Spoiler-ific Capsule Reviews

This week I got some comics, B.P.R.D. : King of Fear #5, Hellboy in Mexico one-shot, Astonishing X-Men: Xenogenesis #1, Dark Avengers #16, Siege #4, The Return of Bruce Wayne #1, and Thor and the Warriors Four #2. I will warn you, I am going to review each one with no regard for spoilering them, so proceed with caution!
Here we go!





Astonishing X-Men: Xenogenesis #1When I saw the solicit for this mini-series, I thought, "Written by Warren Ellis and drawn by Kaare Andrews!? SOLD!" After I read it, I was left scratching my head and turning up my lip...egh. I thought Andrews work on Spider-Man: Reign was fantastic, but I'm not sure what happened here. Emma Frost looks like a blonde sack of potatoes. And the fact that the X-Men spend half the book arguing about African politics just doesn't interest me. I don't usually drop a book after one issue, but in this case I'll make an exception.


B.P.R.D. : King of Fear #5
This series was advertised as the end of the so called "War on Frogs" and it ends with a bang. I have to admit that I am not completely caught up on the Hellboy universe, and I only started this series because Lobster Johnson was in the beginning, but this issue brings some big changes to the world and the nature of the B.P.R.D., who are now under the control of the U.N. And I'm not sure what is going on with Abe, but I hope the next mini Abe Sapien: The Abyssal Plane sheds some light on his new direction. Good stuff, but I wouldn't recommend reading it with out being somewhat up to speed. Oh, and I don't know who the tea drinking robot in the Jules Verne style submarine is, but I heartily approve!



Dark Avengers #16 & Seige #4

I'm gonna hit these both together. Let me say that I was on board after "Secret Invasion" wrapped up with the Dark Avengers (though I wished they had just stayed Thunderbolts, I thought that was working great) and I was interested to see where it was all headed. Now, I'll say that I am SO GLAD this CRAP IS FINALLY OVER! About halfway through this arc I became completely fed up with Norman Osborn. And joy of joys, Sentry is dead! This character has held the Marvel universe hostage for far too long, and except for the truly awesome Age of The Sentry, I hope we can all just pretend he never existed. Steve Rodgers in back, basically as the new Nick Fury, and Thor has a big mess to clean up. Lets move on and be glad this little episode is behind us.

Thor and The Warriors Four #2
I am digging this series. It is fun and awesome. I don't care what you think about Power Pack. Beta Ray Bill shows up for this one, which is great, and has to continually assert that he is NOT a horse, or a 'Thorse' for that matter (half Thor, half horse!). Sure it is silly, but I recommend it. And the cover is hilarious!


The Return of Bruce Wayne #1

One word: Awesome!

Hellboy in Mexico

Two words: Totally awesome!

Sif one-shot is good, not great

Read the Sif one-shot this week. Good solid effort on both writing and art by Kelly Sue Deconnick and Ryan Stegman respectively. It is completely ok, not mind blowing. Honestly, with an appearance by Beta Ray Bill and the title being Sif, I expected much more butt-kicking. And there is some, but I was expecting full bore face-kicking action. Then there is the situation where Sif gets to meet Bill's new squeeze, which could have been much more awkward, interesting, character developing, but instead is quickly brushed aside to get to the plot. In fact, having Sif say the word 'awkward', doesn't make it so.
And then there is the stock plot, interesting but underdeveloped villain, and basically a lack of epic-ness. And really, that is what I was expecting, and maybe that is my fault for demanding so much from this one-shot.

What Could Have Been

If you needed more proof that we indeed are not living in the best possible of worlds, animation director and storyboard artist Steven E. Gordon told Marvel Animation Age (as reported by MTV's Splash Page), that there was maybe going to be, but now definitely won't be a Beta Ray Bill animated movie:

“The DVD was going to be done like they did the 'Hulk Vs.' DVD where half would be devoted to the ‘Ultimate War’and the other half was planned to be a ‘Thor’ story,” continued Gordon. “At one point the ‘Thor’ story they intended on adapting was Beta Ray Bill, but I believe they dropped that after some exploration. We never got too far on finding a look for the Thor adventure.”

