X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1 Review

 

Writer: Jed MacKay

Penciler: Ryan Stegman

Inker: JP Mayer

Colorist: Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Clayton Cowles

Cover Artists: Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer & Marte Gracia; Aaron Kuder & Marte Gracia; Stanley “Artgerm” Lau; Cory Smith & Carlos Lopez; Rickie Yagawa & Tamra Bonvillain; Mark Bagley & Alex Sinclair

Design: Jay Bowen

Editors: Lindsey Cohick, Annalise Bissa, Tom Brevoort & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $5.99

Release Date: October 1, 2025

 

When voices awaken him, Scott Summers peers through his visor. Although he recognizes the people around him, they look different. Older. As he rises from the hospital bed and yanks the contact pads off his forehead, Scott asks what's going on. His “friends” tell him they’ve transported his consciousness from his era and supplanted him in his older body. Worse than the abduction, they destroyed his present consciousness to bring him here. Why did his older colleagues summon him to the future? And can he trust them? Let’s grab our visors, leap into X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1, and see!

 

Story

Magneto, so often Scott's adversary, wears an X on his belt. He leads Scott out of the cave and shows him a foreign land. It used to be the United States. Below him, nature has encroached upon cities. Foliage-crowned, crumbling towers poke above the forest. Magneto tells him that a mutative virus is sweeping across the United States. Like the Terrigen Bomb that activated Kamala Khan's Inhuman genes, this virus turns Humans into Mutants. This virus has also changed the landscape, destroying the roads and cities that helped Humanity thrive.

 

 

As Scott realizes that civilization lies in ruins, he learns that Doug Ramsey rules the isolated pockets of survivors in this vast, expanding landscape. His choristers assist those villages loyal to him. Seraphim kill the dissenters. Millions may have died. But the Revelation Territories have taken on the vitality of the Mutant nation of Krakoa that Doug helped create. As Cipher, Doug helped people communicate and grow in harmony with nature. Now, as Revelation, Doug takes inspiration from the Biblical story of Humanity's first attempt to build a skyscraper. He turns dissenters into Babels stripped of any ability to communicate in X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1.

 

 

 

After providing a glimpse of village life, Jed MacKay's story follows Scott, Revelation, and his seraphim, Psylocke. But the spotlight shines brightest on Scott Summers as he navigates unfamiliar surroundings. He doesn't know this world or who he can trust. And in their desperate struggle to survive, the X-Men employ harsher methods than Scott approves of. While they value his abilities, some aren't ready to follow him. He may not like what his X-Men have done. Still, Scott Summers fights to meet the demands facing him without relinquishing his principles in X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1. 

 

 

 

Art

Ryan Stegman and JP Mayer fill traditional page layouts with natural beauty, drama, and action. Scott's muscular body, long hair, beard, and clothing show how time has forced his older self to adapt. His new allies mutter to each other about him. Most regard him with frowns. After cloaking his features in shadow, Magneto's face appears within his mask as he explains the world they inhabit. Then a hairy Mutant leaps from above the cave mouth to confront them. 

 

 

 

Edgar Delgado applies a loaded palette of nuanced colors to X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1. Like the fire that accompanies his choristers' appearances, Revelation adorns himself in yellow and orange. As he plucks blue fruit from a tree, the purple foliage forms a link with our first glimpse of his wife. But Bei's predominant red outfit links her with Magneto's costume and Scott's cape. Still, no color reinforces the harshness of this Brave New World like pink. It colors Glob Herman's translucent body, Psylocke's sword, and the energy whirling around Quentin Quire's goggles.

 

 

 

Clayton Cowles fills panels with black uppercase letters in white dialogue balloons and narrative balloons. When he bends others to his will, Revelation speaks white letters into black boxes. White block letters introduce settings and characters. Telepathic communication occurs in cloudy balloons. Sound effects enhance weapon fire and clashing blades, while giant letters overtake the background when Revelation sends his Angel of Death to dispatch his enemies. Thanks to Marvel Comics for providing a review copy.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

As Cipher, Doug Ramsey helped the Mutants thrive. Now, as Revelation, he isolates people into small pockets of civilization that he can control. While ruling with an iron fist, the truth becomes whatever Revelation wishes it to be. And anyone who disagrees with him never does so again. Jed MacKay, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, Edgar Delgado, and Clayton Cowles deliver a far-reaching meditation on what happens when the abilities that help us achieve greatness outweigh our respect for others in X-Men: Age of Revelation Overture #1.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

