Uncanny X-Men # 1 Review

UNCANNY X-MEN # 1
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Chris Bachalo, Tim Townsend, Al Vey & Jamie Mendoza
Marvel Comics


FLIPPING THROUGH:

            Normally, I would give you a brief history but the book does that for you. We get an interesting device of the issue being narrated by the person that is the Judas to Cyclops’ revolution. This was definitely a different Cyclops. Yet, it works and fits with everything that has occurred since Avengers vs X-Men. Cyclops is now an outlaw and considered a revolutionary with the mutant population booming again.
            His team scoops in to gather a brand new mutant only  to encounter Sentinels. Magneto, depowered a little bit because of the Phoenix (which still makes me scratch my head since the Phoenix attacked other mutants and their powers didn’t go gaga like his) and a now over powered Cyclops takes them down. The rest of the team gathers a young man  who just dealt with emerging powers. Not much on Magik but Eva who we saw in All New X-Men is now going by Tempus.
            Our narrator seems to be talking to Maria Hill & Nick Fury Jr. At the end, we get a reveal of our Judas. And I will just keep it there.


ART:

            Bachalo’s style has always been very different. I do not know many people with a similar style (the closest being Mark Buckingham but his style evolved differently than Bachalo’s). There are gritter inks to it but there are some definitely uses of propaganda art throughout the comic that helps give it the right feel, thanks to the inking team of Vey, Townsend & Mendoza. Cyclops is indeed leading a revolution now. And I hope this ride is a very, very long one … LIKE AT LEAST A DECADE. Anyway, Bachalo not only pencils the issue but also colors it himself. And Bachalo’s art looks amazing.
            Each panel is distinct and rich but there are pieces where things really work in terms of art that deals with Cyclops’ revolution. It is like the book continues to not only side with Cyclops visually, but shows you dramatic pieces that jump at you as if it were a program. Bachalo does not disappoint with the Sentinels either. Yet, I am not too keen on Magneto’s redesign. There were a couple of panels that seemed a bit  . .. fast. Like the opening panel with Hill, Coulson & Fury walking down a corridor. I have seen Bachalo’s work for years but I don’t know if it was the pencils or inks but it feels like that panel was rushed to get into the “good stuff.”  Each panel, in my mind, is important but that one just looked rushed or lazy. Yet, the coloring makes the panels vivid and working towards a propaganda style that goes along with Cyclops revolution. Otherwise, a solid job by Bachalo.


WRITING:

            This is probably one of the most inventively written books from Bendis. As I touched on with the art, there is a sense that is book is continuing giving you propaganda. From Cyclops’ image on the first page, to multiple panels which show Mutants getting attacked. Bendis crafts a great opening issue. He gives you the background. He sets up problems with SHIELD. He sets up this new mission of Cyclops’ yet also gives a very interesting look at it. Already, one of Cyclops’ most trusted X-Men are betraying him. Yet, we see loads of propaganda that prove Cyclops’ point visually while we are being told the opposite about Cyclops verbally. It makes an interesting was to go through the issue. It enhances what is going on even more and makes an interesting statement in the causes that Cyclops is now championing.
            Each characters voice was interesting. Yet, I find that for a book called Uncanny X-Men, we seem to have a split focus on SHIELD as well. Still, Bendis writes a bit darker here and it works. The use of propaganda over topped by the Judas’ narrative was inventive. The characters’ voices rang true. A great solid first issue by Bendis.


OVERALL IMPRESSION:

            Bendis continues his mastery over all things X-Men with an inventive start for Uncanny X-Men’s third volume. The flavor of added propaganda mixed with narration from one of the people that is supposed to be one of its champions was a great storytelling device. Bachalo’s art is just as inventive with interesting colors and panel work, yet some of it was a little lazy. Otherwise, I am excited to see where this road takes Cyclops.

 
RATING:

            I give this book an 8.0 out of 10. A few lazy panels aside, I loved the opening of this book and look forward to more.