Argh! So close. This news begs the question: is it better to know the miserable truth, or live in ignorant bliss? I blame Steven E. Gordon for not fighting hard enough to get us a Beta Ray Bill animated feature. And there is your non-news of the day.

Beta Ray Bill appears in Planet Hulk movie!

According to reviews I have read, Beta Ray Bill makes an appearance in the new Planet Hulk movie due out on DVD on Feb. 2! Apparently, Bill is replacing Silver Surfer's role from the original story, which isn't a large role, but an important one. And it is always nice to get some more animated Beta Ray Bill, since all we have up to this point is an episode of the 90's Silver Surfer cartoon, in which the Korbinites are depicted as weaklings trapped in an illusion of gladiatorial combat. (with Scottish accents?) I am now more excited about this release than I was, and I was pretty excited before.

Sif mini-series to contain Beta Ray Bill, awesomeness

That's right, there is a Sif mini-series due out in March from writer Kelly Sue DeConnick and artist Ryan Stegman. Thor's Asgardian girlfriend gets to go on her own head-busting solo adventure, and the best part is that none other than Beta Ray Bill makes a showing as well. I can't wait for this series, as Sif will have a serious chip on her shoulder for Loki who had been hijacking her body for quite awhile leading up to the current Siege event. If you don't know, Sif and Beta Ray Bill have a bit of romantic history as well, from way back during Walter Simonson's epic run on Thor, and I'm guessing that issue will be dealt with as well. I wonder if Bill's new Korbinite girlfriend will play a part in this saga? I can't wait to find out!

Cool Sketch

Stumbled across this awesome sketch of Beta Ray Bill by John Lang. Very cool! Check out the link to see more of his stuff.

The Fates: They Laugh at Me

In a maddening twist of fate, the Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter TPB hits today and I STILL HAVEN'T READ ISSUE #3! Moving 2000 miles the month it comes out to a state with zero comic book stores will do that to you, as I am about 3 months behind on my comics. As you may guess, it is pretty difficult to maintain a comics blog with no new comics to read. I am currently taking steps to rectify this multitude of problems. So, if you haven't read Godhunter (like myself, to some extent) go get this trade and let the awesome wash over you.

Beta Ray Blog's First Anniversary!

That's right! Beta Ray Blog just celebrated it's first anniversary of cosmic blogging! It was actually about a week ago, but I was a little busy moving across the country. So, as I eagerly await my copy of Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #3 to arrive, I will bide my time (and yours, lucky reader!) with a review of Power Pack #19, guest-starring Beta Ray Bill!

In this fabulously unexciting issue, The kids are worried about their mother, who is in the hospital after being injured during a fight with Kurse. Katie, a.k.a. Energizer decides to invite everyone she knows over for a surprise Thanksgiving Day party. But the other siblings of Power Pack find out about the party and are none too happy, especially Alex, a.k.a. Gee.

After a bunch of balloon related mishaps during the parade, including Katie and Franklin Richards commandeering and navigating a giant Mighty Mouse balloon towards her mother's hospital room across town, everyone eventually ends up at the party. Which turns out to be the saddest, most depressing party ever thrown since Chevy Chase's celebrity roast on Comedy Central.
Yeah, wow, let's be miserable together...thanks for inviting us Katie...uhh...
...Sooo, I guess it's too bad that Alex wont let you have that party after all, guess we'll be going...
Oh! Well. As long as it's a misery party, let's boogie down!

I was mostly disappointed that Beta Ray Bill gets put front and center on the cover, and ends up getting to be in about five panels and serves mostly as Franklin Richards's mode of transportation. But at least he got to learn the true meaning of Thanksgiving...SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE!

Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #2

Kieron Gillen better be careful. If issue #3 of this series gets as exponentially more awesome as #2 did from the first issue, it will collapse in on itself and comic book shops around the globe will be consumed in the blinding flash of an awesomeness-singularity. But enough hyperbole.

