Marvel Comics Presents #149

There are no multi-part segments in this issue. It's all one-and-done's as the editors have something massive planned for the upcoming 150th issue!

Vengeance, the newest headlining feature in MCP, is on a quest to find a missing boy.

Fan-favorites Colleen Wing and Misty Knight, the Daughters of the Dragon, take on a case that involves domestic violence.

The Starjammers, led by Christopher Summers, try to quell a squabble on an isolated planet before it turns into a huge intergalactic incident. 

Finally, a crippled former Soviet submarine learns that despite Prince Namor's distaste for how humanity has spoiled the seven seas, there's a little bit of human blood beating in the heart of the Sub-Mariner.

I really liked both the Daughters of the Dragon story and the underwater adventure with Prince Namor. The detective story was masterfully written. I hated to close the book on the Sub-Mariner. Wonderful art and storytelling.

The character of Vengeance; I could take him or leave. Mostly leave. The dialogue of his human identity, Michael Badilino, is like that of a terrible 80s cop movie. And when in demon form, this version of the Spirit of Vengeance is just too hardcore for my liking. I honestly think Vengeance likes that the flames of Hell are always licking at his feet. At least Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch seemed repentant of the mess they got themselves into.

Lastly, that Starjammer story. My feelings on it are kinda mixed. I thought Kelly Corvese's (Spider-Man) story had good writing but a script that seemed too similar to the Vance Astro story from a little ways back. The only character I liked was Corsair. And I thought the artwork by Alexander Morrisey (Punisher Back to School Special) just wasn't that great. 

An okay issue that has a couple great stories. But I think the real fireworks are being held for the next issue which will be an anniversary giant!

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Comics Presents #124

I'm really enjoying both of the cover stories. For myself, that's been rare. I think it's because both of them are tying up some loose threads from earlier stories. With the Wolverine story, the German mercenary Courier and the French bounty hunter Peregrine have teamed with Logan to help the young feral child known only as Lynx escape her former tormentors and captors. Too bad the mutant forgot that you can't trust soldiers of fortune. In the Ghost Rider story, Danny Ketch is troubled by a series of dreams of a mysterious beauty. Turns out, that mystery woman is Typhoid Mary!

I'm also loving the She-Hulk multi-parter. There's a She-Hulk impostor doing everything in her power to make She-Hulk come across as being on a Gamma induced rager. Jennifer Waters' only hope for help is a zany Batman knock-off character known as Nosferta! It's a great romp by Spider-Man Magazine's Kelly Corvese that has not disappointed thus far!

The one-shot story stars a 2nd rate Punisher type character called Solo. Really, it's not the protagonist who impressed me. It was the villain. That's because our antagonist is the South American baddie, El Tarantula! 

Unfortunately, this isn't the Tarantula I encountered as a kid in the pages of Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #1. I didn't find out that it was a different character until later on after reading it. But the nostalgia factor was what sold me on the Solo story. As for the impostor calling himself Solo- he ain't no Harrison Ford!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.