Cover of the Week 12/19/12

Hawkeye #6

Beware the Hawk.

Now this is a sweet cover. A blood red shot of Hawkeye looking down the shaft of an arrow. It really captures Hawkeye's presence and personality. The best part about the cover is the image is contained within Hawkeye's symbol. Though the white surrounding it takes away from the cover. It's sort of abrasive or blinding to the eye. It would have faired better with a black or red. But overall still an awesome cover.

Comic Review: Thunderbolts #1

THUNDERBOLTS #1
Written by Daniel Way
Art by Steve Dillon & Guru eFX
Marvel Comics


FLIPPING THROUGH:

     This is a brand new beginning. These are NOT the Thunderbolts of old. If you want to see any of them, read Dark Avengers. This is a whole new team with a different purpose.And we see this team being formed. Each member of the group is getting a very ... personal invite from Thaddeus Ross aka Red Hulk. As the team is slowly being formed, we get a glimpse into the purpose behind Ross's new Thunderbolts group. Um ... A LOT of people get killed in this first issue.

   Wow. Way and Dillon seem to be off to a bloody start.


ART:

   Dillon has been around for quite some time now. He's drawn Frank, the Punisher, before. He's also done stuff like Preacher. This definitely seems to be up his alley. We have an in-continuity book for Punisher to really explore the Marvel Universe. And Dillon is definitely exploring the darker corners of the Marvel U.

   Dillon's style is somewhat unique. Yet, it works well as we see Deadpool, Elektra, Venom and more looking distinct. Emotions are easy and the backgrounds were various and colorful. Guru eFX does a great job of showing off Dillon's pencils and inks. Although with the scenes with  Ross and Punisher, I felt that they may have been colored a bit more brightly. Otherwise, solid job by Dillon and Guru eFX.


WRITING:

  Way does a good job on seeing how Ross personally recruits his team and the whys. He also delves into the impact the Punisher has had on the rest of the Marvel U; which is definitely an interesting speech. Ross goes about his recruitment face to face but each of them while they are killing a lot of people ... save for Frank. Ross uses his recruitment of Frank to help push along the issue and it is done well.  Ross's unique way to bring the Punisher onto the team was very smart and true to both characters.

 While the other members did not seem to be recruited in such a grandiose fashion ... it felt real enough. Ross and Punisher's interplay in the book will be the most interesting from the way things look from this first issue.  My gripes are because of the recruitment being quick ... we did not see much of the rest of the team while having an overall focus on Punisher. It makes sense but still. Plus, the issue felt breezy. This was too much Punisher & Ross, not enough Thunderbolts


OVERALL IMPRESSION:

    Thunderbolts #1 was a good opening issue for the new series. It establishes how the team gets together. It establishes the motivation behind the team and helps display  that this team's purpose will be killing who Ross deems has "bad guys."

   The art is good and the pacing was okay. After consideration, there was entirely too much Punisher & Ross and not enough Team. The story telling technique was okay but over all. It could have been stronger if the issue was perhaps double sized. This is a team book ... but it felt like the Ross/Castle show more than anything.



I give Thunderbolts #1  ... a 3 out of 5. Get ready to feel the pain.

Comic Review: All New X-Men #1

FIRST IMPRESSION


ALL NEW X-MEN # 1
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger & Marte Garcia
Marvel Comics



  INFO:

        A lot has changed over the last several years. Cyclops, dealing with the weight of being the leader of mutant kind, decided it was time to protect mutants and turned his back on his dream of co-existence. And while having Asteroid M become its own Mutant Nation seemed like a good idea ... at the end of the day, it wasn't. Isolating Mutants from Humans only made things worse. Schism ripped apart the team. And Scott Summers seemed fine with some of the decisions he's made.

    Then the Avengers ... led by Captain America Steve Rodgers .... in all his wisdom, decide when they found out Scott's granddaughter was the next host of the Phoenix, that they were gonna take her: whether she wanted to be taken or not.

