What Do You Mean They're Not Superheroes?: Sneak Peek Reviews 11/11/08

Batman: Cacophony #1 (of 3) Written by: Kevin Smith Art by: Walter Flanagan
Every now and again someone from Hollywood decides to spend some time slumming and grace the comics world with their presence. So, since it's been a little over three years that means it's time for Kevin Smith to come stumbling through the doors and brings a really quirky and kind of perfect story. This time he wandered in with a long time friend and, in all reality, rather talented artist Walter Flanagan. They have come together and crafted Batman: Cacophony, which brings back the incredibly interesting and throughly frightening villain that Smith created for the second, and final, arc of his run on Green Arrow: Onomatopoeia. The last time we saw Onomatopoeia he had just tried to, and nearly succeeded in an attempt to, kill Conor Hawke (curious that Smith brings him back just after Hawke comes out of a coma and has returned home). The character is one of my all time favorite villains because he is so enigmatic (in my opinion the best villains are the ones who are completely inhuman or the ones who have a great deal of humanity). The story has some classic super villains alongside Onomatopoeia, like The Joker, DeadShot, and not to mention Maxie Zeus. This story, in many ways, deals with each of the characters with the same kind of respect and that shows that each of these villains, no matter how serious they have been treated in the past, are serious characters. I really think that if you are looking for a really fun and really interesting Batman story that you would do yourself a great service by checking this one out.

Jim Butcher's Dresden Files: Storm Front #1 (of 4)
Written by: Jim Butcher & Mark Powers
Art by: Adrian Syaf

Well, the first miniseries was rather satisfying. So, I went into this one with a mix of anticipation and fear. First the anticipation kicked in. I really enjoyed the issue even though I have already read the first novel on which this is based. The characters remain very true to their personality as depicted in the novel. The artist has done a bang up job in crafting the characters and Adrian Syaf is bound to be a big name after his work with the Dabel Brothers is concluded. The story moves along at quite a quicker clip than book itself did, but it still manages to get across the important points. My fear came in when I started to realize that Butcher didn't have as much to do with this miniseries as he did with the last. Mark Powers isn't quite the writer I had hoped would be attached to the series as it progressed but I had a great hope that at least Butcher would be co-writing ... but anticipation is folly. Powers does have the benefit of a user-proof manuscript to work from. Butcher crafted a fantastic first novel that achieved the perfect mix of introduction to the characters and brilliant plot. I think that if you liked the first miniseries that you will be plenty pleased with this one, and that if you read the book that it'll be nice to revisit a time when Harry's life seemed so much simpler ... before everything became so complicated. Butcher fan's rejoice, they managed not to screw it up.

ComicDorksCast Episode 040

ComicDorkscastEp040.mp3
(Download Directly: Right Click and choose "Save As..." and save locally on your computer)

Running Time: 01:20:36

00:03:55 - Final Crisis: Resist shows what happens when you don't submit.
00:12:43 - Rob's Pick of the Week: Avengers Initiative Special #1.
00:22:37 - Invincible Iron Man #7 proves that Fraction knows from funny.
00:32:21 - Scott's Pick of the Week: Gigantic #1.
00:37:00 - More pieces fall into place in Adventure Comics Featuring The Guardian.
00:45:47 - Darren's Pick of the Week: Secret Six #3.
01:03:19 - The Best Single Issues of Last Month!
01:07:57 - Brief Mentions
01:09:45 - Anticipated Books

If you have any questions or comments drop us a line at: Comicdorkscast@gmail.com

Go to www.FantasyShopOnline.com and check out the growing community on the Message Boards.

Check out our website at ComicDorksCast.Blogspot.com.

The Music at the opening and closing of the show was: "California Dreamer" by Wolf Parade

The Best Book You Didn't Read Last Week, Issue 15

Guerillas #2 (of 9)
Written and Drawn by: Brahm Revel

As Darren mentioned in his article yesterday we, the Comic Dorks, have an incredibly difficult task on our plates each and every week, where we have to pair down the pile of books each one of us reads and talk about just six of them a week. Since I have a much larger pile than either of my other co-Dorks each week I have a much more difficult task. I have to figure out which two of the 20+ I am going to be able to talk about. That's one of the reasons you'll often hear me talking about a book all on my own on the show (Like this week with Gigantic #1). So that's why fifteen weeks ago I also started writing the "Best Books You Didn't Read Last Week" article. Each week I pick one book from the stack that I think more people should be checking out. Once in a while it is a book that is so good that it actually hurts a little to have to write about it. This is one of those books.