Amazing Spider-Man #14 Review

 

Writer: Joe Kelly

Penciler: Ed McGuinness & Todd Nauck

Inkers: Mark Farmer, Wade Von Grawbadger, Ed McGuinness, & Todd Nauck

Colorists: Marcio Menyz & Erick Arciniega

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Cover Artists: Patrick Gleason & Marcio Menyz; Lee Bermejo (Amazing Visions); Cory Smith & Edgar Delgado; Jay Anacleto & Romulo Fajardo Jr; Joshua Cassara & Matthew Wilson (The Muppets)

Designer: Jay Bowen

Editors: Kaitlyn Lindtvedt, Tom Groneman, Nick Lowe, & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $4.99

Release Date: October 15, 2025

 

Hermes Crenshaw believes that Manhattan's new Take No Prisoners Spider-Man hails from a parallel universe. Instead, while Ben Reilly impersonates Peter Parker at Rand, Norman Osborn thwips the streets as Peter’s alter ego. But Norman doesn’t practice Peter’s restraint. And he hates losing.

 

When Miles Morales, Spider-Boy, Silk, Araña, and Spider-Gwen invade his web after losing his “cowardly” lawsuit against Roderick Kingsley, Norman lashes out. Can Spider-Norman placate New York's Spider-Society? And will the Sic Semper Monstrum club teach Roderick Kingsley their secret handshake? Let's thwip into Amazing Spider-Man #14 and see!

 

Story

Although Silk assured Norman that Peter still lives, he left their encounter feeling like a failure. So Norman seeks out someone else who has tried and failed to be Spider-Man. But Ben Reilly doesn’t want to share the same universe, let alone the same airspace, with Norman Osborn. And he’s far from alone in that sentiment.

 

While Ben impersonates Peter in Amazing Spider-Man #14, his growing closeness to Dr Maira Osmani-Milton drives his girlfriend crazy. Janine Godbe enjoys life in the shadows with Ben. Now he is chasing Peter's life again, and that's beyond frustrating.

 

 

 

While endangering his future with Janine, Ben shuts out the people who care about Peter. Aunt May feels cut off from the successful working nephew who hung photos in her living room when he was bombing interviews. And at work, Brian Nehring isn't feeling freaktastic as his childhood chum’s science outshines his mycoteria.

 

While Joe Kelly’s story urges us to understand what drives us, it also contrasts life in the shadows with exposing our actions to the light of day. Night patrols gave Norman the anonymity to act out his aggressions. Imitating Peter solely at Rand allows Ben to hurt everyone close to him. But people who exercise power responsibly inspire others. That's something a would-be hero learns in Amazing Spider-Man #14. 

 

 

 

Art

Ed McGuinness & Todd Nauck, Mark Farmer, and Wade Von Grawbadger contrast memories of the Spider-Society on a rooftop with Norman sitting alone in his exclusive penthouse. Janine’s masks feed her desire for easy victories but provide no lasting contentment. As Maira sits before an image of sunflowers, she makes a more understanding and accepting comparison with Peter’s not-girlfriend. Yet despite her words, Maira’s disdain for Norman struggles to dominate her face, suggesting a familiar jousting tournament with a business rival. 

 

 

 

Marcio Menyz and Erick Arciniega make Chasm and Hallows Eve look good together in purple, orange, red, and green. Maira and Ben’s blue attire emphasizes the growing connection between them. Norman’s dark gray suit seems a reminder that his self-esteem, if not his body, is trapped in the dark web of Limbo. An attacker's light gray and blue emphasize a cold, clinical approach to curing a disease. While the yellow and orange coursing across his body evoke Hellgate's inner fire, Kintsugi's gleaming suit recalls another cosmic hero.

 

Joe Caramagna fills white dialogue balloons with black uppercase dialogue. Words grow bold for inflection, enlarge for raised voices, and shrink for lowered voices. Faint lowercase handprinted letters reveal Norman's thoughts in irregular white rectangles, while Aunt May writes in tiny cursive. Sound effects hail a pleasant outing, a responsible use of power, and defiant dry-thwipping in Amazing Spider-Man #14. Thanks to Marvel for providing a review copy.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

While Norman Osborn struggles to overcome his past, Roderick Kingsley makes new friends, Brian Nehring gets desperate, and Astrid reveals a fondness for Battlestar Galactica in Amazing Spider-Man #14.