   This lead to a war between the X-Men and the Avengers ... which flip flopped in which side was doing wrong. At the end of the day, it took the X-Men and the Avengers against the 5 X-Men who became the Hosts for the Phoenix (Cyclops, Emma Frost, Namor, Magik & Colossus) to take them down. Scott Summers was imprisoned after he and the Phoenix 5 were out of control . .. including Scott killing Professor Xavier when he became the Dark Phoenix.

   Scarlet Witch, Hope Summers and the others were finally about to free Scott of the Phoenix but it changed him even further. Scott Summers completely turned his back on Xavier's dream. After breaking out of prison, Scott leads Magneto, Emma Frost & Magik on his crusade to help mutantkind his way.



 FLIPPING THROUGH:

     This is the beginning of Brian Michael Bendis' run on the X-Men. This first issue. And it starts with a bang. Hank finds that he is mutating again ... possibly a result from the Phoenix's dispersion reactivating mutants worldwide, giving way to some serious issue for Hank.

Then we see Scott doing what he's become known for ... attacking humans if there is a mutant nearby. Actually, Scott and his team find 2 new mutants. Sure. They beat up comes and feds in order to get them. And both mutants seem like they were being perscuted by humans but ...

Back at the mansion, we get Storm, Kitty, Bobby and Hank talking about what Scott is doing. Iceman reminences that the Scott of old would slap some sense into Scott of present day. Which ends up giving Hank and idea ...

   We see the original X-Men as teens. Young Hank says he is fed up protecting humans.  Just before he leaves he runs into ... himself  ... older. bigger. Present day Beast talk to the original X-Men for his big plan ... for young Cyclops to talk to old Cyclops in order to save Scott from becoming what he is now.



ART:

   Stuart Immonen's art has evolved a lot since his days as artist on DC's Legion of Super Heroes. The style has changed drastically. And it definitely works here. The pages are kinetic. The action is vibrant. The emotions feel really and almost palpable. You can tell that Immonen is having fun with this. Even more so than he did with Fear Itself. I can honestly say that besides his work on New Avengers .... All New X-Men seems to be the most his work has come to life since Nextwave. And that is saying a lot.

     Wade Von Grawbadger's inks really help give the power to Immonen's pencils. Really strong black but not too deep in inks that the book would look dark. This is not a dark, depressing book. Still, the inks help Immon's pencils give a strong first impression. Well done Wade.

   Marte Garcia ... I thank the comic book gods for you. Your colors were exquisite in this first issue. They really gave Immonen's & Grawbadger 's pencils and inks. This world is very different and alive. You can feel the excitement off the pages. The mood and colors for the X-Men of the Past and Present day Beast are even a little different. Slightly enough to show the difference in attitude and manner. Well done to Marte Garcia.


WRITING:

    Brian Michael Bendis. People either love him or hate it  it seems. He either brings horror or joy. And I can honestly say that Bendis is off to a better start here than he was when he wrote Avengers Dissembled years ago. The pacing is   excellent. The dialogue was very natural. We see the national progression of the characters we have followed since AvX, if not before that.

   This is a new world. Mutants are no longer endangered. And Scott Summers is considered a criminal. Makes you think, doesn't it? And we get to see the world quickly as new mutants are popping up and guns are being pointed. And Scott ... in his infinite wisdom ... decides he needs to help mutants his way.

   All the motivations of the characters feel real. All the choices that the characters have made feel authentic. This is truly a great start for this book. My only real gripe ... it feels breezy. I enjoyed the issue but I expected more.

 Nothing was really disappointing. I just felt like a scene was missing from the issue. I just felt like the issue stopped more than ended.  Otherwise,  great writing by Mr. Bendis.


OVERALL IMPRESSION:

    All New X-Men #1 set a new bar. Bendis has the reigns now and I am gonna enjoy it. This along with Wolverine and the X-Men and the other X-books, it is an interesting time to be a mutant. I am very happy to see that this is the start of something new for the X-Men. Roles have changed. People have changed. They are all evolving and this book gives you a front row to that evolution.

