Edition. Here, we will give you news, rumors and more on all things comics. We are gonna touch all sorts of areas and there will be more. We here at J1 Studios & Comic Book Clash believe we need to give you more so that is what we are doing; more content to make Comic Book Clash and J1 Studios a Leader in all things Geek, Sheek & Complete. We are gonna start with a break down.


SHINKU SELLS, REPRINTS ON THEIR WAY

   First off, a great congrats to Ron Marz, Lee Moder & Image Comics for selling out their first issue of Shinku. The new series features a war between vampires and ninjas that started in feudal times has now taken root in the present. Ron Marz is scripting with Lee Moder doing art. If you do see a  Shinku in the store, GRAB IT as it is going back into the press for a 2nd printing.

 And why is Shinku doing so well. Many critics have praised its story and artstyle alongside the interesting concept of Samurai vs. Zombie. Don't believe me? Ask your local comic shop keeper about it.

Shinku #1 is written by Ron Marz (of Witchblade & Green Lantern fame) with art by Lee Moder ( of post zero hour Legion of Superheroes fan) for $2.99, out now and reprints due July 7th, in time to get it with Shinku #2 which comes out the same day.

ANGEL & FAITH RETURN IN AUGUST

     Over in Dark Horse, the next stage of Angel's comic book tales begins in August with the brand new Angel & Faith. Yes, you saw that correctly. Angel, the vampire with a soul and Faith, the rogue Vampire Slayer, will be featured in a new ongoing series. In the new series, Angel wants to make amends for his ill conceived plans as Twilight during Buffy Season 8. Faith is also working towards redemption. So with access to the Watcher Files, the two embark on a journey of redemption as Angel awakens from a near catatonic state from Buffy Season 8. Angel does not have his Fang Gang anymore but with Faith, they both work towards making up for their past . . . and future deeds.

 Dark Horse begins their Buffy/Angel attack again starting this August with the new Angel & Faith ongoing series. Written by Cristos Gage with art by Rebekah Issacs, Angel & Faith #1 will hit stores August 31 for $2.99.





VALIANT REBORN

      Valiant Comics back in the day was going toe to toe with Marvel, DC and directly at odds with Image Comics for the number 3 spot back in the 90s. And now . . . finally, the company is going to have a resurrection. After Acclaim went defunct, Cueno & Co, LLC. gave Valiant management the finacial backing they need in order to resurrect. And resurrect they shall with a bunch of new titles coming out in 2012.

There have been no formal details of which titles and who will work on them with only mentions that Bloodshot, Ninjak, Harbinger & X-O Manowar will be among those titles that will return come 2012.

Valiant, now Valiant Entertainment has already shifted gears as a Bloodshot promotional poster has been made by former Immortal Iron Fist artist Danny Aja!

We will look more into Valiant's return once we get a full scope of their launch titles.







HARVEY AWARD NOMINEES REVEALED

   Our Next article is a break down of the nominees for this years Harvey Awards; A comic book industry award given each year and named after the founder and cartoonist who started MAD Magazine.

Best Letterer
• Scott Brown, Box 13, Http://www.comixology.com and Red 5 Comics
• Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit, IDW
• Dustin Harbin, Casanova, Image Comics
• Troy Peteri, Witchblade, Top Cow
• Robbie Robbins, Locke & Key: Keys To The Kingdom # 1, IDW
• John Workman, Thor, Marvel Comics

Best Colorist
• Veronica Gandini, Mice Templar: Volume 10, Image Comics
• Laura Martin, The Stand, Marvel Comics
• Ed Ryzowski, Gutters, http://www.the-Gutters.com
• Dave Stewart, BPRD, Dark Horse Comics
• Jose Villarubia, Cuba : My Revolution, Vertigo/DC Comics

Best Syndicated Strip Or Panel
• Cul De Sac, Richard Thompson, Universal Press Syndicate
• Doonesbury, Garry Trudeau, Universal Press Syndicate
• Mutts, Patrick Mcdonnell, King Features Syndicate
• Non Sequitur, Wiley Miller, Universal Press Syndicate
• Tom The Dancing Bug, Ruben Bolling, Universal Press Syndicate