Guerillas is one of the best books of this year. Without question. Brahm Revel is one of the names that needs to be talked about in every comic store across the country. He is a craftsman of exemplary talent and the story he is writing is nothing like what you might expect based on the covers or the solicit text.

When I first saw this series solicited I thought it was going to be a fun little farcical tale about monkeys with guns. What I actually found was a dark and complex tale of a man trying to fill his father's shoes, and a dark experiment by a strange scientist gone awry.

Looking at the book you might expect talking monkeys ... you won't get them. You'll get monkeys that have distinct personalities, non-verbal personalities but distinct nonetheless. Quite seriously this book went from being really great to absolutely priceless. I think that it is going to make for one hell of a collected story when it's done, fortunately it also reads FANTASTICALLY in single issues.

Brahm Revel is most assuredly going to become one of the hot names to look for over the next year and a half as this series progresses towards it's conclusion. From what I am aware the first issue is no longer available from Diamond but perhaps if enough people demand it we'll see a second printing of the quiet hit of the year, and my favorite book of the 4th quarter of 2008.

Brief Mentions: House of Awesome!

House of Mystery #7
Written By: Matthew Sturges & Bill Willingham
Art By: Luca Rossi & David Petersen

Each week, the ComicDorks have a very hard decision in front of them. They must pick only six books to talk about for the week’s show. Often many books fall victim to this number and do not make the cut. The “Brief Mentions” gives us the ability to give credit where it is due and not let amazing books go, unmentioned. For me this week, it was very awkward. I had a grand total of seven books. Seven. Do not ask me how this happened but it did… and every single one was amazing. Each issue could easily have ranged from pick of the week to a brief mention, but lo a decision had to be made and I chose to mention House of Mystery. Written by Matthew Sturges (Shadowpact, Jack of Fables) & Bill Willingham (Fables, Shadowpact) and art by Luca Rossi (Dampyr), House of Mystery is exactly that, a tale of mystery. I’ve been on this book since the get go and it has yet to disappoint. Sturges & Willingham are a great creative team, which rival such great teams as Rucka & Brubaker, and offer some of the best fantasy stories in the comic industry. Being a huge fan of Fables, there was no question that I would be picking up this title. With issue seven, we are and the second part of the “Love Stories for Dead People” story arc. The heroes have discovered a plan to escape the House of Mystery, once and for all. Perhaps the most intriguing part of this issue is the continuing relationship between Harry and Fig and what exactly their relationship is to the House of Mystery. This book also takes on a very innovative type of storytelling. Within the house, stories are a currency, so in every issue of House of Mystery you get two stories for the price of one. The story within this issue was entitled “The War” with art by David Petersen (Mouse Guard) and was a story of a continuous war between birds and cats. While on the outside seeming to make no sense, it comes off as extremely relevant and telling of a violent human society. For anyone who is a fan of fantasy, reaching back to J.R.R. Tolkien, House of Mystery is a great book and has a lot to offer. With great art and great storytelling, who knows where this story might take us.

From The Dorks' Soundtrack: Wolf Parade

Band: Wolf Parade

Song: California Dreamer

Album: At Mount Zoomer

Label: Sub Pop

So, usually I try to talk about a band that I have been digging on lately. And while this week that could have been several different bands I thought that I would go with the one that I drove an hour and 40 minutes to see on Friday night. I have been a big fan of this band since September of 2005, when I found them on Spin.com's Artist of the Day column (starting to notice a trend of how I found a lot of music from 2004 until 2006?). They are bombastically brilliant and intelligently infectious. Once you listen to their 2005 release "Apologies to the Queen Mary" you'll find yourself unconsciously humming "You Are a Runner and I Am My Father's Son" and "Modern World" incessantly. Their sophomore effort shows a lot of maturation has occurred in the band and I give them an insane amount of credit for it.

These guys just flat out know how to play too. When they took the stage my first thought was: "Is the bassist barefoot?" followed by "Is the back up keyboardist barefoot?" and then finally ... "Wow, these guys burn a whole lot of calories onstage." Just kinetic from the opening salvo to the final note, these guys held me rapt with glee. I was surprised rather frequently that the singer/guitarist Dan Boeckner didn't just fly apart at the seams. I think it was an impossible love of the music he was sharing with us that kept him from just exploding from the sheer amount of kinetic energy he was creating. And Spencer Krug was a master of the keys all night long but I could help but think that he has to have a chiropractor on retainer as he spent the whole concert hunched over his keyboard crafting incredible sound-scapes and singing in his own unique voice.