    Despite the feeling that their could have been more, it was a great start to the Bendis X-Men era. Immonen and company paint a clear picture of it and it is gonna be a fun ride.


I give All New X-Men #1 a 4 out of 5. Not bad Marvel. Not bad.

Marvel NOW First Impression: Red She-Hulk #58

FIRST  IMPRESSION


MARVEL NOW


RED SHE-HULK #58
Written by Jeff Parker
Art by Wellington Alves, Carlo Pagulayan & Val Staples
 Marvel Comics


 INTRODUCTION:

         Over the course of the last decade, creators have worked hard to change the Hulk and help him sell better by changing things up ... to make him and his cousin Jennifer, no longer the only Hulks around. Hulk found himself to be surrounded by a new Hulk family: a son and daughter who were both Hulks, his close friend Rick Jones who became A Bomb but more significantly, his former father in law becoming the Red Hulk and his thought to be dead wife Betty, was changed into the Red She Hulk.

  Betty, as we came to find, was quite okay with becoming a Hulk. She actually finds it invigorating. Betty had embraced herself as the Red she Hulk and decided to be adventurous.Since then, she's been estranged with Bruce, was recently a Defender and just became the star of the Hulk book, written by Jeff Parker. He has decided that it is Betty's time to shine as part of the new Marvel NOW intitiative. So, let's find out what happens.


FLIPPING THROUGH:

  We are treated to the military having their own set of super soldiers who will follow orders and be government agents. During the test in a restricted, government location, Red She-Hulk thought it was time to have some fun and crash the test. She wanted information on this program called Echelon.

 We soon come to find out 2 things: 1- General Fortean wants to capture her, even asking Captain America for info. 2 - REd She-Hulk wants to take down Echelon and she is getting all the intel she can on them to do so.

  Her investigation brings her to a lab in Arlington , VA where she stops a doctor from being raped by one of Echelon's guinea pigs ... VIOLENTLY.


ART:

    Pagulayan and Alves do a stunning job with this first issue of Red She-Hulk. Betty looked smart, beautiful while her Red She-Hulk persona seems to be fun . . . and dangerous. Everyone had a great, distinct look. Emotion was easily conveyed. The panels were fun and full of kinetic action.

     Staples colors were amazing. They really helped the characters jump out, look distinct and complemented the art of both artists extremely well. Kudos to the art team with a good, strong showing.


WRITING:

    Parker gives us a strong impression with this first issue. There is a lot of mystery in the air with this first issue of Red She-Hulk. Echelon and General Fortean are being built up to a big threat to the heroes and villains at large.Parker definitely leave us with a strong impression that Betty is not playing around with her new mission to take down Echelon ... especially considering how the soldiers are getting their powers.

   You get the feeling that Betty is not going to stop till she takes down Echelon and that Fortean could end up like her father was towards Bruce before her. Yet, there is only one misstep with this issue was good set up to mysteries and the threat that Echelon will be but for Betty ... it kept her a mystery. And while that can be somewhat good, it made me feel like we are watching Betty more than getting to know her. And she is gonna be the star of this book but we got Red She-Hulk smashing with little reasons behind her own motivations.

  That seemed to be what bothered me but otherwise and great job by Parker cause it definitely makes readers wanting more.


OVERALL IMPRESSION:

   Red She-Hulk #58 is a good jump on point. We get a dynamic new star with a strong mission and the determination to see it through. We get interesting and appealing new villains to work with. The art is superb.  A feast for the eyes and fits the book. There is tension, there is mystery and a lot of things get smashed. The whys have not been revealed but this does help set up an exciting start to Betty's adventures.


I give Red She-Hulk #58 a 4 out of 5. It was good. It made me want more but us getting to know our star a lil more would have been good for a jump on point. Otherwise, a strong read. 

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.

A Look Into the Covers of Marvel NOW!