 

Rating 9/10

 

To look inside see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

Deadpool #8 Review

 

Deadpool #8 Review

Writer: Cody Ziglar & Alexis Quasarano

Artist: Rogê Antônio

Colorist: Guru-eFX

Letterer: Joe Sabino

Cover Artists: Taurin Clarke; Derrick Chew; Ema Lupacchino & Dave McCaig; Cory Smith & Edgar Delgado

Graphic Designer: Kat Walkington

Editors: Drew Baumgartner & Cy Pedro Beltran; Mark Basso; CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: November 13, 2024

 

Taskmaster wants to hack Chemocorp’s bank accounts, so he suggests they create a diversion so someone can slip inside. Instead, Ellie and Princess opt for a frontal assault on the Z-List shell company. "Taskzaddy" tries to talk "Cutie-Pool and Wagsly" into descending to the data center, but Princess pursues a familiar scent. Will Deadpool's symbiote-canine daughter ascend to a happy reunion? Or will Ellie and Princess discover someone more deadly than the robots on the ground floor? Let's leap into Deadpool #8 and find out!

 

Story

Taskmaster wanted to dig Deadpool & Daughters, LLC out of a financial hole. His plan was simple but elegant: slip in, steal the data, and leave without anyone noticing. But Ellie is angry. As she can't attack Deathgrip, Ellie hurts other villains. Instead, she discovers that robots guard Chemocorp. Energy weapons sprout from their hands, and they shoot lasers with their eyes. Still, at least one employee of the biochem research company is Human (even if the leaders of Orchis might disagree). Her name is Valentine Vuong, and hypodermic needles adorn her fingers.

 

Although it was likely foreordained, Cody Ziglar & Alexis Quasarano reveal why Deadpool and Valentine parted ways in Deadpool #8. It’s a familiar story about juggling schedules and interests while making time for those we love. What surprises Ellie is how stoically Valentine takes the news of her former paramour's death. But then, Deadpool traded in death while Valentine experiments with life.

 

Wade Wilson may be dead, but his body doesn’t decay. He was killed by a man who swallowed a magic sword and returned from the dead. Ellie assumes that a combination of magic and science can heal her father. While Valentine echoes Taskmaster’s insistence that Alchemy isn’t real, this proto-science aided people for centuries and built the foundation for Valentine’s modern scientific methods. In Deadpool #8, Ellie wants Valentine to overcome her assumptions and try to save the mercenary who loved her so much that he stopped eating noodles.

 

 

 

Art

When Taskmaster pleads with Doug for good news, Doug offers him a graph. Old Skull-face is so depressed by their falling income that when the office rat claims a can from the kiddie pool cooling Wade's severed body, Taskmaster relinquishes the drink to cover his face. When a short Deadpool imposter attacks an evil scientist, and they halt with knives and needles poised at each other's throats, Ellie opts to resolve their differences with conversation rather than blood. Despite her appearance of calm, Valentine turns away when she learns of Wade’s death. Then she embraces Princess and scratches her snout.

 

Guru-eFX lavishes a loaded palette on Rogê Antônio’s art in Deadpool #8. While red, pink, and lavender dominate Valentine’s memories, greens and blues ground the fighting. Red lightsabers color their surroundings pink, and green eyes signal an overwhelming blast of yellow, orange, and red. Like Thanos, Valentine’s employer sports purple and yellow. The pink and lavender laser beams he fires prove more destructive than those of his robot employees.

 

White balloons feature uppercase black text, while Joe Sabino fills red ones with Princesses’ white dialogue. Words occasionally shrink and rarely grow bold, while Wade’s comments fill yellow balloons in Valentine’s story. Colorful sound effects help us hear wailing alarms, laser fire, clashing lightsabers, explosions, malfunctioning Terminators, and Princess' snapping tail, while enlarged dialogue accompanies a gout of oil. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Alchemy was a science written in codes and practiced in secret. In Deadpool #8, robots guard a biochem company, and Human employees who sign an NDA discover that leaving their employment (with the company's secrets) activates a termination clause.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #8 Review

 

