Hello friends and readers, comics are back, but just like restaurants, we have a limited digital only menu this week as our boss Zack Jenkins zooms in on Wells, Burnett, and Spicer’s Ant-Man #4, and Tony Thornley rides the desolate plains of critique in Avengers of the Wasteland #4 by Brisson, Scharf, and Menon.
Ant-Man #4
It’s not fair that no one is reading Zeb Wells & Dylan Burnett’s Ant-Man book. Scott Lang can have two blockbuster movies but no one cares about his comic [Ed. Note: We care!]. It’s a shame because Wells has found an incredible mix of humor and action that is so hard to achieve in comics. Hopefully, being one of only four comics coming out from Marvel this week gives it a bit more exposure that it desperately needs.
Picking up where we left off many moons ago, Macrotharx’s assault on the ant-hill Scott was living in has ended with tragedy. Dylan Burnett flexes his artistic muscles as Macrotharx’s murder hornets devastate Lang’s makeshift abode. Mike Spicer’s vibrant colors drive the effect home. Every chitin covered thorax and every scuttering bug is expressly rendered, helping build sympathy for the creepy crawlers who have lost their lives.
Well’s is able to balance this with his trademark humor with the truly special way he writes Ant-Man’s relationship with his daughter Stinger. While still a parent, Scott sees Cassie as his partner, his equal. It grounds this truly silly story about bug people at war in a sweet reality. The series cements itself as the ideal Ant-Man title as it rockets towards a finale that readers won’t want to miss.
Zachary Jenkins runs the Xavier Files Media Empire and is a co-host on the podcast “Battle of the Atom.” Shocking everyone, he has a full and vibrant life outside of X-Men.
Avengers of the Wasteland #4
I am just about Wasteland-ed out [Ed. Note: So say we all]. Sure, Old Man Hawkeye and Old Man Quill were both fun in their own ways, but the whole post-apocalypse superheroes is starting to feel like a tired trope. However, sometimes a cover is just so eye catching that you’ve got to check it out.
Brisson has grabbed me with what he’s doing. The first act of the issue- a battle between Doctor Doom and Hydra- is an engaging way to set the stakes. Plus he really writes both Doom and Strucker wonderfully. I’d love to see him write both villains in the main Marvel universe.
Beyond that, he crafts interesting protagonists. These new Avengers brawl through New Osborn City, while a traitor stands revealed. Except for Viv Vision, the main characters are all total ciphers. However each of them are given enough back story and characterization that we can get invested.
Scharf was an unknown to me before this issue, but I really liked his work! He has a slightly cartoony and exaggerated style that fits really well as a continuation of Mike Henderson’s work from Dead Man Logan, this story’s prologue. It also stands on its own though, with great layouts, character work and some excellent fight sequences.
I may be a bit burnt out on the Wastelands in general, but this story is worth checking out!
Tony Thornley is a geek dad, blogger, Spider-Man and Superman aficionado, X-Men guru, autism daddy, amateur novelist, and all around awesome guy. He’s also very humble.
Zachary Jenkins co-hosts the podcast Battle of the Atom and is the former editor-in-chief of ComicsXF. Shocking everyone, he has a full and vibrant life outside all this.
Tony Thornley is a geek dad, blogger, Spider-Man and Superman aficionado, X-Men guru, autism daddy, amateur novelist, and all around awesome guy. He’s also very humble.
