Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 2: Angela (Marvel NOW!)

  I've got to get my hands on the crossover event 'Infinity.' With completing volume 2 of Guardians, that will make it 4 'Infinity' tie-ins that I have read. If there's one thing I can tell you about that storyline is that I know Thanos is involved and he has his sights set on earth. Other than that, I am at a loss as to what that series really is about.

   Marvel's done a fantastic job getting just about every one of their series to tie-in together. The bullpen of the 2010s have built upon Lee and Kirby's philosophy established during the Marvel Age of Comics in the 1960s and exceeded that vision to the Nth degree. Events in this volume relate to important storylines in the various Marvel NOW! Avengers titles as well as Iron Man. I give major kudos to the editors at the House of Ideas for keeping all of these threads straight. I know I've would've made a few knots if that was all up to me.

  In this volume, the bounds of reality have continued to crack throughout the Marvel Universe. Star-Lord is plagued by a terrible vision of all his possible realities and now he seeks out his biggest enemy for answers. Meanwhile, the rest of the Guardians attempt to exercise some R & R  but when an Asgardian princess from an alternate universe that shouldn't exist attempts to kill Gamora, the most dangerous woman in the universe, it's back to business as usual. For the Guardians, that means rescuing SWORD from the clutches of Thanos' armies and eventually saving the earth from the Mad Titan himself.

    'Angela' sees the end of Iron Man's tenure with the team. But I suspect that with the appearance of the assassin of Asgard, the Guardians are going to have a new teammate albeit probably only for a short while. Having two deadly women on one team will make for some killer moments but eventually there's only going to be room for one alpha female.

   The art is dynamic and it matches the might of this action-packed volume. The array of variant covers is stunning as well. But I must say that as an EC Comics fan, I just adore the Weird Science variant covers the most.

   Now to get my hands on that Infinity book I mentioned earlier...

  Worth Consuming

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
 

Annihilation #1-6 (Annihilation Week)

Variant Cover to Issue #1

 The battle is taken to Annihilus by a combined force of Kree, Skrull, heralds of Galactus, and assorted intergalactic rogues, lead by Richard Rider, the last Nova. The opening scene pits Nova's coalition against the bug warriors of the Negative Zone. That opening chapter was insane. It so very much seemed like a scene from 'Starship Troopers.' I'm starting to think that writer Keith Giffen always wanted to script a version of Robert A Heinlein's classic work.

  Well, Giffen got his wish.

   The plot thickens when Nova's army is stretched to its limits of survival when Annihilus and Thanos capture Galactus and the Silver Surfer and turn them into an ultimate weapon of destruction. When it's clear that the armies of the Negative Zone have their sights set on Earth as their next target, Nova and Drax the Destroyer will have to eliminate Annihilus and the Mad Titan separately or all of humanity (and a large majority of the Marvel Universe's superhero community) will become annihilated.

   Annihilation was worth the build up of several miniseries if only for that opening chapter I mentioned. The war scenes were stunning and action-packed, but I was enthralled by the scenes that lead up to the warfare. Those scenes were perfectly crafted and made me feel like there was a real war occurring. Giffen thought of everything.

    I was quite happy with the finale of this series but it's left open for a sequel (Note: there is a sequel to Annihilation called Annihilation: Conquest and I hope to come across it's omnibus library sometime soon.) The art for this series was very good and at times ultra-graphic.

If you love sci-fi then you'll love this book. However, it might surprise you to know that fans of traditional war epics will enjoy this series as well and you could enjoy this series without needing to read the prequels and not be too very lost about what's happened up till now.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Up Next: Annhilation: Heralds of Galactus

Annihilation: Nova #1-4 (Annihilation Week)

Cover to issue #1.

After the destruction of the Nova Corps, it's up to Nova to carry the torch- literally! As the last living Nova, it's Richard Rider's duty to absorb the Worldmind, the source of a Nova Corpsman's power and intelligence gathering. But there's a catch, the last Nova to fully absorb the Worldmind went crazy and destroyed worlds, allies, and innocents.

