Today in Panel of the Week we face down the devil with Thor, we crack wise in a green fedora, and we crash through the jungle with our robotic stomping feet. After that it’s time for murders and executions followed by a visit with the karate choppingest magician around.
New Ultimates #1
Oh, Thor. Have you ever seen a more ‘just another day at the office’ look in your life? This guy has been taking down hordes of the undead for months and he’s just phoning it in. The pages following this scene make it clear that the big guy must sleep with the devil to get back to the land of the living. That’s all I’ll say about that. A couple things to note about this new series. One, it’s written by Jeph Loeb, the architect of the deplorable Ultimates volume 3, and it shows. Two, the cover is like a quintuple gatefold of the new team fighting Loki’s horde. I may buy another issue of this and carefully remove this awesome cover for my wall since the interior is largely forgettable.
Green Hornet #1
As I was reading this issue all I could think about was Seth Rogen. The Green Hornet on these pages was a spry, high-kicking crime fighter. I know Seth has lost a significant amount of weight but I still couldn’t bridge the gap between his character from Knocked Up and this wise-cracking vigilante. However, when I saw this panel, with this exchange between our hero and Kato I was hearing Seth Rogen. So maybe it could work.
Wolverine Weapon X #11
Deathlok is nothing if not thorough. If it were me systematically killing my way through some grim to-do list I would be satisfied when bad guy’s head left his body. That would seem sufficient. To me. But not Deathlok. If a job’s worth doing and all that. The Deathlok story in this issue was really a backup. What was the title character doing? Well Logan and the newly revived Captain America were taking the X-Jet around the world and stopping off at infamous watering holes trying to get wasted enough to stay one step ahead of their respective healing abilities. Great, great book.
First Wave #1
Can you really have a revival of the pulp comic genre without a giant, menacing robot? (No.) Wouldn’t a hulking robot have a difficult time chasing a man through a jungle? Apparently not, but then again when a robot is half T1000 and half Cylon (Toaster model) anything is possible.
Invincible Iron Man #24
Dr. Stephen Strange is no longer the Sorcerer Supreme. Boo hoo. Let’s not forget that this man, in addition to being a surgeon and master of the mystical arts, also knows the kung-fu. See, he’s got this assistant, Wong. He’s an apprentice in magic and also a skilled sparring partner. Take that, Alfred Pennyworth.