A Sense of Doubt blog post #3708 - Weekly Comics for January 2025

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3708 - Weekly Comics for January 2025

Welcome to another comic book roundup of reviews for the comics from January 2025 with a few additions.The full reading order is located below as well as the weekly lists and the cover gallery.

A lot of my regular readers care not for the comic book content (as they have told me), others ONLY care about this content, which is why I have COMIC BOOK SUNDAY.

NOTE ON THE TOPPER IMAGE: When I first set up one of these Weekly Comics posts with the notification first week of comics for the month, I just choose one of the comics with a pretty cool cover for the topper. It's not a favorite, and actually, I have not read Nexus Scourge #1 yet, so I read both in mid-March. They were the last comics in the batch. Not because I do not like Nexus, but this drop to the bottom often with comics I am not jonesing to read and I suspect will be slow reads as these were.

SPOILERS!!

That should go without saying, but there, I wrote it.

So, January 2025 comics.

WHY SO LATE? Before you say, hey wait, what took so long, it's April, please note that I get the bulk of my comics from Michigan and my beloved Fanfare Comics and Sports Entertainment in Kalamazoo. This shipping issue means that I will not receive the majority of January comics until early February (the 6th as noted below). A few (as indicated in the additions) I buy locally, so those are read acquired and read sooner. It takes me more than a month, usually, to read a batch of comics, especially if I am not taking time off on any Sundays to barrel through a stack. So, it was early to mid-March before I read all the January comics, and then this post slowly grew and was delayed several times given the amount of work required for completing it.

READING ORDER: For those new to these posts, I create a reading order once I receive the comics, which I stick to pretty closely with only occasional variations. The comics I buy locally get added to the stack, but I rarely add them to the list here in the blog.

SCOPE: I go a bit crazy with the reviews and images and with twenty-five issues not counting the addition and special purchases I cannot devote the content I do to the first five

That said, you comic nerds who were curious of what I am reading and what I think, let's dive in.

Recently, I was at the local comic shop asking the proprietor's employee about this Black Canary book, and he claimed he had not read it because he's "more of a Marvel guy." He did admit to reading a couple of the DC Absolute books. Though I have associated with DC fan group -- Titans, Legion -- I am also probably more of a Marvel guy; however, this month four of the top five are DC books but only nine of the total twenty-five (not counting extras) are from DC.

So, speaking of that top five:

TOP FIVE

Black Canary: Best of the Best #002 

Absolute Batman #004
Absolute Wonder Woman #004
Justice League Unlimited #003
Ultimate Spider-Man #013

Black Canary: Best of the Best #002 hit the top of the stack this month because I grabbed the first issue off the shelf out here locally. Liked it, chose to subscribe but did not do so fast enough to get the second issue. The local shop gave me third issue next, so I asked Fanfare to send me the second issue as it was shipping time. They did not have this cover (left) but a special variant.

As a point of comparison, the last three months, all the issues in the top five except Black Canary: Best of the Best were in the top five. Jonny Quest ended so that one would no longer be top five. Often first issues get rated highly, so the new Iron Man hit the top of the stack on October and then disappeared from the top five. Fantastic Four is often in the top five (two of the three months below) but fell to sixth this month because of the Absolute books being so great and an intense storyline coming to an end in Ultimate Spider-Man, which is usually in the top five anyway. Because of shipments and release schedules I often go a month without a title, such as the case of Daredevil in January.

DEC. 2024

Absolute Batman #003

Justice League Unlimited #002

Ultimate Spider-Man #012

Absolute Wonder Woman #003

Absolute Superman #003

NOV. 2024

Justice League Unlimited #001

Ultimate Spider-Man #011

Jonny Quest #004

Iron Man #002 [Legacy #672]
Daredevil #015 [Legacy #665]

and the last one of these I published, for October 2024:

Sunday, December 8, 2024

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3582 - Weekly Comics for October 2024 and Recaps, Reviews - CBS 2412.08

Iron Man #001 [Legacy #671]
Ultimate Spider-Man #010

Jonny Quest #003

Fantastic Four #026 [Legacy #719]
Daredevil #014 [Legacy #676]

I originally chose not to subscribe to Black Canary: Best of the Best simply because I am trying to eliminate mini-series and buy them later in a collected form. Not sure if that really saves me money. But everything Tom King does I adore and Ryan Sook is an extremely talented artist. And so Black Canary: Best of the Best #002 rates highly on COMIC BOOK ROUND-UP with a critic rating of 8.9 and a user rating of 8.3.

I may have found my critical chops in my recent Hush 2 review, but I see no reason not to give this series and this issue a 10/10. Sometimes critics and readers, especially comic book readers, are critical just to be critical or have some criticism that has nothing to do with the work, such as how Dan Slott was rude to their friend at a con. It's nonsense.

This story of Dinah Lance (Black Canary) training for a televised fight with Lady Shiva to fulfill a pact with Vandal Savage to save her mother's life (as she is dying of cancer) if she, Dinah, can last six rounds is a brilliant entry point into the history of their mother-daughter relationship and how the original Black Canary trained her daughter to be a superhero and why Dinah turned to her Mom again to train for this fight. 