   Enter Drax the Destroyer, who along with Cami survives the first onslaught of the Annihilation wave. Drax has had years of experience learning to temper himself. If he didn't he'd go on a berserker rampage that would make Wolverine jealous. When the combined trio of Drax, Cami, and Richard Rider meet with a squadron of refugees stranded in the way of the wave of destruction of Annhilus, the escape plan will  be the last Nova's greatest test to see if Drax's training was successful or not.

    Another great chapter in the Annihilation crossover event. The art is much better than in the Prologue. The storyline is just as fresh and exciting and the duo of Drax and Cami are just the perfect comic relief for this book. With billions dying on almost every page, they really lighten the mood considerably. Be on the look out for the scene where Nova and Drax both have private conversations with the Worldmind. It's both informative and very, very funny.

    Worth Consuming.

   Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Up Next: Annihilation: Silver Surfer 1-4

Annihilation Prologue #1 (Annihilation Week)

  

   This jumbo sized special shows what all of the major players in the Annihilation storyline were doing the day Annihilus' annihilation wave hit ground zero and began its tear through the galaxy. Drax and Cami, Silver Surfer, Ronan the Accuser, and the Super-Skrull will all play a part in the road to the Annihilation in 4-issue mini-series of their own (technically, Drax's occurred prior, but hopefully, you get my drift.) The main star of this issue is Richard Rider, the Nova Corpsman of Earth and his fellow peacekeepers. They will be the first line of defense in protecting the universe from Annihilus.

    Nova is a superhero that I'm not very familiar with. I know he's a member of Spider-Man's SHIELD team on Ultimate Spider-Man on Marvel XD, but that's a cartoon. In the comics, I've had very little to do with Nova. It's not that I hate the character or anything. It's just that in all of my readings, I've probably come across the character twice, maybe three times. I just don't seem to either read stuff that he's a major character in or I've never really come across any Nova trades or back issues.

    In this issue, I learned quite a lot about the hero and his compatriots. First of all, the Nova Corps is a lot like the Green Lantern Corps. Novas do not seem to have any weaknesses as a Green Lantern's ring is powerless against the color yellow. Secondly, Novas have special powers imbued to them by the Worldmind, a sentient computer similar to Oa's great lantern. However, while a Green Lantern uses a ring to create anything that they can imagine, Novas have power blasts and literally turn into human rockets.
   Still, Nova Corps/ Green Lantern Corps. I'm very surprised that DC hasn't ever sued of the similarities between the two creations and that Marvel never came up with the idea to team the two groups up in a giant cosmic epic against Sinestro and Thanos. (BTW, if Marvel and DC decide to ever team-up these two teams, I claim a creative contributor credit!)

    A very good issue with great action, really smart plotting, funny dialogue, and amazing characters. However, the inking was quite poor. The first 5 pages were really well done but once we get to Nova and his fellow Corpsmen, something goes awry. It was almost as if the inker stop using India ink and went to magic markers. Even when the action really picks up, the art doesn't seem to improve. It's the only downside to an otherwise flawless book.

Worth Consuming

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

UP Next: Annihilation: Nova #1-4

Drax The Destroyer #1-4 (Annihilation Week)

Cover to Drax #1

  This prequel series to Annihilation starts out with Drax the Destroyer, but this isn't the Drax you've fallen in love with in the pages of Guardians of the Galaxy and its 2014 feature film. Yes, he's green and mean but mentally, he's got a couple screws loose. Speaking mostly gibberish, when he does speak, he'll only get smarter the more to you pummel him. It's like the Hulk but in reverse.
     Drax's story starts out like in the film, as he is imprisoned for mass genocide and wanton destruction. When Drax's prison ship crash lands  in the woods of Alaska, his life is suddenly cut short. But thanks to some impressive genetics, the Destroyer is restored to life, gains some red tribal markings and becomes more like the Drax we're used to.
     The story turns into a sort of buddy cop movie when Drax is bonded to a young girl named Cami. Together, they seek to save Cami's hometown from the surviving prisoners who've taken the small Northwestern burg hostage in efforts to possibly salvage a rescue ship. This duo of Drax and Cami are the perfect odd couple. One's a super strong destroyer, the other is Drax. I kid, but these two are have such strong personalities that they might just kill each.
     A very good opening servo in the Annihilation storyline. It's quite good, but it didn't start off that way. For one, not having Drax be like the hero in the books or movie, it was a little confusing. Also, the story didn't really pick up until Cami and Drax became a team. I look forward to their future exploits.
   Up Next: Annihilation Prologue

