New Comic Reviews - Midnight Universe Descends

It was really surprising to see Marvel ending its very successful new Ultimate Universe line so suddenly, abruptly and unexpectedly.

But, they somehow decided to end it and start a new imprint, the 'Midnight Universe' from this month.

So I also decided to do a new thing and review the first issues of the three new Midnight series together here.

Name: Midnight Spider-Man #1

Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson

Artist: ScieTronc

Colorist: Neeraj Menon

Based on the first issues, this is my pick of the lot. It has a teenage Peter Parker with a much more tragic and horrific childhood, yet brought up with a healthy dose of principles who tries to fight the fascist and corrupt corporations as a social media activist.

The start has much room for maneuvering and the side characters that appeared so far seem to be presented in a very promising way so far. The new and twisted motto of 'Power makes monsters' also gives the setting an interesting nudge in a new direction.

I liked what the art on offer so far with its Asian manga inspired style and some unusual choices. The coloring also adds to the horrific effect and the stylistic charm.

I give this opening issue 4 out of 5 stars.

Name: Midnight Fantastic Four #1

Writer: Benjamin Percy

Artist: Kev Walker

Colorist: Frank D'Armata

Well, this is a bit unusual in its choice of direction so far. I loved the Lovecraftian bits and the jump scares, but some story bits like how Victor was taken to Latveria and how Reed is so uncaring regarding the harm that befalls others due to his whimsical attitude and the mysterious pills need some explanation in future to make this right.

I hope the author gives all the characters enough room for development rather than focusing too much on the reimagined dynamics between Reed and Storm, despite enjoying the changed roles.

The art is as unorthodox as the story at times, but the eerie drawings do add to the cosmic horror angle that the team tried to convey so far. Maybe it needs a bit more nuance in my opinion.

3.5 out of 5 stars, based on what's on offer here.

Name: Midnight X-Men #1

Writer: Jonathan Hickman

Artist: Matteo Della Fonte 

Colorist: Arthur Hesli

What Hickman produced with 'HoX/PoX' was something I enjoyed quite a lot. Despite how Krakoan age has both fans and haters, the initial dual mini-series did something incredible, made use of the vast lore available, and made people interested in X-Men comics after a long time.

But, it was also very convoluted and required much prior knowledge to fully appreciate. What 'Midnight X-Men' starts in first issues is not so much old lore heavy. Rather it is a gothic and moody piece introducing readers to the new universe and its status quo. It doesn't do anything really spectacular or original, but it has time and scope it it's future issues for development.

This issue has the best drawing of the three so far, in my opinion. Matteo Della Fonte used his prowess with style to create quite an engrossing and dark atmosphere. I just hope he gets to draw more characters in the future and Hickman decides to use the depth of available characters in the X-Men universe to create something memorable.

So far, I am not overly impressed and will give this 3.5 out of 5 stars.

New Comic Review - Amazing Spider-Man #8

Name: Amazing Spider-Man #8

Published by: Marvel comics

Writter: Zeb Wells

Artists: John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna

Colorists: Marcio Menyz

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

The new series of 'Amazing Spider-Man' seems to have finally found its rhythm into its eighth issue. It is a tightly focused issue with visually engrossing action and emotionally charged dialogue. While I am not entirely sure what the future might be like for this series, but I definitely liked this issue.

This one starts from where the 7th issue ended, as Spider-Man continues his fight against vulture, trying to outwit the villain, despite his momentary disadvantage, while trying desperately not to be killed. The most of the issue is a brutal and visceral battle scene, in between which Peter seeks help from a very unlikely place. The issue ends with a twist ending that has been foreshadowed in the last few issues. 

The art by John Romita Jr. is as good as ever. His ability to depict emotions and desperation with his unorthodox style of drawing characters adds to the drama of the story in a big way. And his delightful drawing with excellent lettering by Joe Caramagna adds to the overall savageness of the battle. 

In my opinion, this might be the best issue of this run of ASM, if not the best Spider-Man issue of the year so far. But due to next two issues being kind of tie-ins to the bigger Marvel universe I am not too optimistic for the future, as I would have liked the story to be more focused on these characters. Let's just hope the creative duo doesn't drop the ball again just after they seemed to have found their groove. 

Nonetheless, this issue gets a well deserved 4.5 out of 5 stars. 

New Comic Review - Amazing Spider-Man #7

Name: Amazing Spider-Man #7

Published by: Marvel comics

Writter: Zeb Wells

Artists: John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna

Colorists: Marcio Menyz

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

After the average first 5 issues of the new ASM on-going, and the quite enjoyable 900th issue, I wasn't really sure what to expect from this issue, which is supposed to begin a new story arc. While once again, I was impressed with the art; the story, despite obvious improvements still didn't reach the height I was expecting from it.

The story opens with introducing us to the not so new villain of this arc, Vulture, while giving us an emotional sequence to get behind the reason of why wants to kill Spider-Man this time. Then story focuses on Peter and things kinda slow down as we learn a bit more about why everyone is mad at him (these slow expositions are killing the mood for me). Then comes the end with a one on one battle between Spidey and the Vulture, which was the best scene of the issue.

The art is once again the main star, as Romita Jr. uses his unique style to depict emotions brilliantly and enriches the story very convincingly. His unorthodox facial expressions work wonders for Norman and Adrian Toomes to convey their guilt and despair quite effectively.

Despite being annoyed with the slow progress of the overarching plot and continues uncharacteristic handling of some of the characters (specially MJ) I am still intrigued to find out what happens in the next issue and that is always a positive point.

I will give this 3.5 out of 5 stars (full marks to the artists and colorist to be specific). 

New Comic Review - Miles Morales: Spider-Man #1

Name - Miles Morales: Spider-Man #1
Published by - Marvel Comics
Written by - Saladin Ahmed
Art by - Javier Garron   
Coloring by - David Curiel
Letters by - VC's Cory Petit
Release Date: December 12, 2018

Well, it is quite a daunting task to write a character that has been done only by its creator ever before. So, like everyone else, I was being quite skeptic about the new 'Miles Morales: Spider-man' series. But then I saw the name of the new writer, and my huge admiration for 'Saladin Ahmed' drew me in for this first issue. And thankfully, this creative team didn't disappoint at all.