Writer: Greg Weisman

Penciler: Emilio Laiso & Andrés Genolet

Colorist: Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Production: Gabriel Mata

Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Kaitlyn Lindtvedt, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Cory Smith & Edgar Delgado

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: October 16, 2024

 

Sha Shan Nguyen requested Professor Raymond Aaron Warren’s help to find Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and her other missing friends. But Miles Warren, aka the Jackal, was masquerading as his brother. The Jackal used Sha Shan’s tip to find Arcadium and help it achieve its ultimate form. As Peter and Miles defeated the Jackal’s forces and KNAIVE, the robot AI child of Arcadium, Sha Shan, and Detective Shari Sebbens arrived to arrest Miles Warren, Hammerhead, Arcade, and Mentallo. Now, everyone from the Coffee Bean can thank Sha Shan, Peter, and Miles and resume their lives, right? Let’s grab a latte, thwip into The Spectacular Spider-Men #8, and find out!

 

Story

Professor Raymond Aaron Warren is dead. He was the incinerated corpse Peter, Miles, and Seymour Krepps discovered in Miles Warren’s lab. Unlike his brother, Raymond devoted his life to inspiring others. So, the friends from the Coffee Bean gather to celebrate his life with other former students and ESU faculty. Yet they have much more to mourn in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8.

 

Perhaps they should mourn the passing of KNAIVE, a newly born lifeform. They likely would if the AI infant hadn't tried to kill them. But the human relationships they lost weigh more heavily on their minds. Unlike the Avengers, the participants can't reclaim the friends they lost. Perhaps Coffee Bean newcomer Adam Blackveil feels this most acutely, as he used Arcadium to battle Thanos alongside his late friend Kevin. As for the rest, promising careers and marriage awaited them. Even the Infinity Stones can't help the friends reclaim those losses.

 

In Greg Weisman’s story, the friends convert their weekly meetups at the ESU Coffee Bean into therapy sessions. Peter’s friend Cindy Moon helps them find a therapist. But while Peter, Miles, and the others share their feelings with Sierra Sinclair, the villains aren’t sitting on their hands in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. Unlike most participants, Turk Barrett used Arcadium to garner riches, defeat superheroes, and thumb his nose at society. So, after Turk pulled free of Peter and Miles' webbing, he helped Arcade and Mentallo evade Detective Shari Sebbens’ forces. Turk may lack Hammerhead's deep pockets. But as an enthusiastic beta tester, Turk wants to help Arcade and Mentallo rebuild and improve the augmented reality game in every conceivable way.

 

 

Art

Peter Parker claims two spaces on a Tic-Tac-Toe of torment before overtaking the entire board. The spider-men watch as Shari Sebbens’ officers force Hammerhead and Jackyl into a PDNY police van. Lights shine behind Sha Shan as she requests help finding Peter and Miles. So, two quick changes follow in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. First, Manhattan’s Spider-Man “finds” Miles Morales. Then, Brooklyn's Spider-Man escorts Peter to his former schoolmate. While mourners gather across two pages to memorialize a beloved teacher, a smaller panel shows Shift celebrating a new life with the Vermin, the newly birthed Jackals, and the Unhoused in New York City sewers.  

 

The reds, blues, and blacks of the spider-men, Detective Shari Sebbens, and uniformed officers show off against the gray evening illuminated by blue-and-red lights. Mourners dress in gray and black to commemorate their fallen friend. Shades of yellow and green fill the sewers as Spider-Man and Silk battle a green-and-yellow-clad villain. Their teamwork precipitates an explosion of blue-white light evoking Estrella Lopez's rebirth as Supernova, while the primary colors of red, blue, yellow, and green accompany the emotional energy swirling through ESU's Coffee Bean.