Worth Consuming

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Guardians of the Galaxy (Prelude to Annihilation Week)

Finally, I saw the 2014 film Guardians of the Galaxy. I'm not 100% sure why it's taken me this long. It's been a weird mash of financial shortfalls, injury, and surgeries that have culminated in me putting off seeing it and putting it off, and putting it off- until now. So, what changed?

  Recently at my local library, I found the Annihilation Omnibus. Having read it and granted a free PPV rental by DISH Network, I was finally inspired to check it out. More on this later. But first let's discuss the film.

  The movie begins with a young Peter Quill being abducted by aliens in 1988 after his mother dies of what is assumed to be cancer. We then jump 26-years to find an adult Quill now calling himself Star-Lord. When Quill finds a mysterious orb, he becomes the target of the Scavengers, a ragtag bunch of aliens who abducted Quill for some reason and now have a bounty for his capture, bounty hunters Rocket Raccoon and Groot, and Gamora, daughter of Thanos and associate of the crazed Ronan.

   After the group ends up in Nova Corps prison, they meet up with Drax the Destroyer whose got a blood lust against Ronan for killing his wife and child. With this fifth member, the line-up for the Guardians of the Galaxy is complete. Together they trek across the universe seeking to sell the stolen orb to the Collector. There, the Guardians learn that the orb contains another of the Infinity Gems and has the power to destroy worlds. When Ronan steals the orb, the team must race back to the Nova homeworld of Xandar to protect it and the rest of the galaxy from being destroyed by a now power-mad Ronan.
 
   With any superhero film that begins a franchise and an origin, the film starts off a little slow. It really isn't until the group finally all meet that it became an instant classic. Many consider lovable Groot, the living tree, to be the fan favorite of the film, but I really like Drax. He's very droll, but he's given some of the funniest lines. I felt like he stole the show though Groot does give the Destroyer a run for his money.

  Another element that stole this flick was its soundtrack. Peter has an old Sony Walkman that belts out some classic 70s tunes such as Blue Suede's 'Hooked on a Feeling.' It's these catchy songs that help make this cosmic odyssey seem more familiar and more like 'home.'

    One part of this film that I thought was hit or miss was the special effects. The home world of Xandar looked like Starfleet Academy's's wet dream. It was beautiful, but many of that's planet's residents looked fake. Some characters like Yondu, the Alpha-Centurian with the musical arrow, has blue skin. However, the skin looked like an FX computer tech just painted the image of actor Michael Rooker, in facial prosthetics, navy. I swear I was ready for him to move off screen quickly and his blue hue to follow him off screen. Zoe Saldana's green Gamora looked like that was her real skin tone but the pink-hued attendant to the Collector and many other characters looked like someone was playing around with the color on their computer monitor in order to get their desired effect and it just fell flat.

    There're lots of great Easter eggs in this film. The character of Yondu was a member of the original Guardians team from the year 3,000 (maybe this was his great-grandfather?) There's several minor characters in the background and zoo of the Collector (as well as a few baddies from previous Marvel Films.) Perhaps the biggest Easter Egg is that Thanos and his army are the same mystery characters from the first Avengers film. It's just another bit of evidence that though Marvel may not be following the comic books to an exact 'T' they do have an all-encompassing plan for their films and live-action series to help create a true live-action Marvel Universe.

Worth Consuming

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

(Wait a minute---- Didn't I say I was going to come back to Annihilation? About that- I was able to get my hands on a copy of the Annihilation Omnibus recently. In that massive 500-page plus tome, Star-Lord, Drax, Gamora, Thanos, Ronan, Nebula, Korath, and the Nova Corps play important roles. Since they were in that book as well as this film, I broke down and finally set aside time to watch GOG. 
    So, starting tomorrow I will begin a week-long review of the series Annihilation and its many prequels and companion pieces. 
     My friends, welcome to Annihilation Week.)