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Omnibussin: Moon Knight, Mapped Right!

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Moon Knight and Stained Glass Scarlet reunite under the pen of J.M. DeMatteis with Ron Garney

Has there ever been a better time to be into Marvel’s own lunar-inclined vigilante? Since mid-2021, Jed MacKay and Alessandro Cappuccio have been dazzling us every month with their superb run, just as the character is getting a Disney+ show this March, starring Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke. And it’s looking promising! It helps that it appears to be partly inspired by my personal favorite run from Jeff Lemire and Greg Smallwood, which examined the complexities of Marc Spector’s dissociative identity disorder and his -let’s say- “argumentative” relationship with the Egyptian God Khonshu, who once saved his life and in whose name Spector became the vigilante Moon Knight. [Read more…] about Omnibussin: Moon Knight, Mapped Right!

FF by Jonathan Hickman | Grief, Hope, and the Quest for a Better Tomorrow

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Since their arrival in 1961, the Fantastic Four have stood as timeless icons of relatability and imagination, with their dysfunctional-yet-loving dynamic as Marvel Comics’ “first family” taking them across the stars and into the frontiers of the unknown. But when tragedy strikes, and that timeless bond is broken, the surviving members of the family will see their team and their mission evolve into something else entirely. Welcome to tomorrow. Welcome to the Future Foundation.

To many, writer Jonathan Hickman’s tenure on Fantastic Four is one of the title’s most definitive runs, weaving together years of separate stories and firmly re-establishing the team as the beating heart of the Marvel Universe. Hickman would introduce countless iconic stories over his run, but the writer’s greatest mark on the title would come through a 2011 relaunch, with the series re-emerging under the new title “FF.” Following the team as they rebuild in the wake of an immense loss, the story acts as the throughline for Hickman’s vision of the Fantastic Four, digging deep into its characters and resting cosmic, existential adventures atop a more grounded tale of grief and hope. But while the story acts as a re-invention of its characters and themes, it’s also a celebration of Marvel’s First Family, and how even in the face of tragedy, hope and adventure can spring eternal. [Read more…] about FF by Jonathan Hickman | Grief, Hope, and the Quest for a Better Tomorrow

Skynet 3022 vs. Sarah Connor 2022: X Deaths of Wolverine #2

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[cover: Adam Kubert and Frank Martin Jr.]

With X Deaths of Wolverine #2, Ben Percy and Federico Vincentini go full James Cameron; this issue is swift and savage, a grim and tense cinematic ride that will definitely tug at the heartstrings of lifelong fans of the OG Terminator. Suddenly, we’re seeing T-O Wolvie as closely analogous to Arnie’s iconic killer cyborg and sent back in time by Skynet to stop Sarah Connor from—oops! Oh, yeah—we’re talking X-Men, but impressively, the Terminator homage really is masterfully done, not actually distracting but additive and invigorating. Where X Lives continues to revolve with comparative slowness like a poisoned spiral, almost hypnotically suspended at certain key moments in Logan’s deep past, this second installment of X Deaths promises a relentless momentum that will leave the burning collateral wreckage for others to clean up—while the devastating hunt drives on to its inevitably apocalyptic end.

And I mean apocalypse as world-shaking revelation.

So before we go haring off into Logan’s past again, with Life of Wolverine #3-4 (down below), we’ll start off alongside the traitorous Moira looking into that abyss that will not be denied. As she realizes by issue’s end: “I’ve seen the future. I just didn’t think it would get here so fast.” And his name is Death.

Now cue Brad Fiedel’s 1984 dark synth classic, The Terminator (OST).

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Creannotators #76: “Wingbearer” & “Monstress” with writer Marjorie Liu!

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This week on Creannotators, I’m talking about Wingbearer and Monstress with creator Marjorie Liu. We chat about the inspiration behind her upcoming all ages graphic novel, her use of themes and the variations of those themes in her work, her run on Astonishing X-Men and comic shops in Appleton, Wisconsin.

On Comic Book Herald’s ‘Creannotators’ I’ll be interviewing some of my favorite creators in comics about specific runs, graphic novels or series, looking for their insights on the inspirations behind the work and ideas or hidden material readers may have missed. Creannotators is an audio annotative guide to enjoying the intricacies and thinking in the art. Thanks for listening, and enjoy the comics!

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What Hath Thou Wrought, Comixology?

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Several months back, Comixology’s affiliate linking partner began emailing participants (including yours truly!), that the Comixology affiliate program would shut down in the coming months, as the website migrated in full to Amazon. While a mild inconvenience for a strapping young webmaster like myself, this was hardly shocking, as Amazon purchased Comixology back in 2014, and it’s honestly surprising Comixology operated as its own entity as long as it did.

This rollout was delayed (spoiler: all rollouts are delayed), but came to fruition this past week. In and of itself, this would have generated the predictable levels of dissatisfaction that happens with any technology changing, but Comixology managed to actually shock by combining the migration with a full-on upheaval of their entire product. What I took to be a minor shift was instead accompanied by a full app overhaul, a desktop reader overhaul, Comixology Unlimited changes, and virtually every feature changed – predominantly for the worse – in one form or another.

In short, it’s the single most universally reviled technology shift I’ve ever seen in digital comics, and one of the most confusing instances of a self-inflicted wound since Plaxico Burress.

So, here we are, to explore what did Comixology do, what does it mean for comics fans, and is it as bad as everyone’s saying on social media? [Read more…] about What Hath Thou Wrought, Comixology?