 

After Emilio Laiso & Andrés Genolet's soulful portrayal of people in pain and Edgar Delgado’ sensitive, celebratory, and electrifying colors, Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase letters into white balloons and narrative boxes in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. While dialogue emboldens, italicizes for intonation, and rarely shrinks, dozens of red-edged white boxes remind us of ongoing characters and introduce new ones. As the cast swells, sound effects accentuate a villain's rising anger and the sorrow of a departing friend. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

As friends regroup in ESU’s Coffee Bean to assess the wreckage of their lives, the threat of new villains and Arcadium hangs over them. The Spectacular Spider-Men #8 addresses the families we create and the joys and pain we experience as relationships evolve and end.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1 Review

 

Writers: Kevin Eastman, Bobby Curnow, Tom Waltz, Sophie Campbell

Artists: Mateus Santolouco, Mike Henderson, Sophie Campbell, Pablo Tunica, Zach Howard, Cory Smith & Joylon Yates

Colorist: Ronda Pattison

Letterer: Shawn Lee

Cover Artist: James Biggie

Editors: Maggie Howell & Nicolas Niño

Design & Production: Sandy Tanaka

Publisher: IDW

Price: $6.99

Release Date: September 4, 2024

 

TMNT (2011) #24: Story

In City Fall: Part III, Oroku Karai yearns to prove herself. Shredder promises his granddaughter that she will bathe her katana in blood today. On a rooftop, Old Hob, Donatello, Splinter, and Rafael gaze down on a warehouse. Donatello and Rafael aren't sure they can trust Old Hob, but Splinter believes Old Hob knows where Leonardo is. After Michelangelo befriends the hulking turtle Slash, Rafael and Donatello's instincts prove correct when Old Hob leads them into the dark warehouse and locks them inside.

 

This first story in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1 shows Shredder consumed by the past. Angry with his rival, he turns Leonardo against Splinter and his family. Shredder fails to live up to his promise to his granddaughter. City Fall: Part III puts Splinter and the turtles through an emotional meatgrinder as Leonardo disowns his family and declares that Shredder is his master.

 

TMNT (2011) #24: Art

In City Fall: Part III, Karai fights through time-lapse photos. She stands beside Shredder while Alopex takes her grandfather's opposite side. A metal helmet and black mask obscure Shredder's features, while Karai and Alopex wear masks of anger. Rafael and Donatello’s faces reveal their pain and uncertainty, while Michelangelo’s expression shines with his belief in the transformative power of kindness. Dark Leo reveals the soul-robbing power of anger and revenge with his frown and the blue mask he tosses to Splinter.

 

TMNT (2011) #29: Story

In Northampton: Part 1, April O'Neil takes Casey Jones to meet her parents. Recent events in New York have left everyone reeling, so she's bringing the turtles and Splinter along. She sets Splinter and the turtles up in the barn. Then, Alopex appears. She claims that she fled New York after a fight with Shredder and is no longer a member of the Foot Clan. This shift in loyalties is something she shares with Leonardo, as he still struggles to separate memories of his family from Shredder's programming.

 

This second story in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1 navigates the difficulties in family and relationships. As Casey speaks with his mother in a dream in TMNT #24, Leo seeks harmony with his mother in TMNT #29. But fathers loom larger in Northampton: Part 1. Casey feels estranged from his father. Leonardo still disowns Splinter as his father, and Alopex no longer views Shredder as her master. While April's mother wears a brave face, her husband recovers from a stroke. April worries that the turtles will disturb the harmonious environment her parents sought to facilitate her dad's recovery. Still, recent events at Stockgen and something April says arouse her mother's concerns.

 

TMNT (2011) #29: Art

The art in Northampton: Part 1 gives the Turtles' idyll in the woods a homespun appearance. April looks young and innocent, her tousled hair restrained by a ponytail. Black cloth covers Leonardo's arms and legs. A black utility belt adorns his waist. Green turtle faces frame a yellowed depiction of the subsequent fight, while the orange and green foliage give the woods an autumnal glow. After Alopex shares her departure from the Foot Clan in a blue and white montage, Leonardo's memories unfold in beige tones while he kneels beside a dark lake and gazes at the moon in the purple sky.

 

TMNT (2011) #132: Story

The Turtles miss Splinter. In his absence, Shredder leads them. The overturning of their longstanding feud with the leader of the Foot Clan fills the Turtles with uncertainty. But no one struggles more than Leonardo. Dark Leo inhabits his mind and makes him doubt his leadership skills. The Turtles have mastered martial arts. Now, Shredder instructs them in the spiritual aspects of being a ninja. Their journey is an inward one. Donatello, Michelangelo, Rafael, and Jennika need an altered perspective. But Leonardo must utilize what he learns to battle Dark Leo for mastery of his soul.

