The Immortal Hulk #27 - Marvel Comics

IMMORTAL HULK No. 27, January 2020

Initially splitting his narrative up into three simultaneous segments, Al Ewing’s script for Issue Twenty Seven of “The Immortal Hulk” must have so beguiled his audience with the sinister shenanigans of Roxxon’s super-powered CEO, the alarming worries of Doctor Charlene McGowan concerning the dangers of translocation, and Agent Palicki’s personal issues with an overly-aggressive commander, that the ongoing series saw a remarkable rise of almost five thousand readers in November 2019. In fact, considering what an earth-shattering fight-fest the British author soon transforms this twenty-page periodical into, many Hulk-Heads may well consider “This Is The Day” to be quite simply a perfectly-paced publication featuring Bruce Banner’s alter-ego.

First off is the profound sense of apprehension even the most unsympathetic bibliophile must feel for Roxxon Energy Corporation’s “recent hire”, Higgins, who despite being faced with the Minotaur as his boss, bravely challenges Mister Agger on his “extreme response” to the not “quite so dire” current projections of the fuel conglomerate. Shivering in terror, physically frail and clearly curtailed by the enormous physical presence of the grotesque-looking villain, the old man mumbles his way through a fascinating confrontation which inevitably only leads to one fatal conclusion; “My apologies gentlemen. I found myself in need of a stress ball.”

Likewise, there’s a lot of enthralling entertainment to be had from Ewing’s compelling depiction of life as a super-powered “Roxxon asset” stationed at the West Data Centre in Oregon. Originally confident that having been “bathed in dragon blood” each B.E.S.E.R.K.E.R. “is a match for the Hulk”, it is fascinating to watch as the quartet of misshapen security guards are absolutely pulverised by the titular character, and resultantly soon realise that the order to “defend those servers with our lives” is going to be an infinitely harder mission to fulfil than they were ever led to believe.

Joe Bennett is also on top form throughout this comic, making the book’s dedication to the memory of the Brazilian artist’s son Erik, “who left the world all too soon”, arguably even more poignantly appropriate. Whether it be the fear etched on poor Higgin’s face, the clumsiness of Agger as he tries to sophisticatedly sip tea with his misshapen mouth, or the sheer ferocity in the blows wrought upon his foes by the green-skinned human mutate, each and every panel of this book is packed full of excellent pencilling.

The regular cover art of "IMMORTAL HULK" No. 27 by Alex Ross

Astonishing Tales #2 - Marvel Comics

ASTONISHING TALES No. 2, October 1970

Leading with an incredibly fast-paced fist-fight between Ka-Zar and Sergei Kravinoff at the summit of a Manhattan hotel, Issue Two of “Astonishing Tales” must have practically exhausted its adolescent audience by the time the comic’s writer, Roy Thomas, moved on to continue its secondary tale, “Revolution”, featuring the Master of Menace, Doctor Doom. In fact, almost from the very moment Kevin Plunder brazenly walks up to the guesthouse’s reception staff and demands “to see the man called -- Kraven! You will summon him, please -- at once!” the Missouri-born writer’s ten-page “Frenzy On The Fortieth Floor!” depicts the Lord of the Hidden Jungle doing little else but trading punches, kicks and taunts with the man who has kidnapped his Smilodon, Zabu.

Fortunately, so relentless a power struggle actually proves enthrallingly entertaining, not least because the lengthy, action-packed sequence portrays both antagonists using their brains and considerable cunning to consistently outwit one another, rather than just their substantial brawn. Perhaps somewhat significantly, the "Son of the Tiger" is especially well served in this story, allowing his rival to both snare him in an inescapable bola-net, and supposedly be rendered unconscious by “the potency of my tranquiliser spray”, just so the unarmed savage can learn precisely where within the multi-storey building Kraven has his four-legged fanged friend held captive.

Prodigiously pencilled by Jack “King” Kirby, the destructive body blows on show appear thunderously impactive, with Ka-Zar launching one particularly full-blooded punch that carries both Sergei and the Shazam Award-winner’s co-creation out through a glass-pane window; “Astounding! Your reflexes are those of some tree-born simian!” Disappointingly however, it would appear that a couple of the book’s panels featuring close-ups of Plunder were disconcertingly sketched by another unknown artist, and these distinctly dissimilar drawings rather jar with the rest of the pulse-pounding antics on show.

