It’s been too long. But I never promised regular posts :P

OK, so what did I read:

The newest Iron Man series starts pretty quick with a nice story about his new armor and the struggle with Tony Starks competitors on earth. It’s new-reader-friendly written, but the art might annoy some hardcore fans because of Greg Land’s typical female model faces. The tech scenes, however, look very good. Issue 6 starts the second story arc that brings Iron Man into space fights. So far it’s quite enjoyable, if you don’t expect too much. (7/10)

The first thing you might notice about the Marvel Now Thor series is the phenomenal art by Essad Ribic. But also writer Jason Aaron starts big with a story about a god slayer (that looks a bit like Harry Potter’s Voldemort). After 5 issues I can definitely recommend that title. (9/10)

Another entertaining new beginning is the double reading joy of Fantastic Four and FF - both series are written by Matt Fraction, who does a great job. You don’t need to follow both series. One is about the core team on a “far away mission” and the other deals with a kind of “substitute team” on earth. (8/10)

From one Spider-Woman to another. :-P
Yes, also the Ultimate Universe features a character named Jessica Drew - but then there are major differences.

Anyway… a new storyline kicks off with the Human Torch hitting on Spider-Woman - a fact that freaks Peter out (which is understandable). And Kitty (Shadowcat) gets into trouble.
That’s about it what happens in this issue of Ultimate Spider-Man. The book continues to be a constant joyride. All the characters make it feel like a TV show with a great cast.

Last but not least I was happy to see the return of regular penciler David Lafuente who also makes this book special.

[8/10]

Although the cover might come across as sensual this series definitely has more in stock. Or may I say “had”?

Yes, according to the last page Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev are finishing this book after the initial story arc. So you could call it a limited series. And maybe that’s the best way to publish the adventures of Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman) who is also featured is some Avengers titles.

As for now I can say that I’m sad not to get more of the high quality espionage tales with lots of SciFi influences and hints to the Marvel universe. But on the other side I’m happy that it has an ending at all. And who knows what comes next when Bendis and Maleev are already working on a new (creator owned) title which will probably be launched under the Icon banner.

With “Spider-Woman” those two creators once again prove that they are a dream team for any comic book reader. The mix of sharp dialogues, realistic art and incredibly intense coloring is truly one-of-a-kind.

The collection of those seven issues should be out in summer and is probably a must-buy for any fan (as it also is said to contain the referring motion comics on DVD).

[9/10]

Note: the solications refer to that series as “Ultimate Comics Spider-Man”. But for me it is “Ultimate Spider-Man” (Volume 2 if you like)

Now since the reboot this book is just shining. Brian Michael Bendis seems to love writing teenie Spidey. And thus the stories are very enjoyable. In fact I would say that the reboot was worth it (though after “Ultimatum” nobody was sure how the Ultimate Universe could go on… thanks to Jeph Loeb who likes to destroy good ideas).

Anyway… the situation of aunt May having all these superpower kids in her home might be a bit over the top. But it’s really fun to read. The main plus are the dialogues and interactions. But also the pencils are solid with some manga influences.
The whole issue deals with Rick Jones (in an ultimate teenie version) and his newly developed superpowers. It even features an appearance of the Serpent Squad which was last seen in the “Ultimate Power” crossover. Those female villians led to very funny punch lines.

[9/10]