Absolute Wonder Woman #13
New mini-arc alert! I love the format of this series — five-issue main arcs and two-issue mini-arcs are perfect. Not to mention the value of the collected editions: seven issues for $19.99. What’s not to love?!
After a harrowing journey, Diana has finally escaped the labyrinth. Unfortunately for her, heroes never rest, so when alerts of a mysterious assailant wreaking havoc come in from across the globe, she jumps back into the fray.
Guest artist Matías Bergara takes over from Hayden Sherman for this arc. I was nervous at first because Sherman’s work is top tier (check out Batman: Dark Patterns for more of his work). I feared his departure would be jarring and distract from Thompson’s story, but I’m happy to report that’s not the case. Bergara infuses the book with a flat, static quality reminiscent of the art that adorned the vases of ancient Greece. Diana comes to life in these pages, and she’s as intimidating as ever in her full armor (I missed her helmet!). There are some great action scenes as Diana faces a new kind of challenge, one that’ll force her to dig new depths in her sorceress bag.
Story-wise, we get an even split between quiet moments and frantic action. Wonder Woman is running ragged, flying across the planet to address an unknown enemy, punctuated by downtime with her crew back in Gateway City. The moments Diana spends with her friends are some of the best in the issue, and they highlight the strength of Diana’s character — she’s as kind as she is fierce, and that’s on full display here. I especially like the moments where she and Barbara geek out over ancient myths and history. Their friendship is something I hope we’ll see more of in the issues to come, and maybe we’ll get Absolute Cheetah down the road.
This is yet another great installment in one of DC’s best series, and there are only more adventures to come for Diana!
P.S. Keep your eyes — and your pull list — open for Absolute Wonder Woman #15. It’s set to be the first meeting between her and Gotham’s own Absolute Batman!
Omega Kids #1
I love a good Rod Reis cover almost as much as I love a good story — and luckily this book comes with both! Quentin Quire: the mutant, the myth, the wannabe legend. Omega-level, riot starter, and the visionary who first wore the iconic “Magneto Was Right” shirt (New X-Men #135). He’s flirted with the power of the Phoenix Force and been curved by more telepaths than Scott Summers himself.
Quentin Quire Curved by the Stepford Cuckoos (circa 2003)
In the Age of Revelation, he’s come up in the world. He’s got a fancy coat, a connecting beard, and the most powerful kid telepaths in the world as his students. It’s a good life — all it required was joining up with Revelation and running a psychic spy network that makes COINTELPRO look like macaroni art. We all have to make a living, I suppose.
This book hooks you from the first page. A tense opening provides an unflinching look at the Resistance against Revelation and the “justice” dissidents face at the hands of Quentin Quire’s thought police. The Omega Kids: telepaths Curtis Terrell Jr., Nell Windows, Ayla Bozkurt, and Bailey Quinn. The brightest and most powerful minds of their generation, born into a new mutant paradise aligned under Revelation’s will. Can Quentin guide them to mastery of their psychic gifts, or will the teacher end up becoming the student? That question is the driving force of the story, and it’s poised to be a thrilling mystery — one that will put Kid Omega to the test like it’s freshman year at Xavier’s all over again.
Whether you love or hate Quentin Quire, this book is for you!
X-Men: Book of Revelation #1
A Chorister’s life is not a charmed one. It’s one of selfless sacrifice and service to mutantkind above all — a life of subordination to the supreme power of the land, Revelation. Following the death of Topaz (check out Age of Revelation: Overture #1 for the grisly details), Revelation is in need of a new Chorister.
Enter young mutant Elbecca Voss. The world of Revelation is the only one she’s ever known, and for her it was a paradise — until duty called, anyway. Now Elbecca has found herself in a world of political infighting and intrigue, a lonely child thrown to the wolf pack. How will she survive, and will she follow Revelation’s path or forge her own?
This series might be my favorite of the AOR (Age of Revelation) books so far. It’s a headfirst dive into mutant politics and diplomacy. We get to look behind the scenes at Revelation’s inner circle and see how Doug Ramsey has fashioned himself into the new mutant messiah. He’s made himself into the leader the people want — but maybe he’s not the one they need.