Infinitely more complex, and packed with a significantly larger cast of leading villains is Thomas’ narrative for Victor Von Doom’s rematch with Prince Rudolfo. Establishing both the Machiavellian machinations of the orb-headed Faceless One, alongside the “terrible potentialities” of the heavily bandaged Doomsman, this political piece somehow manages to contain a large scale assault on the impregnable palace of Latveria’s dictatorial monarch, as well as plenty of mystery as to the identity and motivations behind the armed coup.

Writer: Roy Thomas, Artist: Jack Kirby, and Inking: Sam Grainger

The Immortal Hulk #26 - Marvel Comics

IMMORTAL HULK No. 26, January 2020

Predominantly focused upon a debatably dreary, word-heavy conversation between Bruce Banner and Amadeus Cho at Everett’s diner in Massachusetts, it is easy to see just why Issue Twenty Six of “The Immortal Hulk” saw its monthly circulation figure almost halve to just 45,522 copies within the space of a few weeks. Indeed, as comics about the nuclear physicist’s monstrously super-strong alter-ego go, this twenty-page periodical’s pedestrian-paced plot seems to be distinctly lacking in either pulse-pounding punch-ups or even the green goliath himself; “That could have gone better. I… didn’t lose my temper with him, did I?”

As an alternative Al Ewing pens a disagreeably long discourse concerning the titular character’s growing concerns about corporations failing to suffer the consequences of their actions, “the unsustainability of current human systems” and “human short-sightedness… currently being exacerbated -- manipulated -- for profit.” Intermixed with an equally lack-lustre array of cut-scenes featuring Doc Samson, Doctor McGowan, Roxx News broadcasters and a local radio show host, this conversational piece rarely gains any perceptible traction, except for a few fleeting panels where Banner’s disconcerting passion to become a terrorist seems about to trigger his famous transformation.

Fortunately however, the British author does manage to throw a few spicy ingredients into this publication’s rather bland bowl of goulash, with the revelation that Bruce has allied himself with none other than “Marvel’s first and mightiest mutant”, the Sub-Mariner. Namor’s continuous presence throughout this publication, subtly pencilled by Joe Bennett, is impressively handled, and the pointy-eared Atlantean’s eagerness to become “an excellent non-team” with the new incumbent of Shadow Base Site B rather excitingly harks back to the days when the New York City-based publisher featured the Scourge of the Seven Seas in its bi-monthly “Super-Villain Team-Up”.

Encouragingly, the former “Judge Dredd” writer also provides this book’s bourgeoning story-arc with a marvellously sinister main antagonist in the form of Roxxon Energy Corp’s CEO, Dario Agger. Imperiously stood before his cowering board members at the very summit of his company’s high rise headquarters, the Minotaur absolutely exudes villainous menace, especially when the "nine-foot man-bull who betrayed the Earth to elves" shockingly shatters the half-filled wine glass he was delicately drinking from just mere seconds before so as to simply emphasize a point.

Writer: Al Ewing, Penciler: Joe Bennett, and Colorist: Paul Mounts

Gwen Stacy #2 - Marvel Comics

GWEN STACY No. 2, May 2020

Despite the fact that this titular character’s “ultimate fate is all too well known to Spidey readers”, Christos Gage’s script for Issue Two of “Gwen Stacy” must still have had the vast majority of its readers’ hearts frenziedly throbbing in concern as to the welfare of the “Beauty Queen of Standard High.” True, the twenty-page periodical doesn’t contain the sort of action-packed, super-powered punch-ups usually found in a “Marvel Worldwide” publication featuring the likes of the Green Goblin and Crime Master, but that definitely doesn’t stop the New Yorker’s narrative from repeatedly implying that its poor protagonist is about to come to a decidedly grisly end; “Your friends’ve been causing me a lot of grief. I was thinking we should talk about grief and who deserves it.”

Foremost of these threats comes in the form of the head of Oscorp, Norman Osborn, whose presence throughout this comic seems to persistently promise an appearance by his utterly murderous alter-ego. Whether it be the “amoral industrialist” suddenly catching Harry and his friends in the human mutate’s private office tinkering with his company’s “forensic computer modelling system for the FBI”, or fully believing that Captain George Stacy’s daughter is about to unmask him as Spider-Man’s “Halloween-themed” arch-nemesis on the upper gallery of his Park Avenue residence, the physical menace of the man is truly palpable.