I think that trying to peg this group down to a particular sound would be folly if not nigh on impossible. But it is clear that they are inspired by groups like The Pixies, Built to Spill, and at times Guided by Voices. But try not to think of where their inspiration comes from and just realize that they are an inspirational force all their own. Watching them I couldn't help but wish that I could find a band that needed a lead singer and just find a stage on which to hone our craft. These guys from Montreal know how to rock, and if you listen closely enough they might just show you how to rock as well.

Blog Log # 2 (Quote of the Week)

Side Burneius the Mundane

Qoutact I

Tonight I have a tale. It is a great tale. It is great tale of friendship and heartbreak. So sit back my children and witness this yarn I spin you. Wait a minute; I must call on the muse to help me sing this tale of the Side Burneius and his epic journey to becoming a mediocre reviewer of reviews of other people’s work. Yo, muse gets your ass down here and do your job. Help me tell of Side Burneius the skeptic warrior.

Side Burneius was forged of the greatest forces ever known by no man, of high type nor low. His fate was determined many years before his birth. Side Burneius was to become an average type of guy, for this was his destiny. As Side Burneius lay down to take his rest he slipped into a most vivid dream. In this dream he had a vision of a most beautiful axe. Upon this axe, built by the hands of Jove, was painted the future of our great hero. He saw a job and bills piled up as big as a description of the dressing of the character (You know, endless pages of some dude putting on his armor.) found in Homeric verses. Startled and shaken Side Burneius awakes and knows he is to journey a short distance and research for a paper. Fate intervenes and only supplies him with books and no journals leaving him just short of the sources required to fulfill his destiny of writing a paper no one would ever use to build a great empire. At best, it could be rolled up and stuck in the eye of an overzealous Cyclops who carries a gun bigger than the beast itself.

Feeling like a failure Side Burneius reaches out to a friend of his, by the name of Dayarian. Dayarian a fan of the epics and in pursuit of English studies seems to be in a pivotal position to help our hero. Side Burneius, who is such a man as to be able to put his piety aside and reach out for help, calls on Dayarian. “Hey man do you know where I can find a journal or an essay on Virgil?” Dayarian replies, “Ummmm… Naw… dude sorry. There are these things called libraries” Juno, gazing down on this becomes enraged. How dare a tiger deny a lion with such ease? Meanwhile, Side Burneius is left to battle as a lone warrior in a war that seems meaningless. As he grasped his mighty sword in his steady hand he felt a vibration in his lower thigh. He reaches in his pocket and discovers a message. It was a message from Dayarian and it read, “If it’s any worth you can site that I think Virgil is a cool dude.” Was this a twist of the dagger that brought great Caesar to his demise? Despite the lack of support Side Burneius prevailed in this battle. 6 pages, 150 lines, 1,479 words, and 8,518 characters all lay slain by his hands alone. Side Burneius has a few battles left ahead of him but as a society we must believe he will fulfill his destiny and become as average as anyone ever.

-Cap'n Cletus

*Moral of the story is maybe phoning a friend is not the best lifeline to use.

(An artists depiction of the fate of Dayarian)

What I’m Reading Now: IT’S GODZILLA!!!! Err…Firebreather I mean!

