This week in comics: Avengers vs. X-Men gets its groove back, the Swamp Thing/Animal Man crossover begins, iZombie comes to a close at Vertigo, Deadpool kills the whole Marvel Universe, Marvel goes all "Before X-Men" with The First X-Men mini-series, and Hawkeye gets a brand new solo series.
DC COMICS
Action Comics #12
Written by Grant Morrison | Art by Various
"Grant Morrison recently confirmed that he won't be continuing his Action Comics run beyond his initial 16-issue plan. That news casts a large shadow over issue #12. Like the rest of this story arc, there are both successes and missteps to be found, but the prevailing question now becomes 'How can Morrison properly wrap up such a wide-reaching story in a mere four issues?'" -Jesse
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Final Score:
7.0
Animal Man #12
Written by Jeff Lemire & Scott Snyder | Art by Steve Pugh
"With any episodic story there inevitably comes the 'recap' installment where the characters spend a majority of the issue reflecting on the past and little else. Luckily, Jeff Lemire and Scott Snyder sidestep the painful parts of this necessary evil and add in just enough new content to set up for the long-brewing Rotworld storyline." -Joshua
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Final Score:
7.5
Batwing #12
Written by Judd Winick | Art by Marcus To
"Hit the panic button, folks, because Batwing is officially in trouble. I get the idea. Really, I do. Justice League International could benefit from tapping into other books’ readerships. David Zavimbe is from Africa. Stick the JLI into Batwing, and both titles do better, right? Not really." -Poet
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Final Score:
5.5
Before Watchmen: Nite Owl #2
Written by J. Michael Straczynski | Art by Andy & Joe Kubert
"Aside from Silk Spectre, Nite Owl might be the Watchmen character best suited for an extended origin treatment. After all, Nite Owl is essentially equal parts Blue Beetle and Batman held together by a glue of sexual dysfunction. Unfortunately, issue #1 did too little to realize that potential, as it powered through Dan Dreiberg's early years and all the way up to his early team-ups with Rorschach. Where is there left for the series to go from there?" -Jesse
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Final Score:
6.5
Detective Comics #12
Written by Tony Daniel | Art by Tony Daniel
"Way to prove me wrong, Mr. Daniel. In my review for Detective Comics #11, I expressed my satisfaction with the depth given to Mr. Toxic. I was hopeful for a closer look at the emotions driving Mr. Toxic’s desperate quest in issue #12. I was expecting an open-ended portrait of a conflicted new villain. I was wrong." -Poet
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Final Score:
4.5
Dial H #4
Written by China Mievelle | Art by Mateus Santolouco
"One of the goals of the New 52 relaunch was to offer more bold and unique series outside of the usual superhero crowd. For whatever faults it might have, Dial H is never guilty of being familiar or formulaic. If anything, its weirdness has been a hurdle to overcome. Luckily, China Mieville's opening arc has progressed to the point where it's easier to see past the surreal nature of the writing and appreciate the characters." -Jesse
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Final Score:
7.5
Earth 2 #4
Written by James Robinson | Art by Nicola Scott & Eduardo Pansica
"The most alluring feature of Earth 2 is how it continues to build its unique world and introduce old characters in new ways. I never thought the Atom would win me over, but here I am rather impressed with his impactful debut. While there are a few other good moments in this issue, a lack of elegance in the transitions and dialog stop this from being the standout title it could be." -Joshua
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Final Score:
7.0
G.I. Combat #4
Written by Various | Art by Various
"For better or worse, G.I. Combat #4 offers little change over the previous issues. The series is still you best outlet for man vs. dinosaur mayhem, and its revamped take on Unknown Soldier is becoming comfortably decent, if not spectacular. As far as whether this book has more long-term potential than Men of War, that still remains to be seen." -Jesse
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Final Score:
6.0
iZombie #28
Written by Chris Roberson | Art by Mike Allred
"After just over two years, it’s time to say goodbye to Gwen, Spot, and the rest of the inhabitants of Eugene, Oregon. This issue marks the conclusion to iZombie, and rather surprisingly, Chris Roberson and Mike Allred manage to wrap up the many plot threads and deliver a satisfying, if bittersweet, end. Though the arc has felt somewhat truncated over the course of the last few issues, this installment takes its time to deliver the necessary send-off to the many characters we’ve come to love over the course of 28 issues." -Joey
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Final Score:
8.0
Red Lanterns #12
Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Miguel Sepulveda
"This issue of Red Lanterns looks amazing thanks to Miguel Sepulveda’s incredible artwork along with Rain Beredo and Santi Arcas’s superb coloring, but Peter Milligan’s script is all over the place. He has a compelling story that has the characters in interesting situations -- Atrocitus faces his vengeful first Red Lantern and Bleez is tempted to become a Star Sapphire -- but his overdone dialog makes it an ungraceful affair. If anything, Milligan provides several large plot twists that bring the first year of Red Lantern stories to a mostly solid conclusion." -Joshua
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Final Score:
6.0
Stormwatch #12
Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Will Conrad & Julio Ferreira
"When the New 52 revamp of Stormwatch was revealed, many fans questioned the purpose of including Martian Manhunter. Was this series anything more than a consolation prize for J'onn losing his Justice League founder status? Flash forward a year, and now the thought of J'onn leaving this quirky team is a depressing one. Issue #12 serves as a proper sendoff for the hero even as the book looks forward to the future." -Jesse
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Final Score:
7.0
Swamp Thing #12
Written by Scott Snyder & Jeff Lemire | Art by Marco Rudy
"Forget Avengers vs. X-Men and forget Trinity War. The only crossover I’ve genuinely been looking forward to (post-Omega Effect, that is) is Rotworld. Animal Man #12 kicked off the prologue chapter that continues here in Swamp Thing #12, and the two issues rely on one another pretty heavily. If you’ve been reading both books, I would say Animal Man #12 is less important to the Rotworld story so far, though it does depict the first meeting of Buddy Baker and Alec Holland. Swampy #12, however, holds the fun stuff as we get to see just what kind of desperate scenario these two characters have gotten themselves into." -Joey
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Final Score:
8.0
Source : ign[dot]com