Best Online Comics Work
• Guns Of Shadow Valley, David Wachter and James Andrew Clark
• Gutters, Lar Desouza, Ed Ryzowski and Ryan Sohmer
• Hark! A Vagrant, Kate Beaton
• La Morte Sisters, Created Tony Trov, Johnny Zito and Christine Larsen
• PvP, Scott Kurtz

Best American Edition Of Foreign Material
• AX: Alternate Manga, edited By Sean Michael Wilson And Mitsuhiro Asakawa, Top Shelf
• Blacksad, Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido, Dark Horse Comics
• It Was The War Of The Trenches, Jacques Tardi, Fantagraphics
• The Killer: Modus Vivendi, Matz And Luc Jacamon, Archaia
• Torpedo Volume 2, Jordi Bernet, IDW

Best Inker
• Damian Couceiro, Hawks Of Outremer, Boom! Studios
• Steve Ellis, Box 13, comiXology & Red 5 Comics
• Gabriel Hardman, Agents Of Atlas, Marvel Comics
• Mark Morales, Thor, Marvel Comics
• Sal Regla, Magdalena, Top Cow

Best New Series
• American Vampire, Scott Snyder, Stephen King and Rafael Albuquerque, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Echoes, Joshua Hale Fialkov and Rashan Ekedal, Top Cow
• Gutters, Lar Desouza, Ed Ryzoski and Ryan Sohmer, http://www.the-Gutters.com
• Kill Shakespeare, Anthony Del Col and Conor Mccreery, IDW
• Sixth Gun, Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt, Oni Press
• Thor: The Mighty Avenger, Roger Langridge and Chris Samnee, Marvel Comics

Most Promising New Talent
• Barry Deutsch, Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword, Amulet Books
• Comfort Love And Adam Withers, Rainbow In The Dark
• Chris Samnee, Thor: The Mighty Avenger, Marvel Comics
• Scott Snyder, American Vampire, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Nick Spencer, Morning Glories, Image Comics

Special Award for Humor in Comics
• Matt Groening, The Simpsons Futurama Crossover Crisis, Abrams ComicArts
• Roger Landridge, The Muppet Show, BOOM! Studios
• Ryan Sohmer, Gutters
• Shannon Wheeler, I Thought You Would Be Funnier, BOOM! Studios
• Thom Zahler, Love And Capes, IDW

Best Original Graphic Publication for Younger Readers
• Amulet # 3: The Cloud Searcher, Kazu Kibuishi, Graphix
• Jingle Belle, Paul Dini
• Meanwhile: Pick Any Path. 3856 Story Possibilities, Jason Shiga, Amulet Books
• Reading With Pictures, Josh Elder, executive editor, Reading With Pictures
• Smile, Raina Telgemeier, Scholastic Graphix
• Tiny Titans, Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani, DC Comics

Best Graphic Album Previously Published
• Art In Time, Edited Dan Nadel, Abrams ComicArts
• Beasts Of Burden: Animal Rites, Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson, Dark Horse Comics
• Dave Stevens’ The Rocketeer: Aritist’s Edition, Designed by Randall Dahlk, Edited by Scott Dunbier, IDW
• The Marvelous Land Of Oz, Eric Shanower and Skottie Young, Marvel Comics
• Tumor, Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon, Archaia

Best Anthology
• Blab World #1, Monte Beauchamp And Bill North, Last Gasp
• CBGB, Kieron Gillen and Sam Humphries, BOOM! Studios
• Popgun # 4, Edited by D.J. Kirkbride, Anthony Wu and Adam P. Knave, Image Comics
• Reading With Pictures, Josh Elder, executive editor, Reading With Pictures
• Strange Tales, Volume II # 1, Edited By Jody Leheup, Marvel Comics
• Uniques Tales, Tanya Eby and Mallette Pagano

Best Domestic Reprint Project
• Dave Stevens’ The Rocketeer: Aritist’s Edition, Designed by Randall Dahlk, Edited by Scott Dunbier, IDW
• The Darkness, Garth Ennis, Marc Silvestri and Batt, Image Comics
• Jet Scott, Jerry Robinson and Sheldon Stark, Dark Horse Comics
• Li’l Abner: The Complete Dailies and Color Sundays, Edited By Bruce Canwell, IDW
• Superman vs. Muhammad Ali, Neal Adams and Dennis O’Neil, DC Comics

