Category: marvel

The Thanos Imperative

thanos imperative

Awhile back I made a list of 5 Marvel stories that hooked me and this book was in there. With the Infinity Saga of the MCU at a close, Thanos was the greatest threat we’ve seen our heroes come to our heroes, but if the mad Titan was our only hope?

Death, while frightening and painful, is an essential part of life but in the Cancer-verse, awaken by Adam Magnus and his followers death doesn’t exist and is running out of room. An entire universe united under a dark version of Marvell is ready to breach our universe. The cosmos greatest heroes unite to face the mass invasion lead by Nova, Quasar, Medusa, and Gladiator but even with the aid of the Silver Surfer and his master Galactus it seems. Of all people, hope rests with the misfit Guardians of the Galaxy who have a once dead Thanos in containment; Thanos is the personification of Death the Cancer-verse needs but the Titan is unstable and Drax is driven mad with the urge to slay him. Can Lord Marvell and a whole universe be stopped and at what cost?

So, first things first, my explanation of the story is the gist but honestly it’s easier to follow than most of the book. This book goes through a shit load of exposition and because of the huge amount of stuff going on, it becomes hard to follow at times and a lot of it feels more complex than it needs to. On top of that, I do not  recommend this to newer readers because of the insane roster of characters including: Nova, Quasar, Gladiator, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Silver Surfer, The Inhumans, Beta Rey Bill, Ronan the Accuser, Adam Magnus, Galactus, the original Captain Mar-vell, and of course Thanos, and no, movie knowledge won’t help you much. While those are huge drawbacks, the artwork and scope of the action is beautiful and epic. Watching Surfer and Galactus go into battle amongst all these cosmic heroes was truly badass.  The story takes some chances and some characters do die and the ending did a reasonable impact on Marvel as a whole. It is a real cool story with fantastic artwork but it’s more complex than it has to be. May the gamin g gods bring you glory.

Disney+ MCU series spot

So we’ve been hearing about the new MCU series included with the th phase of the MCU and during the Superbowl we got our first sneak peaks at Falcon and Winter Soldier, WandaVision, and Loki. First, I have to say I’m extremely excited for WandaVision; Scarlet Witch is one of my favorite characters in the MCU and I was thrilled to see that she will be prominent in Dr Strange 2 and WandaVision seems to dig into her psyche. I’m kinda excited to see what Sam and Bucky are up to in Falcon and Winter Soldier. I’m disappointed by the offering from Loki. In the end, I’m surprisingly invested and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

New Mutants trailer 2

I know this movie has had a hell of a lot of problems behind the scenes, but I must admit the second trailer looks pretty decent. I like the horror aspects of the movie so far but I have to admit, I think the superhero parts look kinda shotty and low budget. I appreciate this movie follows mutants most of us aren’t familiar with. I want to see it, mainly as an end of an era before Disney takes over X-men but there’s a chance it’ll blow. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Deadpool: Secret Invasion

dp secret invasion

So I’m calling it now, we’re probably getting the Secret Invasion for Avengers 5 in the MCU, at least Captain Marvel opened the door for it by introducing the Skrull. Secret Invasion essentially is a hunt through the Marvel Universe, searching for the Skrull camouflaged as our favorite heroes. So how does Deadpool handle such a plight?

We follow the great Wade Wilson on a typical day at the office, in this case that means disguised as a baseball mascot to get close to a hit in broad daylight. Well, it just so happens a alien invasion breaks out and Wade gets captured and taken aboard a Skrull ship. The Skrull, obsessed with mastering the powers of supers to add to there Super Skrulls, they want to replicate regeneration capability. Pissed that the Skrull want to take his powers and identity, he tries to break free but can he face these powerful foes?

The ending of this story is one of the funniest things I’ve ever read in a comic book. There is a pretty good story after the Skrull story but the story of Wade vs the Skrull sold me on Deadpool after the terrible portrayal in X Men Origins: Wolverine . The only complaint I have is the amount of foul language bleeped out; it does offer a bit of charm but it gets annoying that you can’t get an unedited copy. If you are new to the merc with a mouth or new to Marvel comics in general, this a good place to start. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Venom: Lethal Protector

venom lethal

Venom hurt as a nerd, especially reading the book much of the movie was based on. Venom is one of Marvel’s greatest and complex anti-heroes and one of Spider-man’s greatest adversaries, but thankfully I said my peace on the movie and here I want to shed light on the awesome story that went into it.

Eddie Brock has been a villain and spent years fighting Spider-man but at times had to join the hero to beat Carnage; life is complicated. He made a truce with Spidey and retreated from the Big Apple to San Francisco for a new beginning and to be the hero he always they could be, they meaning him and the alien symbiote attached to him. Brock found himself avenging the weak as Venom, leading to a homeless village being attacked by a Corporation that had been kidnapping them. While an outcast, he seeks to find justice for them as the news of his rampage reaches Spider-man who fears Venom has lost control. The pair are once again confronted by a deadly secret, that are more symbiotes, and it’s up to them to stop them…

Everything I love about classic Venom is in this book. It was nice to get a look at Eddie Brock and how hard he was just trying to find a new beginning and be a hero. Venom is a badass with a lot of awesome fights against a good variety of enemies. Spider-man worked pretty well as a supporting character and I liked the contrast between the old enemies. The new symbiotes were pretty awesome and they definitely stood out. The story flows well and it’s pretty easy to follow. If, like me, weren’t satisfied by the movie and want a good Venom story, this is a damn good one to check out. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