 

TMNT (2011) #132: Art

Leonardo walks through the woods in this third story in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1. Dark Leo perches in the branches of a barren tree. Then he leaps down and battles Leonardo. Shredder left his costume behind. He sinches his black hair into a ponytail. Clad in a purple robe, Shredder follows Yoda's example and guides the Turtles through the jungle. While Porgs gently glide around the Turtles, these otherworldly spirits help the Turtles create glowing statues. Shredder instructs them amid a purple haze of darkness and the greenery of Northampton. As the cover promises, an evening communing around a campfire turns the fire blue and summons the spirit of their former master.

 

TMNT Deviations #1: Story

In this final story in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1, darkness falls on the Turtles. Under Kitsune's spell, they seek out their former master. Old Hob helps them capture Splinter. This alternate-world story probes the darker nature of ourselves. Without Splinter's restraint, Dark Leo, Rafael, Donatello, and Michelangelo have accomplished what Shredder's other ninjas could not. The Turtles have subdued all the gangs of New York. Shredder controls the city. But the Turtles' rise means others fall, and loyal soldiers like Karai and Alopex have something to say about that. A surprising turn for Casey's father and Old Hob and Slash’s return forms a satisfying conclusion to this four-part collection.

 

TMNT Deviations #1: Art

The Turtles crouch in darkness. Black masks and red bandanas obscure their features as they fight. Only their weapons signal their identities. Splinter has never appeared more vulnerable than in this brutal street fight where his sons wear Shredder's emblem. Dark reds, blues, and purples accompany the highly detailed penciling as the Turtles punish their former master. Shredder sits on a golden throne borrowed from Ming The Merciless. Kitsune frowns beside him, but Shredder lifts his clawed hand to silence her concerns as Karai and Alopex observe the confrontation in the blued distance within a green wood panel hall.

 

Shawn Lee casts large uppercase letters into dialogue balloons and narrative boxes in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1. The font size and line spacing make for easy reading. The lettering master also heightens the action with sound effects. Thanks to my compadres at IDW for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

Leonardo confronts the darker side of his nature in TMNT Best Of Dark Leo #1. The stories contemplate the role of fatherhood in our lives and reveal Master Splinter's centrality to the TMNT Universe.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Ghost Rider #15 Review

 

Writer: Benjamin Percy

Pencilers: Cory Smith & Brent Peeples

Inkers: Oren Junior & Brent Peeples

Colorist: Bryan Valenza

Letterer: Travis Lanham

Cover Artists: Bjorn Barends; Juann Cabal & Jesus Aburtov; Kyle Hotz & Mike Spicer

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $3.99

Release Date: June 28, 2023

 

Danny Ketch made a deal with the devilish Infernal Labs. Dr. Diyu promised to extricate Danny's Spirit, but the researcher had another plan. Years ago, a demon possessed her brother and dragged him down to Hell. Binding Danny’s Spirit to a suit of armor, she leaves him while she marches through a portal. Can Danny survive without his Ghost Rider? Can Dr. Diyu free her brother? And where are Johnny Blaze and former F.B.I. agent Talia Warroad amid all this? Let's hop on our motorcycles, roar into Ghost Rider #15, and find out!

 

Story

Johnny and Talia reach Infernal Labs as spirits explode from the building. Talia uses her powers to learn what happened from a dying man. She helps Danny start breathing. But with his Ghost Rider, Danny's body is just a shell.

 

Johnny calls on his Ghost Rider and rides through a burning portal, past skulls intertwined with thorny plants. Demons inhabit this realm, while the souls of the dead hang impaled on spears or fight not to drown in a Lake Of Fire.

 

Dr. Diyu locates her brother but struggles to control Danny's Spirit. Unwittingly, she's placed Johnny in the same position she was in many years ago. While Ghost Rider #15 unreels too quickly, I enjoyed the symmetry of two people risking their lives to save their brothers. I'm left wondering about the freed spirits that burst out of Infernal Labs in the explosion. What trouble might they cause in our world?

 

 

 

 

Art

Johnny’s ride through Hell is an exhilarating journey. The fallen bodies and heads on spikes are reminiscent of a battlefield. Dr. Diyu’s robotic body strides through the smoky air. Flames rise from the armored exoskeleton to sheath the ghostly skull that hovers above. Tactical readouts appear on her windshield. Then she stands on a precipice and gazes down upon a misty field punctuated with impaled bodies.