Best Cover Artist
• Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit, IDW
• Jenny Frison, Angel, IDW
• Marcos Martin, Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Comics
• Mike Mignola, Hellboy, Dark Horse Comics
• Frank Quitely, Batman and Robin, DC Comics

Best Biographical, Historical or Journalistic Presentation
• 75 Years Of DC Comics: The Art Of Modern Myth-Making, Paul Levitz, Taschen Books
• The Art of Jaime Hernandez: The Secrets of Life and Death, Edited by Todd Hignite, Abrams Comicarts
• Jerry Robinson: Ambassador of Comics, N. C. Christopher Couch, Abrams Comicarts
• Oddly Compelling Art Of Denis Kitchen, Denis Kitchen and Charles Brownstein, Edited By John Lind and Diana Schutz, Dark Horse Books
• Portrait Of A Sequential Artist, Directed by Andrew D. Cook, Montilla Presentations

Special Award For Excellence In Presentation
• Dave Stevens’ The Rocketeer: Artist’s Edition, Designed by Randall Dahlk, Edited by Scott Dunbier, IDW
• Oddly Compelling Art Of Denis Kitchen Kitchen, Denis Kitchen and Charles Brownstein, Edited by John Lind and Diana Schutz, Dark Horse Books
• Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit, Darwyn Cooke, IDW
• Shazam! The Golden Age Of The World’s Mightiest Mortal, Chip Kidd and Geoff Spear, Abrams Comicarts
• Wednesday Comics Hardcover Edition, Edited By Mark Chiarello, DC Comics

Best Graphic Album – Original
• Duncan, The Wonder Dog, Adam Hines, Adhouse Books
• Market Day, James Sturm, Drawn and Quarterly
• Scott Pilgrm Volume 6: Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour, Bryan Lee O’Malley, Oni Press
• Wilson, Dan Clowes, Drawn And Quarterly
• X’ed Out, Charles Burns, Pantheon

Best Continuing Or Limited Series
• Chew, John Layman and Rob Guillory, Image Comics
• Daytripper, Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Echo, Terry Moore, Abstract Studio
• Fantastic Four, Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham, Marvel Comics
• Locke & Key: Keys To The Kingdom # 1, Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriquez, IDW
• Love And Rockets: Volume 3, Jaime And Gilbert Hernandez, Fantagraphics

Best Writer
• Cullen Bunn, Sixth Gun, Oni Press
• Joshua Hale Fialkov, Echoes, Top Cow
• Roger Langridge, Thor: The Mighty Avenger, Marvel Comics
• Ryan Sohmer, Gutters, http://www.the-Gutters.com
• Mark Waid, Irredeemable, BOOM! Studios

Best Artist
• Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit, IDW
• Dean Haspiel, Cuba : My Revolution, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Brian Hurtt, Sixth Gun, Oni Press
• Ed Ryzowski, Gutters
• Chris Samnee, Thor: The Mighty Avenger, Marvel Comics

Best Cartoonist
• Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit, IDW
• Jaime Hernandez, Love and Rockets, Fantagraphics
• Jeff Lemire, Sweet Tooth, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour, Oni Press
• Jeff Smith, RASL, Cartoon Books

Best Single Issue or Story
• Acme Novelty Library #20: Lint, Chris Ware, Drawn and Quarterly
• Echoes # 1, Joshua Hale Fialkov and Rashan Ekedal, Top Cow
• Daytripper, Fabio Moon and Gabiel Ba, Vertigo/DC Comics
• Locke & Key: Keys To The Kingdom #1, Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriquez, IDW
• Love and Rockets: New Stories, Volume 3, Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez, Fantagraphics
• Popgun # 4, Edited By D.J. Kirkbride, Anthony Wu and Adam P. Knave, Image Comics
• Wilson, Daniel Clowes, Drawn and Quarterly

POWERS CAST JASON PATRIC & MORE

    FX is currently working on a pilot for the fan favorite series, Powers. Co-creator and executive producer Brian Michael Bendis says shooting will begin soon and we got characters picked out. Lucy Punch as Deena Pilgrim and Jason Patric, of Lost Boys and Speed 2 fame, will take the lead as Christian Walker. Charles Dutton & Baliee Madison round out the main cast. Considering the actual track record of FX shows and the material, this could be the next big hit.