In all seriousness, this story is pushing the character of Beta Ray Bill into new territory. It is a very welcome development to have an arguably second (or even third) string character, who for many years sat on the sidelines and was only included as a back-up to Thor or to add flair to a cosmic story, become fleshed out in such shocking and awe-inspiring ways. This story is more than just pushing the cosmic peices around the board, it is adding layers of personality to them. Stardust is a zealot. Silver Surfer seems to be resigned to the fact that he is a pawn of Galactus. And Bill himself may be losing his grip on reality.

I found the events of this issue to be shocking, but in a good way. Gillen is taking a big risk with this story, and so far it is paying off. Also, some of Bill's comments throw into question the events of the end of the Stormbreaker saga. I think these are important story elements that need to be addressed and have been igored for a long time. I know I am being extremely vague on the details, but I do not want to spoil this issue. Go read it yourself and be amazed.

I also really liked the reappearance of the I'than aliens that Bill saved last issue. They provided a very interesting twist, and I would like to see more of them in the future.

Kano's art has improved in this installment as well, the copious amounts of action depicted in a very dynamic way, and the serious parts represented with the visual weight they deserved. Not to mention a two page spread of Galactus in full beat-down mode!

All in all, another great issue. I can't wait to see how this ends. And I hope Marvel taps Gillen's talents again for further adventures of everyone's favorite horse-faced Norse god-like Scion of the Korbanites. (a.k.a. Beta Ray Bill)

Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #1 - Bringing The Awesome!

Obviously, the gauntlet has been thrown down. Now, I may be a little biased in my opinion of Beta Ray Bill, Marvel's horse-faced Scion of the Korbanites. The Thunder-god powered, Odin-enchanted-hammer wielding alien is one of my favorites. (See the title of this very blog) But what Kieron Gillen has done with Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #1 is challenge the very art form of comics itself in the realm of balls out awesome. This is what a comic should be: pure entertainment on a ridiculous level. Stopping tidal waves with brute force? Done. Bisection by the use of two black holes? Happens. (Well, almost happens.) Our title hero pounding the snot out of a Herald of Galactus like it ain't no thing? Of course, just a normal day at the office.
The story itself is a pretty good idea, though I'm sure the concept has been covered before. Galactus is a force of nature, not an evil entity. But Beta Ray Bill disagrees, and so do all the Korbanites that were allegedly killed in the Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill mini. So Bill sets off to get some revenge and put an end to Galactus' planet eating ways once and for all. Despite warnings from Thor that going after Galactus is a bad idea, Bill will not be swayed, and sets off with Scuttlebutt. After doing Agent Brand of S.W.O.R.D. a favor and taking out Voidian, Bill apparently takes all his planet destroying equipment, and instead of destroying it, uses it to his own ends.

The art in this book by Kano is pretty good, and though his style is not my favorite, it is servicable. One of my favorite panels is the full page arrival of Galactus which shockingly puts his sheer size into perspective.

This story arc is moving Bill along a path that may take him into uncharted territory: mainly, will his need for revenge push him over the edge, and if it does, who could stop him? I am very interested in seeing where this story goes, and so far it looks like we are in for a heck of a ride.

Bonus: Mjolnir Update!
Mjolnir is still in a state of disrepair, and Thor mentions he is not 100%. Though apparently he is still able to switch places with Dr. Don Blake. I haven't been keeping up with Thor on a monthly basis, so I'm guessing this has been covered in that book already.

Two Similar and Equally Awesome Things

First Awesome Thing:
Secret Invasion: Aftermath: Beta Ray Bill: Green of Eden

Yes, the title contains many awesome colons, and once you get past the cover, one finds the insides to contain even more awesomeness. Very good story by Keiron Gillen that moves Beta Ray Bill's story forward and gives him something to think about on the way to his upcoming showdown with Galactus. Plus, a simple equation for you: The Warriors Three + Super-Skrull Technology = ?

If you answered "Awesome," congrats, you are paying attention.

Second Awesome Thing:



This may be the greatest movie ever made. Once it comes out on DVD, this hypothesis will be confirmed.

Now consider the similarities of The Two Awesome Things:

Beta Ray Bill is an alien who gets his power from an ancient Norse god.

Outlander is about an alien that lands in ancient Norse times and fights other aliens that look like Dragons.

They are practically identitical!