Firebreather
Written By: Phil Hester
Art By: Andy Kuhn

Image has got the comics. When you think of Image, the obvious titles come to mind: Invincible, Walking Dead, Savage Dragon, Astounding Wolfman, Youngblood, Spawn. But some great titles, as good as these titles, seem to fall short. One such title is Firebreather. Written by Phil Hester (Green Arrow, El Diablo) with art by Andy Kuhn, Firebreather is a coming of age story of young high school student whose is half male…HALF DRAGON (the dream of every Dungeon Master world wide...Can you say breath weapon?!?!) The story starts out in St. Louis (can this get any better) where we meet Belloc, a 100ft tall dragon and father of the main character, Duncan. He seemingly, while on a rampage, falls in love with a human and hence Duncan. From here on, Duncan must deal with the ordinary and extraordinary, battling with both horrid monsters and fitting in at high school. For any fan of Robert Kirkman's Invincible, there is absolutely no reason why you would not read this book. There are two great things about this book. First, there’s a new series out now that is on the shelves monthly. And secondly, there is little reading to do to be completely caught up with this story. Sometimes when starting a new story or title, back issue reading can be overwhelming (Green Lantern here I come!). But with Firebreather, there are two trades, “Growing Pains” & “Iron Saint”, and then you are completely caught up with the series. With the ever growing IU (image universe?? I don’t know, I thought I would try it out) Duncan is not only seen in Firebreather, but also crosses over to other titles such as Erik Larsen’s Savage Dragon and is in the cast of such works as The Pact, and Image Monster Pile-up. Being such a central character in the IU, Firebreather is a book that derserves great notoriety and to be ranked among the greatest titles produced by this ever going company.

Living Up To Expectations: (I had no expectations but they were totally fulfilled!)

The Invincible Iron Man # 7

Writer- Matt Fraction

Art- Salvador Larroca


All right, I want to hate Tony Stark more than anything else in this world. Sometimes, he makes it is easier than others. One more reason he is an arrogant bastard. In the wake of Ezekiel being a little big for his britches we are left hoping Fraction can keep up the good work. Scotty brought up a really great point to me today. He said something along the lines of this story arc being a test. With Fraction coming out of the gates in such a great, intense fashion leaves me hoping his wad was not blown. After reading issue # 7, I am sure he has plenty more wad to come.

This issue had two; really great interactions between three of Marvel’s finest. It was interesting to see Tony and Spidey crossing paths, post One More Day. You remember… oh, wait…Mephisto made so nobody remembers. Tony has no idea that Peter is Spiderman, only an unregistered vigilante. Despite Stark being reluctant, Spidey is dead set on a team-up. Throughout this team-up there is plenty of interesting conversation between these two heroes. These conversations help us decipher what is going on in these guy’s heads and why they do the things do. Now, on to the last page. This page is the very reason I’m conflicted about Tony Stark. The one part douche bag playboy is easy to hate, where the humanitarian seems to have feelings of an almost human nature. I still blame him for Cap’s death; therefore, it is hard to give him a chance but this book is really fucking good. Great writing + Great Art = Really Fucking Good. For the other team-up in these pages read the book, you fools.-Rob

BUY THIS SERIES OR TONY WILL KILL YOU, LIKE HE DID STEVE ROGERS!!!

What Do You Mean They're Not Superheroes?: Sneak Peek Reviews 11/4/08

Ultimatum #1 (of 5)
Written by: Jeph Loeb
Art by: David Finch

So, as you may have heard Jeph Loeb and his colleague Jesse Alexander were fired from their positions on Heroes. The ratings of the former television giant have fallen significantly since it's first blockbuster season. How much of that can really be blamed on Loeb is questionable but it must certainly be considered that as co-executive producer he certainly had quite a lot to say about the direction of the story of Heroes (which I have enjoyed but take that for what you will). Ultimatum is meant to be the first really big change in the status quo of Marvel's Ultimate Universe. It's interesting to see how quick things change in this issue. It's a pretty brutal beginning to what is bound to be a mighty big shake-up. From what I have understood the only title currently being published under the Ultimate line that is safe (won't be canceled by the end of Ultimatum) is Ultimate Spider-Man. So it's plain to say that there are likely to be casualties. David Finch's artwork is plenty good, and while Jeph Loeb's dialog is a little clunky in places I think that the plot of the issue is really pretty good. I think it is going to be interesting to see what happens between the forces of good (all the heroes in the Ultimate Universe) and the force of evil (Magneto). It feels a little bit like a popcorn blockbuster that while it seems like there have been “March on Ultimatum” banners forever hasn't really had much of a story lead up. So sit back and watch the explosions.

Terra #1
Written by: Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray
Art by: Amanda Conner

It doesn't really hold much importance to the ongoing DCU, it doesn't feature any top tier characters, it isn't written or drawn by any of Wizard's Top Ten lists ... but that doesn't stop it from being rather good. The name Terra has been one that has been wrought with controversy. First Tara Markov, half brother of Brion Markov aka Geo-Force, joined The Teen Titans and became the lynch pin of a critically acclaimed as well as a fan favorite: The Judas Contract. But one of the things that has never been clear about the characters who have carried the name Terra concerns their origins. This new miniseries has every indication of being both the establishment of a new Terra, but also the establishment of a great new character. Amanda Conner crafts some really great pages and creates some really interesting subterranean creatures. It's really a great start to an interesting miniseries and I think that more and more fans and readers are going to start recognizing just how great Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti really are. I think that if you are looking for a fun new miniseries in the DCU this week that you are going to be hard pressed to find a better book to check out.