X-MEN: REGENESIS AFTER DEATH




6 - Over in Marvel. It has been confirmed. Uncanny X-Men will come to an end this fall with issue #544 . . . ONLY to restart again. Yes. You heard me right. Uncanny X-Men #544 will be the FINAL ISSUE . . . of Volume 1. It seems that the X-Men event, Schism, will end up dividing mutants for years to come as we find the Cyclops and Wolverine will each lead a faction.
      The split will be more of a philosophical and methodological split; so no . . .THIS WILL NOT BE BLUE TEAM & GOLD TEAM that first split the X-Men into two titles back in the 90s. This will be about how and where mutants are going and how to handle the world around them. There will be no reconciliation anytime soon.

This break will lead to the two teams with two new #1s. The new Uncanny X-Men # 1, featuring Cyclops' team as we see them try their best to become the premiere super hero team on the planet. The new Uncanny X-Men will be written by current Uncanny X-Men writer, Kieron Gillen with art by both Carlos Pacheco & Greg Land.

While Wolverine's group will be congregate in Wolverine & the X-Men which will be written by Wolverine and Schism writer Jason Aaron with art by fan favorite, Chris Bachalo. Aaron commented about the book with this:

 " big crazy plots, intense character drama, love, sex, anti-mutant hysteria, man-eating aliens, all-new characters, old favorite characters, bizarre space tech, strange transformations, property damage, telepathic shenanigans, Wolverine drinking whiskey, mutants playing baseball. Except perhaps for that last part.”



All 3 issues of these books are all slated for this October. As for the other X-Men titles, they will be effected by Schism as well; particularly X-Men: Legacy as soon as the mutants return from the Shi'ar.So see the new beginning of the X-Men. See the X-Men: Regenesis.


EDITORIAL


Okay. Finally. Unless you have been hiding under a rock or have not spoken to a single person in the last month . . . you know that DC Comics is planning to relaunch their entire line of comics. Yes. This September, DC Comics will release 52 new #1s, saying that this is not a reboot but a relaunch. And it has been confirmed that some of the characters origins have changed while others will stay the same. Most of the events before will have happened while others did not. There has been a LOT of information since the beginning of June about all the titles, creative teams and when all the books will be due out.

    This is also DC's first foray into day to digital, offering all their books on line for$3.99 the month they come out then go down to $1.99 the next month.  And just recently revealed, Justice League, the flagship title that will start the relaunch is the only book that will have a digital & physical copy sold at $4.99 . . .EVERY MONTH. It was recently confirmed that every issue of Justice League will sell a dual copy edition for now. This will not stop after the first issue but will be ongoing.


This is HISTORIC and EPIC as it gets in terms of the comic book industy. DC is making a big gamble in order to catch new readers while still keeping their old ones. Nicknamed the DCNU, the relaunch has been on the lips and minds of all comic book fans for the past month.
   And fan reaction has been mixed. There are upset fanboys who find this to be an act against God and Man, readying to march in protest & swear off DC Comics come this September. Meanwhile, a lot of casual readers, some die hard fans & even non comic book readers are thinking of actually picking up the books and start collecting come September.

   With that said, this is definitely in the minds of everyone in the industry. This has and will make history . . . whether it works or not. But due to a lot of the confusion and anger of Fanboys, and because still much information has been tight lipped, I would like to report something that will go along with the relaunch:

 FACT: The relaunch will provide jump on points for all the books.

  FACT: Previous continuity STILL counts and does not at the same time!

 And I will explain that briefly. The changes are going to occur after Flashpoint . . . immediately after Flashpoint as . . . 1. Flashpoint # 5 and Justice League # 1 will be the ONLY TWO books printed from DC come August 31st.

