Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America (Classic Review)

Originally released in 2009.

Writer: Jeph Loeb

Artists: Leinil Yu, Ed McGuinness, John Romita Jr., David Finch and John Cassaday

Publisher: Marvel Comics
Collects: Fallen Son: Wolverine; New Avengers; Captain America; Spider-Man; Iron Man

"Where were you when Captain America died?" is the motivating question behind Fallen Son, as it shows the reactions of various Marvel characters in the aftermath of Cap's assassination, even if it does stray from that original concept.

It is quite appropriate for Jeph Loeb to pen this story. Not only is he personally familiar with loss, but his writing always carries a certain weight to it. And the absolute plethora of talented artists here is truly top-form; whether its David Finch's grittiness or Ed McGuinness' solid action or John Cassaday's elegant simplicity, and all of them benefit from Loeb's instant synergy with his artists.

I can think of no tribute more fitting for Cap -- a man who was perceived completely different by everyone who knew him -- than to see his friends and allies all share their image of the Sentinel of Liberty and what he meant to them, and see that maybe he was all these things and more.

Villains United (Classic Review)

Originally released in 2005.

Writer: Gail Simone

Artists: Dale Eaglesham and Val Semeiks

Publisher: DC Comics

Collects: Villains United #1-6

Back during DC's Event story Infinite Crisis they released four tie-ins that added extra backstory or angles to the overall plot. Villains United explored the formation of Lex Luthor's "Secret Society" and their "scrappy underdog" counterparts (and adversaries), the Secret Six.

The anti-villain characters of Scandal, Deadshot, Catman, Ragdoll, Cheshire and Parademon would prove to be so popular a team dynamic that, with a few minor changes to the ever-fluctuating roster, they eventually got their own ongoing series out of it.

But Villains United is where it all started. With the Secret Society recruiting pretty much every supervillain in the DC Universe into its ranks, the Six were formed by the mysterious Mockingbird to uncover the Society's true purpose. Six villains who were either too insignificant or too proud to join the Society, but were swiftly transformed into some of the most intriguing characters in the DC pantheon.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Marvel vs. DC (Classic Review)

Originally released in 1996.

Writers: Ron Marz, Peter David

Artists: Dan Jurgens, Claudio Castellini, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
Publisher: DC Comics/Marvel Comics
Collects: DC vs. Marvel #1-4; Dr. Strangefate #1

Come with me on a journey back 15 years, to a time when Superman had a mullet, Spider-Man was a clone, and every other word had the letter X awkwardly forced into it.

It is a time where mainstream superhero stories have fallen somewhat by the wayside. The art was difficult to look at, the characters zero-dimensional, and the plots reduced to mindless stunts. Seeking to regain their former glory, DC Comics and Marvel Comics put their heads together and came up with a solution.

They were going to pull off the biggest, most mindless stunt possible by having their characters fight each other until only one remained! One reader, that is.

One Month to Live (Review)

Writers: Rick Remender, Rob Williams, Stuart Moore, John Ostrander

Artists: Andrea Mutti, Koi Turnbull, Shawn Moll, Shane White, Graham Nolan, Jamie McKelvie

Publisher: Marvel Comics
Collects: 1 Month 2 Live #1-5

Stand-up comedian Dylan Moran once said that all Irish people look as if they are being told really good news in one ear while being told really bad news in the other.

That is essentially what happens to the character of Dennis Sykes in this creator-jam story from Marvel, presumably sent to remind us of how "real" their stories always are. Dennis -- who seems to be some kind of... accountant? Bank employee? I dunno; whatever he is, he seems to wreck people's dreams for a living and is ashamed for it -- discovers he has matter-altering superpowers at the same time he discovers he has cancer, with one month on the clock.

Resolved to use both his powers and dwindling time to make a positive difference in the lives of others and his family, Dennis soon finds himself entering the wider world of the Marvel Universe with consequences both personal and far-reaching

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Brightest Day Volume One (Review)

Writers: Geoff Johns and Peter J. Tomasi

Artists: Ivan Reis, Patrick Gleason, Fernando Pasarin, Adrian Syaf, Scott Clark and Joe Prado

Publisher: DC Comics

Collects: Brightest Day #0-7

Blackest Night concluded with twelve characters being resurrected from the dead by the enigmatic White Light of creation for some elusive purpose. Brightest Day follows these characters as they resume their ordinary lives, and slowly discover the reason behind their return.

"Slowly" being the operative word.

After the frenetic, action-packed Blackest Night, Brightest Day feels more along the lines of 52 or Batman: No Man's Land in terms of story pacing. We get the impression that there is something big unfolding here, it's just taking its time doing so.

Blackest Night (Classic Review)

Originally released earlier this year. I wrote this review for a different site when the trade came out and thought I'd repost it here.

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist: Ivan Reis

Publisher: DC Comics

Collects: Blackest Night #0-8; Blackest Night Director's Cut #1

DC's big Event story for this year comes out of Geoff Johns' run on Green Lantern. The dead are rising in the form of the Black Lanterns, and they are out to terrorise the living.

Like Larfleeze with his Power Battery, I could not put this book down. First of all, its visuals grab your attention and refuse to let go. I've never really been one for Ivan Reis' art – I don't hate it, it just never clicked with me – but Blackest Night completely won me over. Every single one of the eighty zillion characters that appears in this is stunning, with Reis capturing their beauty and/or power each time, whether they be in the back- or foreground.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!