Guardians of the Galaxy: Guardians Disassembled

gotg

Some time we have to go back to our roots and chill. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) is one of my favorite MCU films and years before the movie, they were a big reason why I started reading Marvel comics. So to start the new year, let’s start with some GOTG badassery…

The Guardians of the Galaxy have always been trouble-makers in the universe, and while the down trotted have seen them as heroes, there’s some powerful forces that call them enemies. Helping the time displaced X-Men retrieve Jean Grey in Guardians of the Galaxy/ All New X Men: The Trial of Jean Grey was a final straw for these forces. Tony Stark, fresh from his time with them, asks Flash Thompson, better known as Agent Venom, to hang with them as a representative of Earth. They accept this new misfit with open arms. While Quill sleeps, Drax takes Venom shopping for new weapons for his cosmic adventures, and Gamora is on her own leave, they are captured and divided. J-son of the Spartax captures Quill with his ultimatum; Gamora is sent to the Badoon who want to know where Thanos is; Drax is taken by the Shi’ar empire and faces off against Gladiator; the Skrull take Venom; The Brood take Groot while the Kree experiment on Rocket.  While things look grim, help comes in the form of Angela, the rogue Asgardian bounty hunter who aids Gamora and Captain Marvell who frees Quill and helps Star Lord bring down J-son once and for all. It’s hard to keep good Guardians down…

This is a damn quick book but it’s action packed. From page one until the end there is plenty of action that’s easy to follow. While it’s volume 3 of the line( Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Avengers being the first) it’s really easy to pick up with a helpful summary and a fluid introduction to the characters. Besides a good story, the book includes a Captain Marvell solo, Venom solo, and future Guardians tale so you get a nice bang for you’re buck. I’d definitely check this book for a Marvel or Guardians new comer. May the gaming gods bring you glory and Happy New Year.

Black Widow trailer 1

So the day finally comes when we got our first peak at the first movie of phase 4 in the MCU, Black Widow’s solo movie. While I rock with a majority of Marvel fans thinking this movie should’ve been a solid R rated movie, what we got so far looks pretty solid. The stunts look badass and I’m just happier to dive deeper into Widow’s character. I hope for a nice solid start to phase 4. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Disney+ Review

disney+

A few days ago the long anticipated  Disney streaming service debuted, so I got my hands on the free week trail.

First and foremost, I’m incredibly surprised at the affordable prices. It’s $6.99 a month or $69.99 for a whole year. The layout is inspired mostly by Netflix’s layout so it’s pretty simple to use. There are shortcuts to the classics, Marvel, Pixar, and National Geographic but when you go to the search engine, additional playlists pop up which is helpful.

So how is the selection of Disney+? It’s really freaking impressive. The whole MCU is on there (minus the Spider-man movies and Incredible Hulk because they were joint projects) Every episode of the Simpsons is there. Every obscure Disney channel show and original movie, Marvel cartoons I didn’t know existed, and multiple versions and straight to video sequels accompanying blu-ray grade classics of yester-year. I was in awe at the selection before but that was nothing compared to how well everything comes in. The sound and visuals are great but on certain things there is a tiny bit of lag when uploading certain things. For certain movies like The Last Jedi (second opinion) , Avengers: Infinity War, and the movies found elsewhere can’t be accessed now but they do list when they will be accessible on plus.

My complaints are surprisingly few and many I had cleared up after Day One. Day One there were seasons of shows left out, movies and shows that couldn’t be accessed and things ran a bit clunky. After Day One , a lot of those issues did clear up thankfully. There are some minor issues in regards to the responsiveness of the menu but I chalked it up to either how new the service. I have heard the Simpsons came out funky but I haven’t really got to check out those claims for myself yet.

In the end, Disney+ is a surprisingly good service I’d recommend checking out. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Black Panther: Power

panther power

Allegedly it’s been said that Black Panther 2 will introduce Namor, The Submariner into the MCU. Personally, I love the idea and it would be a great way to introduce the pivotal anti-hero as well as potentially be a way to introduce the idea of mutants as well. So reading this book is perfect timing.

T’Challa, the king of Wakanda and Black Panther, has been crippled and taken out of commission. Shuri, his little sister, inventor, and one of his greatest confidants has taken the mantle in both of her brother’s positions.  The transition is far from smooth as the an unknown foe is trying to have her killed, controlling mercs armed with Stark tech as well as rarities. Meanwhile, T’Challa goes on a dark request to bring his physicality back that may just destroy his good heart and soul. All the evidence points to Namor being behind the attempts, leading Shuri to fight a foe feared by much of the Marvel universe, while a patient Dr Doom waits and watches…

This book is a good example of why I love Black Panther. I love the politics and spiritualism of Wakanda. Shuri is a fine replacement and I admit has some awesome fights; the fight against Namor is great and indeed my favorite part of the book. The plot can get a bit confusing a political action thriller but I found it relatively easy as a fan of the character. This is a brief overview in the beginning which is always welcome to set the stage. In the end, I recommend this book but not as a first Panther read. May the gaming gods bring you glory.