Hello friends and readers! Amazing Spider-Man marches on unceasingly with #51 and Spider-Correspondent Tony Thornley brings you coverage, while Zoe Tunnell continues with Shang-Chi #2 after a great first issue, and finally Justin Partridge delves into the eldritch world of Savage Avengers #13!
Amazing Spider-Man #51
Written by: Nick Spencer
Art by: Patrick Gleason
Colors by: Edgar Delgado
Letters by: VCās Joe Caramagna
What a difference that forward plot progression makes.
After months of frustrating stories that were nothing more than nostalgia bait, this series is actually feeling interesting, and thereās some things to like. It still hasnāt crossed the line into being good, but this issue is at least likable.
Peter and Strange fend off the possessed Silk long enough to get some answers. Spidey admits to holding back a bit about Kindred, but Stephen agrees to help anyways. However Peter has a much more dangerous plan in mindā¦
Spencer progresses the plot quite a bit, which is good. He also leans into the characters that he writes well- Peter, Felicia and MJ. Feliciaās role in the story was a particular delight, as sheās probably consistently been the best part of what Spencerās written for the last two years. However, itās still a story about Harry Osbornās unexpected and unexplained heel turn, and its peppered with references to āOne More Dayā- to the point that I wonder if Kindred is actually pre-OMD Harry back to haunt Peter or if Spencer is planning on undoing OMD at the end of it…
Gleason continues to prove that his art is the best part of the story though. His Strange, while a bit too stoic- is heavily Ditko inspired, and he merges Peterās more grounded world easily with Strangeās fantastic. The weird magic as depicted by Gleason and Delgado is just great too. Iād love to see more.
Letās hope this one sticks the landing. Itās still not great, and itās not going to save this title on its own. However, itāll go a long way to at least making this difficult read worthwhile in the end.
Shang-Chi #2
Written by: Gene Luen Yang
Art by: Dike Ruan and Philip Tan
Colors by: Sebastian Cheng
Letters by: VCās Travis Lanham
Shang-Chi #2 takes the baton from the thoroughly enjoyable and exciting debut issue and, well, nearly drops the dang thing. While not a bad issue, with Yang’s knack for humor and Ruan’s grasp of exciting action helping to prevent that fate, it is is a noticable step down from the standard set in #1.
The issue spends a bulk of its time following up on the revelation that Sister Hammer, the murderous leader of the Deadly Hammer society, is, in fact, Shang-Chi’s long-lost sister. Unfortunately, this is one of the biggest problems. The flashback sequences to Shang’s childhood with his abusive father aren’t nearly as fresh and engaging as his attempts to find a normal life in the present, which causes the emotional core of his story with Sister Hammer to ring hollow. It doesn’t help that Sister Hammer herself is a pretty rote spurned child archetype whose quest to kill Shang-Chi to earn her dead father’s approval is…honestly more boring than anything else.
Where Shang-Chi #2 succeeds is in the little scenes. The highlight of the issue, for me, came in a quick conflict between Shang-Chi and two random goons. After quickly dismantling them, Shang offers genuinely friendly advice to one that he should find another career because his martial arts prowess will never be quite up to snuff. The characterization of Shang-Chi as someone so unbelievably good at kung-fu that he is more than happy to politely critique men who were just trying to kill him, because they were never a threat, is just delightful and strikes a comedic tone most of the rest of the issue is sorely lacking.
Dike Ruan’s art, thankfully, doesn’t miss a beat from Shang-Chi #1 and further proves that he is an artist to keep an eye on down the road. Every fight scene is bursting with energy that flows well, as you would hope with a book starring the Master of Kung-Fu. The most welcome surprise, art-wise, comes from how hard both Ruan and colorist Sebastian Cheng go when Shang-Chi is hovering in the realm of the dead. From a striking full-page splash featuring the spectre of Shang’s deceased father, to hallucinating the blood leaking out of his near-fatal wound to being the night sky itself, it’s a beautiful addition to a book that hasn’t pushed too many stylistic boundaries.
After the wonderful debut issue, I hoped Shang-Chi would maintain its quality through the whole 5-issue miniseries and #2 didn’t quite meet those hopes. It wouldn’t be the first miniseries to hit a sophomore slump and still put together a thoroughly satisfying complete package, hopefully Yang, Ruan and Tan can get things back on track and meet the standard they set for themselves with the remaining 3 issues. I, at least, would be very happy.
Savage Avengers #13
Written by: Gerry Duggan
Art by: Patch Zircher
Colors by: Java Tartaglia
Lettered by: VCās Travis Lanham
Despite being drawn by Godās Favorite Centrist, Savage Avengers continues to be pretty fun with itās thirteenth installment.
Bolstering their roster for a frontal assault on series antagonist Kulan Gath, the gnarliest Avengers plot their attack on the Blue Area of the Moon, opting to spread into two strikeforces (RIP Tiniās Goth Defenders) as the incoming King in Black tie-in looks to take over the title for a bit.
I will admit there is a certain workmanlike quality to this thirteenth issue. Writer Gerry Duggan is not only having to prime the title for an incoming event interruption (something the title has borne well before in the past), but heās also having to bring a lot of the team-members (read: audience) up to speed on just how and why Gath is such a threat, along with how her got there. The end result is a little expository, sure, but I still canāt deny the charm of a comic that has such wonderful character moments like Wolverine reconnecting with Bats, the Ghost Dog and Black Widow being horrified that Conan got horny after killing an acolyte of Shuma-Gorath (who was turned after snorting MAGICALLY LACED COCAINE).
The title is also continuing to live up to the Savage in Savage Avengers. Operating more like a Marvel Knights title or maybe even a little X-Force-y, Duggan continues to deliver more slightly exploitative action and broadly āadultā themes like the aforementioned Magic Daemon Coke and the detail that Gath has gained so much power by eating a Sorcerer Supreme AND chunks of the Shuma-Gorath cultists he is summoning. It is pretty gross and Zircher doesnāt sell it nearly as well as Adam Gorman did last issue or even Mike Deodato did in the opening, but I still very much appreciate the titleās continued commitment to its own aesthetic.
Youāre mileage will very much vary with the overall premise and attitude of Savage Avengers and Zatch Pircherās name is never really gonna make anybody excited to buy a book, but Savage Avengers #13 still delivering some pretty solid superhero strangeness. Standing well with Dugganās equally wry and violent solo Conan books, Savage Avengers #13 continues to deliver just the right mix of pulp and street-level fun.
Tony Thornley is a geek dad, blogger, Spider-Man and Superman aficionado, X-Men guru, autism daddy, amateur novelist, and all around awesome guy. Heās also very humble.
Zoe Tunnell is a 29-year old trans woman who has read comics for most of her adult life and can't stop now. Follow her on Twitter @Blankzilla.
Justin Partridge has loved comics all his life. He hasn't quite gotten them to love him back just yet. But that hasn't stopped him from trying as he has been writing about them now for a little over a decade. With bylines at Newsarama, Shelfdust, PanelXPanel, and more, Justin has been doing the work and putting in the time! Comics have yet to return his calls. Usually he can be found on Twitter screaming about Doctor Who.