He is the line up of titles that have been confirmed, besides Uncanny Avengers, Avengers, New Avengers & All New X-Men.



First up, is Fantastic Four. Written by Matt Fraction with art by Mark Bagley, Marvel's First Family will be going on a roadtrip for its opening arc. Here's a look Fantastic Four # 1.















Next up, is the people who will be taking care of the Baxter Building while the Fantastic Four are away. Ladies & Gentlemen, I give you the new FF, written by Matt Fraction with art by Mike Allred. Featuring Ant- Man (probably Scott Lang, since he was a former member), She-Hulk, Medusa and ... She- Thing?!









 Next, the Merc With A Mouth starts over with a brand new #1. Written by Brian Posehn &  Gerry Duggan, with art by Tony Moore.


























 Then we go into the solo books of the various Avengers. Starting us off first, is Thor: The God of Thunder, written by Jason Aaron with art by Esad Ribic. Watch as the first arc of Thor has the God of Thunder dealing with a being known simply as the " God Butcher."
















Following Thor, we go to the Gamma Goliath himself, The Hulk. The Hulk comes back from writer Mark Waid and artist Leninl Yu. Waid promises that this Hulk will be different as Bruce and the Hulk have finally struck up an alliance with each other. And this alliance will shake the very foundations of the Marvel Universe.







Tony Stark goes through some changes in his life ... and with the many woman and enemies that are part of that life as writer Kieron Gillen and artist Greg Land decide to take us down a new path with Iron Man.















Finally, see the many changes in the life of Steve Rodgers as he deals with his decisions and the aftermath of AvX. Welcome to a new era as we see a new look and a new attitude for Captain America. Written by Rick Remender with art by John Romita Jr.

Marvel NOW! - 8 More Titles/Creative Teams Confirmed

  Marvel has had a busy week as they have made a slew of announcements throughout it. These announcements confirm titles that they will be releasing in November during their Marvel Now Relaunch. Here are the titles with the ads as shown.

Monday, We got confirmation that Kieron Gillen and Greg Land would be taking over Iron Man:









Tuesday, We heard that The Mighty Thor will have a brand new creative team of Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic:

Wednesday, We heard that Hulk returns and is "Indestructible" as his new creative team is recent Eisner Award Winner Mark Waid and artist Leinil Yu: 

Thursday, Deadpool gets to go nuts with writers/comedians Gerry Duggan and Brian Posehn with art by Tony Moore:

Then we were attacked by Marvel on Friday with 4 New Title Announcements as first, Rick Remender and John Romita Jr take over as the creative team for Captain America, as confirmed by twitter from current Captain America scribe Ed Brubaker.





  Next up is the confirmation that  Matt Fraction will be handling both Fantastic Four and the returning FF. Handling Fantatic Four with the scribe is superstar artist Mark Bagley.










Following up with Fraction on the Fantastic Four's sister title, FF, will be cult favorite artist, Mike Allred, leading the Future Foundation into the next stage of Marvel.










Finally, there is the finally promotion that states Legacy, featuring the team of  writer Simon Spurrier and artist Tan Eng Huat. While most speculation states that this is probably X-Men Legacy relaunch, there is also some rumors that this could be for another Avengers related title, possibly dealing with the Picture with Nick Fury Jr and his photo of Wiccan, Miss America and Loki. Could it be the return of the Young Avengers? We won't know till November.



These titles join the following that were already confirmed:

- Uncanny Avengers with Rick Remember and John Cassidy
-Avengers with Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opena.
- New Avengers with Jonathan Hickman and Steve Epting.
- All New X-Men with Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen.


12 Brand new titles down, not counting Red She-Hulk will be taking over as the main star in Hulk but that is not getting relaunched. What does this mean for the last 10 titles yet to be announced or any other changes in creative teams on long standing books? Find out as we keep an eye on Marvel Now.

Marvel NOW starts One New Beginning & A Whole Lot of Endings

As we inch closer to Marvel NOW, the solicitations for October has come out. And as such, things are gonna change very much for the Marvel Universe. We got 1 new title in October. Well ... technically 3.

