All posts by MeanOldPig

Four Color Forum

Daredevil by Zdarksy & Checchetto

I guess I have become Idle Time’s Chip Zdarksy mouthpiece as I’ve written about my love for his work a lot. That hasn’t changed with his debut issue on Daredevil with Marco Checchetto on art and Sunny Gho as the inker.

Daredevil has always been a comic character close to my heart. When I got really into reading comics in high school, Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark’s Daredevil was my entry point and I fell in love with the character. From there I went back to read the Frank Miller and Bendis runs which cemented the character in my mind as a favorite. I’ve always stuck with the title since then through its ups and downs (that time Matt was possessed by a demon of the Hand and became evil was rough).

The thing that has always fascinated me about the character is inner conflict. Unlike some of the other heroes who suffer from this, like Batman, Matt’s whole deal is that he is a lapsed Catholic boy, something I identify with far too well. As someone raised in that environment, and who then left without looking back, I still find myself dwelling on what I learned for eighteen years.

That being said, Chip does what he does best and distills what makes Daredevil great into a perfect entry point. Sure a lot of this stuff is pretty by-the-book for ol’ Hornhead, but Matt’s personality is in full force with Zdarsky at the helm.

Continue reading Daredevil by Zdarksy & Checchetto →

Four Color Forum

The Best of Marvel’s Fresh Start #1 – The Immortal Hulk

Still in shock that I like a Hulk book this much. I wrote a little about this comic when it debuted and how I was impressed by Ewing & Bennett’s initial issue, but now that we’re six months into Marvel’s Fresh Start, I can say that this is by far my favorite thing the company is putting out.

Al Ewing really won me over to his storytelling sensibilities with The Ultimates but for some reason I thought that would be more of a one-time thing. He just seemed more attuned to that cosmic grand scale story. But Ewing proved me wrong with The Immortal Hulk.

This Hulk story reminds me of old EC horror comics. Morality tales of humans and being judged by some sort of supernatural being. They never have happy endings and always leave you with a bit of incoming dread. That’s exactly what Al Ewing and artist Joe Bennett accomplish with their first arc in The Immortal Hulk.

Ewing weaves together different morality tales with each issue and somehow moves the ongoing story of the Green Door onward. Is the Hulk an avenging devil? A gamma detective dispensing justice?

I really like Ewing’s strategy of making Banner and Hulk secondary characters in their story. You hear more about them and their impact through other characters. Everyone treats them as larger than life figures so when they make an appearance, they really pop.

Continue reading The Best of Marvel’s Fresh Start #1 – The Immortal Hulk →

Four Color Forum

The Immortal Hulk #1

The Hulk has always been a character that I’ve been iffy on. While I’ve enjoyed the acclaimed runs from Peter David and Greg Pak, they never fully got me onboard with the character. The truly horrifying nature of being turned into a rage-filled monster never hit home with me with in those runs.

Enter Al Ewing. I don’t know why I’ve never seen Hulk tackled from a horror perspective. It seems like the most obvious connection in the world, and that is exactly what Ewing manages to do with his debut issue on The Immortal Hulk. The sense of looming dread that hangs over this book feels more in line with an EC Comic than a traditional Marvel book. The Hulk truly feels like a scary otherworldly force that is here to judge humankind. He’s not just a dumb big brute but rather the best authority on the evils of the everyday person.

Continue reading The Immortal Hulk #1 →

Four Color Forum

The Best of Marvel Legacy #2 – Marvel Two-in-One

Beginning with #1

As many people know, the Fantastic Four, despite being the quintessential Marvel team, has always been a tough gig to nail down. Beside the initial Stan and Jack run, the only two people have made their marks on the team for me: Jonathan Hickman and Mark Waid. Both runs took me a minute before falling fully behind them. This was not the case with Chip Zdarksy and Jim Cheung’s Marvel Two-in-One. I was fully invested within the first five pages.

While not being labeled a Fantastic Four book, it clearly is nothing else but that. In the post-Secret Wars world, Reed, Sue, and the kids have been out exploring the multiverse while leaving Johnny and Ben on Earth. Not knowing whether the rest of their family is actually alive has left them both in a rut. Johnny’s powers are fading and he has become a sort of adrenaline junkie trying to stimulate himself to the point of his old adventures. Ben has become a sort poster child for all charity efforts of the Fantastic Four. They are both aimless in different ways with neither of them particularly thinking that they need each other. Heartbroken over the loss of their family, they feel that the isolation from each other is the only way to heal. Zdarsky shows how wrong they both are.

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Four Color Forum

Marvel Legacy Week 11

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #27
Squirrel Girl has consistently been one of Marvel’s best books and this just keeps up the trend. Making a joke about jumping-on points in comics and evolving the story from there is a really good gag. North and Henderson crush it as always. Silver Surfer bros, planet of squirrels, heroes who can talk to cats, and so many other good jokes litter this comic. As long as they keep making this book, I will read it.

Weapon X #12
I’ve never really liked the X-Force concept that much. The Remender stuff is amazing but it hasn’t since reached that high for me. This was okay, just more of what I expected. A bunch of mutants stabbing other people who hate mutants. It’s been done a billion times. Wasn’t bad but nothing really stuck out for me. Going to pass on the next issue.

Amazing Spider-Man #792
This is the most I’ve enjoyed the Slott Spider-Man! Peter is financially crashing on couches, and public enemy #1 as both himself and Spidey. I am actually invested in the main Spider-Man book for the first time in eight years and that is a good feeling. I’ve always liked Stegman’s art and he delivers on that front. I like all the character moments, like Peter and Flash talking, but the number of symbiotes is a little too much for me. Not sure I understand Marvel’s newest obsession of having multiple versions of the same character out there. I’m not the biggest symbiote fan so while I didn’t hate the book, I don’t know if I am going to read more.

December 6 | New Release Highlights | December 20

Four Color Forum

Old Man Logan #31

I’ve been feeling kinda burnt out on all the Wolverines running around the Marvel U. We currently are at three and with the original Logan returning, I was wondering how Old Man Logan’s place would be affected. I didn’t really have too high of hopes for Old Man Logan #31 going in because I’m not the biggest fan or either the character or artist Mike Deodato; however, I can say I was pleasantly surprised by both.

Aside from a few scattered lines, the book doesn’t really deal with OML’s time issues. Instead it focuses on Japan. For some reason, I always find myself liking Logan in Japan stories. I don’t know what it is but the setting always makes people bring their A game.

Writer Ed Brisson chooses to focus on a war brewing between The Hand (led by Gorgon) and the Yashida Corporation (led by fun Jason Aaron creation Shima Harada). Of course, Logan gets caught up in the war by accident and thus the story begins. Mike Deodato seems very well suited for this story of bright lights, ninjas, Yakuza, and mechanized samurai suits. It’s honestly one of the times I’ve enjoyed his art the most.


Continue reading Old Man Logan #31 →