 

Danny's Spirit burns green against the red sky in Ghost Rider #15. It looks cold compared to Johnny's yellow and orange fire. But then, Johnny's angry at what's happened to his brother. He screams at black-and-gray bats that swarm around him. He spews fire at those who come too near. Yet when Johnny locates Danny's Spirit, it dwarfs his own. Does a fire that looks colder burn hotter? 

 

 

 

 

Black uppercase letters possess white dialogue balloons in Ghost Rider #15. Those living receive spherical ones, while the dead get an edgy font and cloudy balloons. Much of the story unfolds in narrative boxes as Talia relates what she learned from the dying researcher and Johnny monologues along the Highway Through Hell. Abrasive and inflammatory sound effects ensure readers make amends in this world to avoid eternal suffering.

 

Final Thoughts

Good intentions transform a mourning, obsessed woman into what she despises in Ghost Rider #15.

 

Rating 8.2/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Bishop War College #4 Review

 

Writer: J. Holtham

Artists: Sean Damien Hill; Victor Nava; Alberto Foche

Colorist: Espen Grundetjern

Letterer: Travis Lanham

Cover Artists: Ken Lashley & Juan Fernandez; Cory Smith & Rachelle Rosenberg

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: May 24, 2023

 

A freak accident hurled Bishop and Tempo to an alternate Earth where all the X-Men are black. Meanwhile, his students battle the Fenris twins and the anti-mutant Orchis organization in caverns on the mutant island of Krakoa. Can Bishop find Tempo and return home? Can his students repel the Agents Of Orchis? Let's grab our Multiverse passports, warp into Bishop War College #4, and find out!

 

Story

Bishop is a time traveler. He comes from a dystopian future he hopes to prevent by training the next generation of mutants. Instead, he's defending Tempo in New York City against mutant-hating superheroes with his new Black X-Men buddies on Earth 63. It's a savage fight, reminiscent of the climactic battle in X-Men: The Last Stand. Meanwhile, the young mutants try to rescue fellow students captured by the Fenris twins. Aiding them is a rock creature reminiscent of Groot called Wrongslide.

 

 

I enjoyed watching the kids working together to rescue their friends. Bishop's battle against Earth 63 Mutant-Haters like Iron Man and Moira MacTaggert reveals that his alternate-world self never used his powers in anger. There's also a question of whether the woman Bishop's defending is his friend or her nonmutant counterpart on Earth 63. Adding salsa to this spicy combo plate is Blightswill, an element that dampens and alters mutant powers.

 

Although I liked Bishop and the young mutants, the Fenris twins seemed lacking in depth. Lots of folks hate mutants in War College #4. The only question is why.

 

Art

While backgrounds sometimes suffer, the art team delivers consistent character portrayals and action sequences. The characters emote and move well. At no time did I wonder what I was looking at or ask: What did I miss? I liked seeing a flying attacker reflected in the glasses of Earth 63's Bishop. The digging machine beneath Krakoa reminded me of something the Tracy brothers would operate in Thunderbirds or the Iron Mole in At The Earth's Core. As a Guardians of the Galaxy fan, I loved Wrongslide’s scenes. Only when I wrote the credits for this review did I realize that penciler Sean Damien Hill and inker Victor Nava undertook the Earth 63 sequences, and artist Alberto Foche created our world's Krakoa scenes. Kudos to the editorial team for bringing together artists who pair together this effectively!

 

Espen Grundetjern’s colors are bold and vibrant in Bishop War College #4. They’re always pleasing to the eye. I found battle scenes—in which characters hurl their powers or fire their weapons—electrifying. 

 

While Travis Lanham's lowercase letters start small and shrink for lowered voices, his sound effects enhance every battle. I liked how he portrayed Killian Devo, Moira MacTaggert, and Feilong’s characters through messages on a mobile phone, even if the letters were tiny. One thing I love about the X-Men books is the introductory pages that immediately bring you up to speed on what's happening. Dr. Heather Tucker's one-page speech before the U.S. House Oversight Committee helped me understand what the Earth 63 version of Tempo cares about. But who is the woman Bishop meets in alternate New York City? Will the real Tempo please stand up?

 

Final Thoughts

Engaging characters and fraught battles on Earth 63 pair with a threat to the mutants of our world in Bishop War College #4. Everything hangs in the balance in this fast-paced yet substantial penultimate issue of the series.

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

 

Rating 8.5/10