That’s for another day, though. At the heart of this book is the young Elbecca. Her innocence stands in stark contrast to the cynical and hardened mutants who make up the rest of the Chorister’s ranks. Her predicament — being roped into Revelation’s service — is sure to tug at your heartstrings. You’ll find yourself hoping that someone, anyone, will lend the poor kid a helping hand, all to no avail.
Netho Diaz (artist), Sean Parsons (inker), and Fer Sifuentes-Sujo (colorist) round out the art team, and they do spectacular work here. Elbecca looks like a baby fish out of water, and that helps illustrate her helpless situation. The adults tower over her, and where she has wide-eyed innocence, they have a piercing, critical gaze — like they’re looking for any sign of weakness. Revelation looks especially creepy here; even the moments where he tries to be caring have a tinge of menace to them. He’s a master manipulator, and it’s clear he can’t be trusted. Unfortunately, Elbecca — like most little kids — is an optimist, and that means she’s not long for this world. Lucky for her, she has friends in unexpected places.
Jed MacKay leads us deeper into the world of Revelation in this phenomenal new book. If you’re at all interested in this event, this series is a must-read!
Radioactive Spider-Man #1
The Parker luck holds true even in alternate futures. Some mutants get telepathy, super strength, or flight — meanwhile, our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man gets little mutant baby arms. If there’s one thing to love about Peter Parker, though, it’s that he’s an optimist, and even in a dystopian future he keeps doing the work: save the little guys, take down the bad ones, and above all, save absolutely everyone he can.
It’s not all peaches and cream, though, and Peter is looking rough, to put it bluntly. With the help of Dr. Cecilia Reyes, he’s managed to hold off further mutations — the only downside: the treatment might be killing him in the process. Not to mention Revelation’s goons have a penchant for public executions and generally terrorizing the citizens of the Big Apple. It’s all Spidey can do to keep some semblance of peace in his city. On top of that, there’s a secret — one so dangerous that stumbling upon it means certain death. How is Peter supposed to protect New York and the ones he loves in a world gone mad?
Amazing Spider-Man scribe Joe Kelly delivers a fun, high-stakes story that will remind you just what Spider-Man is about. It’s the perfect amount of hopeful and grimdark. Kev Walker and Chris Sotomayor handle action scenes with ease — they build a New York that, like Spidey himself, is changed but still familiar. I can’t wait to see what else is in store for the radioactive Webhead!
Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #5
The grand finale is finally here! Spider-Man has been to every corner of the Ultimate Universe, and his baby sister Billie is finally within his reach. The only thing standing in his way is a psychopathic, bootleg, superpowered Emmanuel Da Costa.
Light work for the Ultimate Spider-Man.
Cody Ziglar and Deniz Camp bring Miles’ story to a rousing close. There are major revelations for Spidey in this issue. He’s been through the wringer navigating The Maker’s perfect world, and the final battle is a riotous affair that’s a worthy end to Miles’ journey. Miles and Billie’s reunion is a real tearjerker and the perfect end to their journey. Billie remains a mystery, because = how did a baby open a portal to another universe? Is she the key to the return of The Maker or just caught in a misunderstanding? Hopefully time will tell.
There are new developments for the Ultimates as well, and if you’ve been keeping up with that series, you won’t want to miss this. With Endgame just around the corner in December, I’ll be interested to see how the ripple effects of this story tie in.
I've worked at Dr No's for just less than a year and I've been patronizing them for half my life. I like comics, video games, music and sometimes sports.
I’m a GSU graduate, veteran sandwich artist, and aspiring writer. Ask me about the X-Men or my anime car sometime.
I think all comics are good they're human expression, dreams put to a page through days, months and years of dedication. They're windows into other worlds, aspirations of all we can be, warnings of what we may become and everything in between. Above all I think comics can help us understand the things we often don't consider.
That's what I want these reviews to do, help folks understand maybe even appreciate something they haven't seen before, but yea lemme wrap this up I got books to file. Happy reading!
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