Space Knights mini series #1 and the Dexter adaption hits stores alongside the much anticipated Uncanny Avengers; as we showed the cover in a previous post.

Yet, For this new beginning, we are getting a LOT of endings.

The Following titles are having their final issues during the month of October:


Captain America (with issue #19)
The Mighty Thor (with issue # 22)
Invincible Iron Man (with issue # 527)
Incredible Hulk (with issue #15)
Fantastic Four (with issue #611)
FF (with issue # 23)
Uncanny X-Men (with issue # 20)
New Mutants  (with issue # 50)
X-Men Legacy (with issue # 275)


 Most of these titles are not a surprise. Unfortunately, New Mutants and X-Men Legacy are two of the biggest surprises. I know Astonishing X-Men and Wolverine & the X-Men are still focusing on the Jean Grey School but damn ... I love X-Men Legacy. *sigh* Forgive my fanboy moment. It does look like they are not going to cancel Wolverine & the X-Men anytime soon. Although, Avengers and New Avengers are on their final arcs, so they'll be ending next.  But at the very least, we are gonna see quiet a few changes with the restarts of most of these series. I say most cause I doubt that X-Men Legacy, New Mutants or FF are coming back.

I guess we'll find out. Keep your eyes here for more news. The end is coming.

Marvel NOW Updates - Behold ... the Uncanny Avengers & More.

Uncanny Avengers by John Cassidy

 There has been A LOT of buzz around Marvel's upcoming relaunch, Marvel NOW. Marvel NOW, for those of you who have been gone all holiday weekend, will be a 22 title relaunch initiative that Marvel will start this October and will have 1 title, every week, till February 2013. Yep. 22 new titles. So it is not a complete, line wide restart.

  Now more news has come out recently about Marvel NOW ... as I am sure it will throughout the next several months as we do not have full confirmations of what all the 22 titles are. In the previous article, we heard that Avengers, All -New X-Men and Uncanny Avengers are among the relaunch titles. It has also been confirmed that Matt Fraction and Salvador Larocca will move from Iron Man to Fantastic Four at the end of Jonathan Hickman's run on the title.



 What do we have now? First, as you can plainly see, the full roster of the Uncanny Avengers, which will be written by fan favorite writer, Rick Remender with art by John Cassidy. The roster will include Captain America, Thor, Scarlet Witch, Wolverine, Rogue and Havok. Yep. The book will start with this group coming together, in the aftermath of Avengers vs. X-Men, as a way to make peace between the two teams. Also, they will have to face off against the Red Skull.

Also, remember we mentioned All-New X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis? Yep. We confirmed that it will open with the original 5 X-Men going into the present from the past. And boy, it is gonna be a shocker. But what is even more interesting? Here are comments from Marvel EIC, Axel Alonso made to CBR:

When we first entertained a story that would bring the Lee/Kirby X-Men into the present, Brian was the one who immediately latched onto it. That shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who reads Brian's work because he has a special gift for writing compelling, nuanced stories featuring young characters that either come to terms with new powers or deal with strange new situations, or both. No one tells a better ground-level story that introduces readers to a world through a young person's eyes -- and that's apparent from the first two scripts Brian's already written -- yep, already written! [Laughs] This is young Cyclops, Jean Grey, Beast, Iceman and Angel traveling into the future and seeing what happened to Xavier's dream. And some of them will find out they didn't even make it this far! [Laughs] Imagine you're 17-year-old Jean Gray and you crash-land in the present. It'd be, like, "Why is everyone looking at me so strange...?"

And let me be very clear: Once the Lee & Kirby X-Men come into the present, they're here for the long haul. They're here for the foreseeable future, and that's something they -- and the rest of the Marvel Universe -- will have to come to terms with.

  So yeah. The original X-Men are here to stay for a while. So, Jean Grey is back ... sort of. It is before she died though. And the original 5 will be here for a WHILE. Time paradox anyone?