   Second, Geoff Johns, writer of Flashpoint, Green Lantern and upcoming Aquaman and Justice League titles has commented on several occassions since the beginning of Flashpoint is NOT just some event that won't matter after a while. He has said, over and over again, that Flashpoint would count in a major way. So, as Flashpoint goes on, we will see just how DC goes from what it was to DCNU DURING FLASHPOINT.

Let me say that again. We will see how the DCNU will come to be DURING FLASHPOINT.

Before I get the fans that say that the old continuity does not count . . . allow me to continue with YES IT DOES!

In order for Flashpoint to have occurred . . . the previous continuity had to have happened. That means everything before Flashpoint had to happen in order to get there.

Now, SPOILER:

  The Flash is working to get the universe back to the way it was will have to somehow bring about the birth of the DCNU.

So, cause the universe is the same but different, we will see this new universe come to be. Where? In Flashpoint.

That is why the changes in the DCNU are possible and yet, at the same time, many of the stories of the previous DCU are still in continuity.

It's like in Back to the Future when the Doc was shot down as Marty traveled back into 1955; Marty wrote the letter in to the Doc's younger self; Marty returns to 1985 and the Doc gets up after being shot wearing a bullet proof vest.

Fact of the matter is, the relaunch is happening. I am happy for it cause it means that comics are doing its best in order to stay alive. Comics don't have the readership that it used to and shops closed up around the country cause people stopped buy comics. We need new readers. We need fresh ideas. I love the old stuff too but this seems to be the best of both worlds.

DC is doing nothing more but what they have done with the Green Lantern, written by Geoff Johns, and had gotten so popular over the last decade that it warranted a movie at last; the Teen Titans, which is still a largely popular book spawning 2 cartoons in the last decade and The Flash; who we are seeing now grow and grow in popularity again.

Readers didn't mind that some old stuff was written out then. Why now?

I am looking forward to Teen Titans. I am looking forward to Geoff John's Aquaman and hope that he can do his best with make the character less of a joke and more of the king that he deserves to be treated like. I look forward to seeing Martian Manhunter on Stormwatch and seeing how the Wildstorm characters interact with the rest of the DCNU. I look forward to Static moving to NYC and making his mark there. I am looking forward to Batman, Bruce Wayne, actually working with his biological son, Damian Wayne and see how that works out. Heck, I am even intrigued to pick up Batgirl now because Barbara Gordon will be back as Batgirl. Yes . . . you read that right. And She's being written by Gail Simone. So that's win for me.

All I am saying is give the relaunch a chance. Give the company a chance to wow us. Give them the first six months to show us what this new world is made of. See the characters. Look at the art. See how this all works out before you decide to bury it, if you are against it. If you are for it . . . You will see me there every week in September getting as many #1s as I can afford.

I want to support my shops. My artists. My writers. My inkers. My colorists. My editorial teams. Their assistants. Their resources. Their books.  Do not let your own personal wants end up killing a company doing their best to give something for everyone.

And not just DC, but J1 studios too. Look at all our content. Look at our comics, our blogs, our videos . . . our events. We are doing this all for you fans. But we need your support to do that and if we don't get enough support we can't go on.

DC is merely doing the same thing.

And that is my own take on this. Me, Francisco K. Rodriguez. No one else. This is just my editorial and not the feelings of everyone at J1. Thank you for reading.


Sincerely, 


Francisco K. Rodriguez
Comic Book Clash Head






Calling all artists & writers. Have a project but understaffed? Have a great idea and art for it but no writer to flesh it out and make a great story of it? Have a great idea but just need that kind of artist that will give you that explosive, dynamic look your book needs? Well, Comic Book Clash News Edition will start posting WANT ads as soon as next week. Yes. We want you to give us your ads for the stuff you want or need. It can be a writer, artists, editor, inker, photographer or colorist. Let us know and show us what you need and we will post weekly. For details, contact me, Frankie, at francisco.k.rodriguez@gmail.com with the subject Comic Book Clash Want Ad and we will post the following week. All ads are due for that week no later than the monday before that week's CBC.

When you do put in for an ad, please put the following:

Your Name:
What You are Looking For:
A Small Description of What kind of Project:
Contact Information:

Hope to see those ads for next weeks regular News Edition.


SEE YA NEXT WEEK