Gigantic #1
Written by: Rick Remender
Art by: Eric Nguyen

So imagine if the intelligent designer that so many people believe created Earth and Humanity did so out of a genuine hope to make a ratings juggernaut for the Universal Broadcasting Company ... Weird idea huh? That's pretty much the concept behind Gigantic. The United Planets has long forgotten disease and war and has settled into a nice routine of enjoying all the material broadcast thanks to the Universal Broadcasting Company. Earth and humanity were crafted to be the best channel on all of the UBC, smart enough to create really devastating weapons and tribal enough to use them, resilient enough to survive natural disasters but not wise enough to move out of the way. The main character of the series is “Gigantic” a human who had been taken from Earth and genetically altered to become a gladiator on an Arena Planet, he's run back to Earth and though he has returned in a hope to come home it looks more like his return might be the end of Earth as we know it. Really and truly this is going to be one heck of an interesting series going forward. Remender and Nguyen have a really great capability to craft an incredible cast of characters and an incredible series. Most definitely something to check out when you get to the store tomorrow.

I apologize for the lateness of these reviews, I was wrapped up in following Election coverage. Congratulations to President Elect Barack Obama and Vice President Elect Joe Biden and their family, friends, and our nation as we move forward into a new and exciting world.

Blog Log # 2 (Quote of the Vote)

* A special shout out to you, Molly.
“FUCK EM’ ALL… DON’T TREAD ON ME MUTHAFUCKA… AND THAT’S AMERICAN… DIG IT!”
– An Anonymous Patriotic Genius

ComicDorksCast Episode 039

ComicDorkscastEp039.mp3
(Download Directly: Right Click and choose "Save As..." and save locally on your computer)

Running Time: 01:05:17

00:03:32 - Viva La Revolucion! Madame Xanadu #5.
00:14:02 - Darren's Pick of the Week: Final Crisis: Rage of The Red Lanterns.
00:30:00 - Mignola makes his artistic return in Hellboy: In The Chapel of Moloch.
00:38:42 - Scott's Pick of the Week: Northlanders #11.
00:46:10 - PREVIEWS TIME!
00:57:13 - Brief Mentions
00:58:47 - Anticipated Books

If you have any questions or comments drop us a line at: Comicdorkscast@gmail.com

Go to www.FantasyShopOnline.com and check out the growing community on the Message Boards.

Check out our website at ComicDorksCast.Blogspot.com.

The Music at the opening and closing of the show was: "Unless it's Kicks" by Okkervil River

The Best Book You Didn't Read this Week, Issue 14

Resurrection Annual #1
Written by: Marc Guggenheim
Art by: Douglas Dabbs

Oni Press has long been known as a publisher of mini-series and Graphic Novels. They have published very few ongoing series. The ones they have published have been stellar. The spy/thriller Queen & Country written by the incredible novelist and one of the most amazing comic writers working in the industry today Greg Rucka and drawn by a slew of incredibly talented artists (Rolston, Samnee, Speed-McNeill, Alexander, Hurtt). The sci-fi/fantasy/post-apocalyptic epic Wasteland from one of the best and most overlooked writers working in indie comics these days Antony Johnston and with art by the wholly underappreciated Christopher Mitten. And the newest of the ongoing series is Resurrection. A story of what happens on Earth after the end of what seems to have been a failed invasion attempt by an Alien species. This is also the conclusion of the first volume of Resurrection. Resurrection is a book written by Marc (Young X-Men, Eli Stone) Guggenheim and with art by (usually) David Dumeer, both of whom are incredible talents whom the comics industry should be glad to have. This annual is drawn by Douglas Dabbs who manages to craft some really incredible pages. Ultimately this is a story about the tenacity of man, as well as the resilience (or in some cases the lack thereof) human faith. I think that this is at once a nice endcap to the first volume of Resurrection and is as well perhaps the best issue (of a series of great issues) to date. Volume 1 of Resurrection will be, all told, 6 issues and one Annual, it will all be collected in a trade paperback that will be sold for the staggeringly great price of: Six whole American dollars. Talk about one hell of a good deal. When Volume 2 of Resurrection begins it will be the first ongoing series published by Oni Press in FULL COLOR! I cannot honestly think of a series that more people should be checking out. It is a thrilling ride from the very first page and when the trade comes out everyone, not just everyone who has read this book but everyone who reads comics, should buy 2, one for themselves and one for a friend who has never read comics but loves sci-fi, who loved the TV show Jericho, who thought Independence Day was kind of silly but desperately wanted to know what the next day looked like as the world picked itself up off the ground and dusted itself off. There honestly aren't enough positive words in the English language to convey how much I like this book and respect it's creators. And the way you can thank me for recommending this incredible series is to, once you are done reading the upcoming trade, go buy all the Queen & Country and Wasteland trades and prove to Oni how loved and appreciated their ongoing series really and truly are.