And Jumping back into the Avengers, Jonathan Hickman will be joined by Jerome Opena for the bi-weekly main Avengers book while it has been confirmed that former Avengers artist, Steve Epting, will return to the Avengers franchise as the new artist on New Avengers. It has been confirmed that all these titles will have new #1s. And the only Avengers that we know for sure on the Avengers will be Captain America, Thor & Shang Chi.

I know you've seen this already but just one more time. Let it sink in.

Any other Avengers, we will have to wait and see down the road how that goes. Yet, before we part, many have often compared Marvel NOW to DC's New  52. Here's Axel Alonso talking about that in his own words to CBR:

Well, one thing we did learn is that slapping a #1 on a bunch of cover sure gets you noticed! [Laughs] Look, DC does what it needs to do; we do what we need to do -- and we've been building toward this for some time. Marvel NOW! hearkens back to 11 years ago, when "NuMarvel" employed the simple strategy of "Great writer, great artist, great character, great hook...GO!" Only this time, we're embracing the #1 on the cover -- and we're determined that each issue is earns it -- and we're very conscious that these stories take place in one universe. We're leaning into the concept of shared-universe; while each title tells an independent story, they're part of a larger whole. 


And a couple things I want to emphasize: Marvel NOW! starts with the creators, so don't expect writer shake-ups across the line by the fourth or fifth issue, or half the titles to get cancelled and replaced by a new #1. We aren't throwing $#!# at a wall, seeing what falls off and then replacing it with more $#!#. [Laughs] We're building books we expect to last. Retailers that order them, and fans that read them, will be purchasing new ongoing titles, not limited series. Also, Marvel NOW! unfolds across four months, not one. Each week, we will be offering at least one new entry-point into the Marvel Universe for readers -- old, lapsed and new. It's a patient rollout that demonstrates respect for the fan and his wallet. 


Hmm .... sounds like fighting words to me. Let's see how it goes. Keep your eyes peeled here, in the Infinite, for more on Marvel NOW and other comic book news.

Marvel NOW aka Marvel Relaunches 22 Titles Starting October

A Look Into Marvel's Future with Marvel NOW!

 Hello Infi-Knights! It's your EIC here. Big news today is that Marvel ... in their infinite wisdom has confirmed that it will be relaunching 22 ... yes, 22 titles starting this October as a result of the events of Avengers vs X-Men. And while there was speculation that this was gonna lead to a Flashpoint/New 52 reboot like DC Comics, many from Marvel say that is not so. There will be one new book a week from October till February 2013. In a recent article of in Entertainment Weekly, Marvel had unveiled some of their plans:


Uncanny Avengers: written by Rick Remender and John Cassidy.

   Relaunching this October, the new team will include Captain America, Wolverine, Havok, Thor and Rogue. Recently released news details that this team will deal with Captain America realizing that he has not helped mutants much lately and steps up Havok into the lime light. Their first threat ... why the Red Skull. and no, not Sin. But her father! Well, his consciousness anyway. It has been called the bridge book between Avengers and X-Men post-AvX.


Avengers by Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opena

   It will be a bi-weekly book that will include up to 18 members; including recent Secret Avenger, Shang-Chi. The book is to go between galaxy spanning arcs to one issue stories to help rebuild the Avengers. The book starts in December.
 

All-New X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen

  The original 5 X-Men will be time traveled to the present, technically returning Jean Grey to the Marvel universe without a resurrection. Bendis promises to focus on the character development compared to science fiction. Bendis stated, " It's not a time-travel story like Back to the Future. It's a time-travel story like Pleasantville."


Other titles that have been rumored for the new Marvel NOW relaunch include:

Nova
Fantastic Four by Matt Fraction and Salvador Larocca
Guardians of the Galaxy
and more.

With all this, we have yet to get confirmation of  whether or not this is a soft reboot or a relaunch. There have been statements that seemingly contradict each other. Keep your eyes and ears here for more news about this latest development from Marvel.