3 Razors

New Avengers #10

/ / Comics

There are two stories going on here. The first is the current squad of New Avengers fighting Superia and her squad of former H.A.M.M.E.R. troops. One Avenger is already down and the team has their hands full with villains they were just joking about last issue.

The second takes place years before and follows Nick Fury on his mission to recruit the very first team of Avengers consisting of Silver Sable, Sabertooh, Kraven, Namora, Ulysses Bloodstone, Dominic Fortune, and Dum Dum Doogan. Aside from historical clusterfuck this presents with this team being the Avengers before the Avengers (and thus tying the Star Trek franchise for the worst idea of another Enterprise being the best ship in Starfleet decades before the original Star Trek), it’s a pretty good tale. Oh, and did I mention I hate that they’re called the Avengers?

Even if I do have issues with the flashback storyline it’s by far the more intriguing of the two. (Sorry if I can’t get choked up on the apparently imminent death of a C-List West Avengers character Marvel kills and brings back whenever it fits their whimsy.)

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Usagi Yojimbo #135

/ / Comics

usagi-yojimbo-135Usagi Yojimbo‘s travels take him on a trek through secret mountain trails and another encounter with the deadly Lord of Owls.

The mysterious villain kills two groups of warriors, the first in a flashback told to Usagi by his mountain guide, and the second before Usagi’s eyes as the mysterious creature mercilessly strikes down a band of outlaws disguised as monks.

As a single issue tale this one doesn’t do much to stand-out, but from the verbal fencing between Usagi and the Lord of Owls you get the feeling writer Stan Sakai is laying the groundwork for an important future tale. On its own it’s good story, but I wanted a little more. I also felt the art was slightly below Sakai’s usual level of quality. Then again, I’ve been reading through a glut of very strong classic Usagi stories recently, so it’s possible I’m judging this one too harshly by comparison.

Fans of the character will no doubt want to pick this one up, but for casual readers this issue delivers more on promise than execution.

[Dark Horse, $3.50]

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Secret Avengers #10

/ / Comics

secret-avengers-10-cover“Eyes of the Dragon” concludes as the team races to save Shang-Chi before Fu Manchu can kill his son, complete his ritual, and return to the land of the living.

This one’s full of action as the team attacks the Shadow Council’s base and John Steele learns his invulnerability doesn’t apply to weapons forged by the gods.

I was impressed how the Secret Avengers felt like a real team (with snide comments and all) this time around. Whatever the cause, the team clicked better here (at least for me) than in most of the earlier issues.

I’ve felt this comic has been shaky ever since it’s first issue, but there are moments here when it really feels like things are beginning to come together. Of the current major Avengers titles it’s been the most hit-and-miss so far. We’ll have to see if the things continue to improve, but this one is worth a look.

[Marvel $3.99]

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Darkwing Duck #9

/ / Comics

After a brief meeting with an image consultant in an attempt to clean up his image after the army of Darkwings helped demolish large sections of St. Canard. Next up for our hero: an unlikely team-up with an agent of F.O.W.L.

Things must really be bleak if Steelbeak is willing to turn on his own criminal organization and befriend the duck who has thwarted his criminal enterprises for years. So what could be so awful, so unthinkable? F.O.W.L. has decided to use dark magic to bring forth… Duckthulhu!

Okay, I’ll grant you that this isn’t a great idea for a story, but I actually enjoyed Darkwing Duck and Steelbeak together on the same side, and the plot for this story arc (even if it makes me groan) does allow this to happen. It also gives us a chance for a harebrained scheme and the pair behind overwhelmed by an army of Eggmen.

Throw in the funny opening with the Duck Draper (which goes over as badly as you’d expect) as well as the reactions of both Gosalyn and Morgana Macawber to being taken for granted, and there’s more than enough here that’s worth a look.

[BOOM $3.99]

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Take Me or Leave Me

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Glee – Comeback
  • tv.com: link

There may have been way too much Justin Bieber for my tastes in this week’s episode of Glee, but the message of getting back to basics was a good one for both Sue (Jane Lynch) and Rachel (Lea Michele). We also got more of the Finn (Cory Monteith)/Quinn (Dianna Agron)/Sam (Chord Overstreet) triangle – with a little Santana (Naya Rivera) thrown in for good measure – and more of the odd pairing of Puck (Mark Salling) and Lauren (Ashley Fink). And, I kind of liked Britney’s (Heather Morris) arm-warmers. This week also marked another diva-off between Rachel and Mercedes (Amber Riley) with a very entertaing performance of “Take Me or Leave Me” from Rent which you can watch in this clip.

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