Equally as intimidating is the all-too real danger that Gwen faces once her hospitalised father reveals that the Lucky Lobo Gang bribery ledgers he’s recently seen contain “a lot of entries”, including “payoffs to cops”. The wounded parent’s fears for the safety of “everything I have” is emotionally penned by Gage, and the elderly law enforcement officer’s challenge to his two well-meaning subordinates that they can’t promise him that they will protect his child “when, for all we know, the guards watching her might be in someone’s pocket” is a chilling condemnation as to the corruptibility of the local police force.

Lending this book plenty of additional gravitas are Todd Nauck and colorist Rachelle Rosenberg’s layouts, which impressively provide plenty of energetic pace to a decidedly dialogue-driven plot. The American artist’s pencilling of Osborn during his aforementioned confrontations with “Miss Stacy” prove particularly impactive, with the evidently powerful man positively glowering at the blond-haired student during their first meeting, and then nervously crunching some finger-marks into his balcony’s brickwork when he believes his secret identity is about to be revealed.

The regular cover art of "GWEN STACY" No. 21 by Adam Hughes

Rom: Dire Wraiths #2 - IDW Publishing

ROM: DIRE WRAITHS No. 2, November 2019

Absolutely crammed with some of the most gratuitous, zero-gravity based violence seen this side of the Moon, Chris Ryall’s sense-shattering script for Issue Two of “Rom: Dire Wraiths” soon builds up a death tally which would surely sate even the most blood-thirsty “IDW Publishing” reader. Indeed, for any uber-nostalgic fans of the short-lived 1986 animated series “Inhumanoids” and its scientist-rich, super-team of heroes, the Long Beach-born writer’s “One Small Step For Dire-Wraith Kind” kill-count will disconcertingly prove a truly traumatic twenty-page passage.

First of all, the narrative strongly suggests straight from the start, that absolutely nobody is safe from having their extravehicular mobility unit lethally torn asunder and vital organs wantonly exposed to the cold vacuum of space. True, there is a modicum of trust that NASA's Apollo 11 astronaut crew will survive the horrific ordeal befalling them, especially as the steadfast Adventure-One Team repeatedly hurl themselves in harm’s way so as to protect Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. But considering the shroud of national security which overshadows all of this comic’s events, it quickly becomes clear that a cover-up relating to their tragic demise would not be beyond belief; “Houston. Houston, do not turn the cameras on. Repeat, keep the Eagle dark. There is a… situation I do not want broadcast.”

In addition, Ryall appears utterly unafraid of murdering off this comic’s lead cast without any warning whatsoever, whether it be a “simple matter” of a Dire Wraith literally boring into an unsuspecting astronaut’s boot so as to liquefy their body from the inside out, or simply gnaw another unsuspecting victim’s helmeted head clean off with a viciously vengeful bite. Such unrestrained carnage does rather satisfyingly work both ways, with the Dire Wraiths themselves adding to this book’s death toll courtesy of a truly patriotic spear throw across the thin atmosphere of the lunar surface using “Old Glory”. Yet is is undoubtedly the "pathetically weak" humans who bear the brunt of this book's grisly atrocities.

Delightfully, all of these pulse-pounding panels are gloriously pencilled by Luca and Andrea Pizzari, with colorist Jim Boswell providing some extra punch, thanks to some vibrantly vivid palette choices. In fact, even towards this publication’s end, when a lone Dire Wraith inexplicably decides to deliver a heavily-wordy piece of exposition to the surviving astronauts rather than just hew them asunder with his barbed tentacles, the creative team’s artwork quite compellingly carries the audience along, thanks to a tremendously well-drawn splash page featuring the Spaceknight, Rom.

Writer: Chris Ryall, Artists: Luca Pizzari & Andrea Pizzari, and Colorist: Jim Boswell

Batman: The Adventures Continue #1 - DC Comics

BATMAN: THE ADVENTURES CONTINUE No. 1, April 2020

Inspired by the "Batman: The Animated Series” which first aired on “Fox Kids” in 1992, this “digital-first mini-series comic book” must have had fans of the American superhero television show hearing ‎Danny Elfman’s opening theme music thundering in their ears just as soon as they saw Dave Johnson’s highly evocative cover illustration on their electronic devices. Indeed, considering that this twenty-page periodical is penned by two of the original show’s “visionary team”, Paul Dini and Alan Burnett, as well as stunningly sketched by “Batman and Robin Adventures” artist Ty Templeton, it is clear straight from this publication’s opening panel of the Dark Knight swinging across a dimly lit skyline, that what follows is going to a deeply respectful continuation of “the beloved and Emmy Award-winning” programme.