From the Dorks' Soundtrack: Floating Down the Okkervil River

Okkervil River
Album: The Stage Names
Song: Unless It's Kicks

Whoever said nothing good has come from Texas? There was George W. Bush…errr ….Uhh…I mean the Alamo is pretty cool I guess, right? Well one thing Texans can be proud of is to be the hometown of one of the best indie bands on the scene today, Okkervil River. Formed in 1998 in Austin, Texas, Okkervil River takes its name a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya. Since their humble beginnings of a garage band, this band has blossomed into a truly talented band. Consisting of singer/songwriter Will Sheff, Zach Thomas (no not the kid from home improvement) on the bass, and Seth Warren on the drums, Okkervil River has gone from garage band to large festival band. With five albums from 2002- 2008, they’re batting an album per year average. In 2002, Okkervil River released the album Don't Fall in Love with Everyone You See on the Jagjaguwar label. Through the years the bands line-up has changed but its kept its original sound. Okkervil River went on to produce several other albums the most popular being Black Sheep Boy and The Stage Names, which sold over 10,000 albums in its opening week. On September 9th, Okkervil River came out with their fifth album entitled The Stand Ins. The album charted at # 42 on Billboard and sold 11,000 copies in its first week. This is a band that has grown greatly in the last five years and continues to grow. The song on episode #39 is "Unless It’s Kicks" from The Stage Names. It’s GREAT GREAT GREAT! Enjoy!

Brief Mentions: (solo… solo you can’t hear me.)

Ultimate Captain America Annual # 1

Writer- Jeph Loeb

Art- Marko Djurdjevic

& Rafa Sandoval

All Right now, let me explain myself. (Like I have to explain myself to youse guys.) Due, to my excruciating schedule this week I have not had a chance to read many of my books. Therefore; you will not hear my sweet, succulent voice crooning on episode 39. For this I apologize, but I was told that both Scotty and Dayron will be impersonating me the entire time. They are good so you might not even notice I wasn’t there. In any case, I hope I’m missed and you enjoy your break from my mind-blowing yet awesome sense of humor. If you don’t believe me just ask my associates. Let’s get own with this!

It seems we are reaching closer to the end of this; what, a three year march to Ultimatum. I am an Ultimate fan, but with limitations. Ultimate FF was dropped a while ago and reading only the hard covers of Ultimate Spidey and X-men leaves me really far behind. Unlike, certain partners in crimes of mine, I enjoyed both Ultimates 1and 2. Three words... HULK… EATS… PEOPLE!!! (Someday… you Millar haters… someday)

With Ultimate Origins and the third volume of the Ultimates finally coming to a close we are seeing where this universe is heading. I got to say Ultimates 3 left much to be desired but Origins, I dug. Ultimate Captain America Annual #1 served as one part Ultimate Black Panther origin story and one part Ultimates 3 epilogue. The Black Panther story was interesting and well done for setting up T’Challa, as a character, in the Ultimate Universe. Not to mention, Djurdjevic’s art was very much fantastic. The second half told the story of how Fury plans on taming the Panther. Apparently, that means some interesting scenes with Captain America the sparring partner and Captain America the voyeur. And yes, we finally found out what the hell Steve was doing in Black Panther’s threads. This book included all kinds of ultimate cameos of your favorite characters (all nicely drawn by Sandoval) and left me with some excitement to see what will become of the Ultimate Universe I have grown to love. How ultimate is the price they will pay?

-Rob