Three Secret Wars mini-series wrap up this week. Dan Grote looks at the end of Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos and Red Skull, while I say farewell to Marville in Giant-Size Little Marvels: AvX.
Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos #4 (of 4)
Story: Gerry Duggan
Art: Salva Espin and Val Staples
Well, that took a turn.
Mrs. Deadpool and the
Howling Commandos wraps as a Shakespearean tragedy of Hamlet-ish proportions, but with monsters. And a ghost, because
there’s always a bloody ghost.
In the end, and regardless of the outcome, the fighting
between Shiklah and Dracula was futile because, as Deadpool’s ghost rightly
points out, there’s a bigger monster up on the surface world: God Emperor Doom.
And Doom can’t be taken out with a MacGuffin left on a world he created. Also
he has Thors, lots and lots of Thors.
P.S.: Kudos to Salva Espin for drawing Thors that don’t look
like the Thors
from all the other Secret Wars books.
Most books are still drawing Beta Ray Bill even though he (at least one of him)
died at the end of Thors #1. And Eric
Masterson. Espin’s got funky-afro Thor, lizard-Thor, monkey-Thor, centaur-Thor,
a Thor that looks like Marvel editor Jordan White, etc.
Shiklah’s fate in this reality spooks ghost Deadpool – who,
like us, already knows he’ll be alive again after Secret Wars ends – and drives him to look up foreshadowing in the
dictionary. Writer Gerry Duggan has said on his
Tumblr that he has “big plans for her,” which is good, because I enjoy the
dynamic between Shiklah and Deadpool. She’s certainly a healthier paramour for
him than Death,
even if she is a demon succubus.
As for the Howling Commandos, look for them and SHIELD
mainstay Dum Dum Dugan in a new
series written by Frank Barbiere and drawn by Brent Schoonover.
Red Skull #3 (of 3)
Story: Joshua Williamson
Art: Luca Pizzari and Rainier Beredo
The first two Secret
Wars books I read all the way through – Captain
Britain and the Mighty Defenders and Star-Lord
and Kitty Pryde – had happy endings. This week’s miniseries finales, not so
much.
One could argue there was never anyone to really root for in
Red Skull. The Skull was clearly
trying to make himself a mythic figure and a symbol of rebellion, but he was
still the same Nazi scum who spent decades plaguing Captain America by doing
ridiculous things like disguising himself as a Hollywood producer and the
secretary of defense. Magneto has his moments where he’s a tragic figure trying
to do right in a world that hates and fears him, but he’s neutered so
frequently in this book that by the end you just feel sorry for him. Who does
that leave? The snarky zombies shuffling around the Deadlands looking for
scraps? Annihilus’ bugs? Crossbones, who arranged this whole suicide mission in
the first place?
Certainly if this book has a hero, it’s the concept of
doublecrossing, which shines brighter than any of the villains practicing this
lost art. There’s also Abigail Brand – a friendly, green-haired face I haven’t
seen in a long time – who makes short work of protecting the Shield from the
Skull’s insurrection without calling in a single Thor, just a squadron of
plastic Sentinels.
So hooray for doublecrossing! Here’s hoping it gets its own
All-New, All-Different series and that Williamson, Pizzari and Beredo get to
continue on as the creative team.
Giant-Size Little Marvel: AvX #4
Story: Skottie Young
Art: Skottie Young & Jean-Francois Beaulieu
The Secret Wars mini-series are ending, and I'm going to miss many of them, but none more than Giant-Size Little Marvel. Skottie Young had produced four issues of hilarious fun that reaches it's climax this issue with the X-Men, the Avengers, and now the Guardians of the Galaxy competing to get twins Zoe and Zachary to join their teams. This issue is, more than any of the prior issues, a showcase of Young's skills as an artist. There are three two page spreads, one at the opening and two in the middle, full of details and characters that you should pour over to see all the details. Everyone will see a particular version of a character that will grab their attention: for me, a child of '90s X-books, it was seeing a classic Shatterstar in Little Marvels style. Who ever thought they'd see that? The issue ends with another group joining in, and there's a great bit about the fallacy of naming your team the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Oh, and the little cute "theme song" sequence at the beginning of each issue? This one includes a panel with a variety of versions of Cyclops (try to name them all), including "Quitely Lips and floppy 90s hair." That alone is worth the price of admission. I don't expect to see a Little Marvel ongoing popping up anytime soon, partially because Young is going to be busy with his creator owned I Hate Fairyland and writing the new Rocket Raccoon and Groot series, but I would love to see an annual special set in Marville, just to see how many different characters Young can squeeze into an issue.
Giant-Size Little Marvel: AvX #4
Story: Skottie Young
Art: Skottie Young & Jean-Francois Beaulieu
The Secret Wars mini-series are ending, and I'm going to miss many of them, but none more than Giant-Size Little Marvel. Skottie Young had produced four issues of hilarious fun that reaches it's climax this issue with the X-Men, the Avengers, and now the Guardians of the Galaxy competing to get twins Zoe and Zachary to join their teams. This issue is, more than any of the prior issues, a showcase of Young's skills as an artist. There are three two page spreads, one at the opening and two in the middle, full of details and characters that you should pour over to see all the details. Everyone will see a particular version of a character that will grab their attention: for me, a child of '90s X-books, it was seeing a classic Shatterstar in Little Marvels style. Who ever thought they'd see that? The issue ends with another group joining in, and there's a great bit about the fallacy of naming your team the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Oh, and the little cute "theme song" sequence at the beginning of each issue? This one includes a panel with a variety of versions of Cyclops (try to name them all), including "Quitely Lips and floppy 90s hair." That alone is worth the price of admission. I don't expect to see a Little Marvel ongoing popping up anytime soon, partially because Young is going to be busy with his creator owned I Hate Fairyland and writing the new Rocket Raccoon and Groot series, but I would love to see an annual special set in Marville, just to see how many different characters Young can squeeze into an issue.
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