Comic Reviews – 1-8-14
If 2014 continues to be as good as this week was, it is bound to be a great year! As a matter of fact, there is so much more that I am looking forward to this year compared to 2013. Sure, we had our awesome new books (Superior Spider-Man, Superior Foes of Spider-Man, Lazarus, Sex Criminals, Trillium, The Wake…the list goes on), our amazing events (Age of Ultron, Trinity War, Infinity, Zero Year), and we had a good compliment of already solid series continue to strive (Batman, Avengers, Swamp Thing).
But looking forward to 2014, we are already in the midst of greatness. Sure, Marvel is doing yet another soft reboot across almost all the line, but with new books coming out like Dan Slott’s Silver Surfer and amazing artists such as Ryan Stegman starting to draw a Wolverine comic, there is plenty to look forward to. And that’s just on the Marvel side of things! Charles Soule has proven to be one of the breakout writers of 2013, which brings us to this week’s list of reviews:
Star Wars #13 – 9.2
Swamp Thing #27 – 9.2
Avengers A.I. #8.Now – 8.5
Speaking of Mr.Soule (and not Neil Young’s Mr.Soul…Sorry, couldn’t help myself), we have arguably the best storyline that Swamp Thing has had since its New 52 launch. I mean, WOW! This whole Alec Holland vs the Green vs the Seeder storyline is fantastic. And issue #27 is just about as good as this comic has been, and that is saying a lot as this series has been amazing. Moreover, Jesus Saiz’s art on this book is absolutely stunning. This man is simply killing this book. If you aren’t familiar with his work, do yourself a favor and start reading this series. Your jaw will be on the floor when you see the lush and beautiful detail this guy puts into his work. Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson would be proud of the way this creative team is treating their horror book.
Avengers A.I. is something completely different, however. Over the final months of 2013, I found myself cutting back on a lot of books that I haven’t been enjoying so I can save a little cash. If you haven’t been reading this book, you would think this would be one that would get the axe. Not so fast, my friend! Avengers A.I. has been a surprisingly solid and fun book to read. I mean, Doombot. What else could you ask for? Not to mention that this book is as beautiful as you could ask for.
Finally, I want to talk about Brian Wood’s Star Wars #13, which is my book of the week. Every book that I read this week was fantastic as you can see from the scores I gave them. Of all these books, I enjoyed reading this book the most. This series had a wonderful 2013. Wood has done a fantastic job of portraying this beloved universe to a mass of highly critical fans. Let’s just say that this series has held up extremely well. Issue #13 is easily the best that the series has offered so far. From the art to the script, everything about this book hit on all fronts. Front to back, this was a great read. Though the Star Wars franchise’s time with Dark Horse is coming to an end, at least the publisher can find some solace in the fact that its long run is going out with a bang. I really hope that Marvel retains Wood on the series in one form or another when it is in their hands.
Great week, folks! What were your favorite books? Let me know in the comments. I don’t want to be missing out on other great reads.