The Recipe for 11/1/17
Pick of the Week
Inhumans – Once and Future Kings No. 4 really humanized Maximus, especially in terms of coping with his fear of succumbing to his madness. The audience got a sense of his true feelings about his older brother when he and Peter did an unexpected mind meld. He is truly a conflicted character with some depth, like the recent iterations of Loki instead of an Iago to Blackbolt’s Othello. The revelation about his pills also shows how messed up and cruel the society that spawned him is. Maximus actually weeps when he believes that he has lost his fleeting grip on sanity. Maximus struggles to be acknowledged and be known as an individual rather the sibling of an idolized person (ex: Solange to Blackbolt’s Beyonce), struggles to remain whole/stable with the threat of brokenness looming over the horizon, and struggles to find his place in the universe. I sincerely hope that this interpretation bleeds into his other iterations.
Worthy Mentions:
Captain America No. 695 reminds me how fickle the citizens of the Marvel Prime Universe are. I guess it makes sense in context since they experience such weird occurrences such as shape-shifting aliens that invade your country while disguised as beloved protectors. So an evil Nazi fascist doppelganger indirectly created by a dead Nazi war criminal is in the realm of possibility.
Superman No. 34 shows how indomitable Lois Lane is. She survives the hell pits of Apokolips and earns the respect of Granny Goodness. How many mere mortals outside of Batman could accomplish those feats?
Nightwing No. 32 fleshes out Raptor’s origins and connections to Dick’s mom.
Batman the Devastator No. 1 is the Batman v Superman movie that fit the odd sinister tone Man of Steel established. Where Clark is truly a mad dog and global danger that needs to be put down.
Batman White Knight No. 2 has an interesting premise but the Mr. Freeze element seems out of place and is distracting as a result. The Jason Todd element makes it hard to rally behind Jack Napier and see his point of view.
Deathstroke No. 25 surprised me that the Society still exists in this Rebirth iteration.
Avengers No. 673 made me wonder if the ending means that Vision is a POC as well?
Despicable Deadpool No. 288 is a friendly reminder that the TVA is an utterly useless organization. It’s a pity that Old Man Fury wasn’t put in charge of the TVA to make them more competent. Or at least one of the many Kang variants take over.
Blackbolt No. 7 gives us insight into the hell that Blinky suffered before we are introduced to her. It also reinforces the fact that Blackbolt is a gray character in the final scene. We can understand the gravity of the situation but to damn an already injured child with that burden of guilt is monstrous.
Lazarus X 66 No. 4 introduces us to Xolani and Alimah, a pair that I will love to see more of in the future. This series still has the feel of a more focused Metal Gear Solid meets Call of Duty.
The Meh Pile:
Many books were extra meh but nothing worth burning or mentioning.
This review was written in partnership with Pop Culture Network. They can be found on their website: www.popculturenetwork.com