Gratifyingly however, “Hardware” is not simply just a nostalgic-laced, partial re-tread of an old episode, but rather delightfully pits Bruce Wayne (and his cowled alter-ego) against a super-villainous mastermind infinitely more connected to the evil machinations taking place within Metropolis than Gotham City, Lex Luthor. This slight shake-up to the Caped Crusader’s usual opponent arguably makes the producers’ narrative much more interesting, especially when it’s confirmed that Superman is off-planet somewhere having “had a big battle on the far side of the Moon.”

Equally as enjoyable though are the frequent nods back to this world’s past, such as an all-too brief fist-fight with a drug-fuelled Bane which still manages to show just how well-prepared Batman is before confronting a prominent member of his Rogues Gallery, and a giant stonking robot smashing its way across town. The creative pair even manage to literally squeeze an agitated Harvey Bullock into one of the scenes, with the corpulent detective finding himself pinned inside a badly damaged patrol car, courtesy of a seriously large mechanical foot; “Oh yeah. Couldn’t be better. What the @#&#!”

Templeton too is on top form with this comic’s layouts, breathtakingly capturing all the fast-paced foot chases and sense-shattering shenanigans of the animated series with his marvellous pencilling and “mechanized menace”. In fact, as with the cartoon’s theme tune, it’s really easy to hear all crashes, smashes and squeals coming from the vehicles, partially destroyed buildings and terrified innocent bystanders, thanks to the energetic life the Eisner Award-winning artist imbues all his action sequences with.

Writers: Alan Burnett & Paul Dini, Pencils & Inks: Ty Templeton, and Colors: Monica Kubina

Conan The Barbarian #14 - Marvel Comics

CONAN THE BARBARIAN No. 14, May 2020

There can arguably be little doubt amongst those readers who perused Issue Fourteen of “Conan The Barbarian”, that Jim Zub certainly took full-advantage of his “chance to build all new ongoing stories of one of the most famous characters in sword & sorcery literature” when he penned “The Great Crucible”. For whilst the author’s meteoric rise to become the series’ main writer only took a single year, following stints on both “The Savage Sword of Conan” and “Conan: Serpent War”, the Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Award-winner’s handling of Robert E. Howard’s Hyborian Age hero demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of all the Cimmerian’s traits which have made him so incredibly popular since his adventures were first published in “Weird Tales” magazine way back in 1932.

For starters, this particular incarnation of the “black-haired barbarian”, prodigiously pencilled by Roge Antonia, isn’t some super-human killing machine who is capable of hacking apart any opponent, no matter how numerous, large or multi-legged they are. The hero is still clearly capable of astonishing feats of endurance and swordplay, yet when it comes to facing down a giant spider so copious its girth completely blocks an entire underground passageway, the warrior needs all the help he can muster from his colleagues so as to overcome a creature which could “slay a squad of well-trained soldiers before giving up its own life.”

Of course, Conan is the only combatant herculean enough to hold back the deadly arachnid by its fearsome fangs with his sword, and simultaneously withstand the dark-hearted horror’s repeated rakings of this bloody back with its barbed legs. But in so positioning himself in order to “create an opening”, the Cimmerian also ably exhibits his strategic savvy by barking out commands to the hapless “unprotected and poorly armed” fighters around him; “That’s right, spider -- stay focused on me! Naru-Li. I’ll stay its jaws… Prepare to stab the beast’s head on my signal…”

Likewise, Hub additionally captures the murder mystery element of such notable prose stories like Howard’s "The God in the Bowl" with his sense-shattering suggestion that at least one of the surviving contestants is a well-armed assassin. This atmosphere of distrust and betrayal throughout the twenty-page periodical is positively palpable, especially when the Shaman of the Afterlife, Yohnic, inexplicably has his throat slit from ear to ear whilst sleeping under the watch of the “People’s Champion.”

Writer: Jim Zub, Artist: Roge Antonio, and Colorist: Israel Silva