The training both past and present, Dinah wanting to be her Mom, and the fight are all intercut back and forth for movement forward in the present narrative, the fight, and key background or context shared in scenes along the way. Each round is an issue, so this one focused on the second round, and by the end when Shiva beats down Canary and spits in her face, it appears that Dinah will not last six rounds. Writing this from the future, with five issues released as of early April, Dinah is still very much in the fight, though her mother is rapidly losing her battle with cancer.

And isn't the art gorgeous?

10/10.

It's difficult to pick a favorite or even best Absolute book, but with no Absolute Superman this month, 

Absolute Batman #004 earns the slight edge in the number two spot over Absolute Wonder Woman #004. Maybe an arbitrary call as I love them both a lot, and they cannot both occupy the same spot on the list; I cannot read both of them at the same time.

DC has finally capitulated to what Marvel figured out way back in September of 2000 with the introduction of the original Ultimate universe and Ultimate Spider-Man #001.

Re-telling the origin and history of its greatest characters benefits a franchise in many ways: new fans will jump on at a fresh starting point, the storylines can be modernized and re-imagined, and creators have a chance to do this re-imagining, adding their own ideas to the classic characters and their mythology.

Ultimately [heh], Marvel rolled the original Ultimate universe into its main universe, but since has re-created the Ultimate universe, which is again a separate entity with new origins and histories, this time departing from canon lore significantly, such as in Ultimate Spider-Man how Uncle Ben is still alive but Aunt May is not. Because of Marvel's success with the new Ultimate line -- Ultimate Spider-Man dominates the top 50 sales charts -- DC decided to get a piece of that action.

DC Comics has re-booted its signature franchise heroes multiple times, but always within its sole universe, collapsed in the 1980s by the Crisis on Infinite Earths, which heralded re-boots of all the main characters, such as John Byrne tackling Superman, Frank Miller and David Mazuchelli's Batman Year One, George Perez on Wonder Woman, the shift of Wally West from Kid Flash to Flash, and so on. Later, the DC 52 line re-booted the characters again. But these were all "canon" re-tellings, integrated in ways that were often mysterious to fans when 1950s and 1960s characters and concepts were imported forward as part of the new history without re-telling the introduction of such things.

Now, DC is borrowing the Marvel Ultimate model and telling new stories about its main characters in a completely different universe, and so far, it's unknown if they are all in their own universes or in a shared Absolute universe. Batman received the first Absolute makeover followed soon by series for Superman and Wonder Woman. Before the end of 2024, DC's Absolute books joined Ultimate Spider-Man atop the sales charts, with Absolute Batman taking the top spot in all sales for 2024.

Released in January of 2025, Absolute Batman #004 received an 8.8 critic rating on Comic Book Round-up and 8.4 user rating, which is oddly slightly lower than Black Canary: Best of the Best #002. the lowest rating -- a 7/10 -- comes from Dark Knight News, whose sole criticism is that the "detour" from the arc's main plot may frustrate readers. See what I mean about comic readers? That's inane. The creators need to fill back story at some point, a single issue may be a better vehicle than the back and forth interruptions, which are a necessary structure in a mini-series like Black Canary: Best of the Best, but will not work as well in an ongoing series like Absolute Batman.

Scott Snyder's Absolute Batman is absolutely brilliant. Working with a cadre of top artists, including Nick Dragotta and Marcos Martin, issue four's art was created by Gabriel Walta in a style that harkens back to some of the earliest Batman artists, such Bill Finger, Dick Sprang, and Sheldon Moldoff because much of this issue takes place in the past as Bruce works on a science project about bats that he later uses in his Batman gear, and, as seen in the panels above, the statement he is allowed to make at the trial of Joe Chill, which is not canon in the main DC universe.

In the absolute universe, only Bruce Wayne's father was killed. His mother still lives and works with Mayor Gordon on the running of Gotham City. Bruce is not rich, but he still finds a way to fund an arsenal for his work as Batman. Also, in this world, as a difference from the original, Bruce has a group of childhood friends, who include Selina (Catwoman), Harv (Two-Face), Eddie (Riddler), Ozzie (Penguin), and Waylon (Killer Croc). It's also likely that the unnamed bespectacled girl is Pam (Poison Ivy).

This issue intercuts Bruce's statement at the trial of Joe Chill and his late father's conversations with young Bruce as he works on his bat-themed science project with one of his earliest cases as Batman, adapting his gear to better fight crime and bring justice to Gotham.

The art has that film noir 1930-40s look from Batman's first decade to indicate without exposition that this issue is all out of continuity from the current arc. Batman uses a remote piloted Bat-Mobile drone to blow up a truck used by gun smugglers. The bat science project mirrors his adaptation of technology as Batman in this story as he scraps his first bat project and builds a better one.

We are treated to scenes of Batman training and building gear like a "Bat-Thumb" that is an extendable appendage much like on Bat's wings that Batman can use to surprise opponents.

But it's Bruce's new science project that show off the main conception behind the entire Batman suit and a feature that allows him to fly.

"They don't have to rely on the powers to be to set it up."

Yeah.

That's Batman.

DIY: Do-it-Yourself.

Bruce's admiration for bats and what they can do is clear in his conversations with his Dad, who in this world is a teacher, not a doctor.

"Bats are the only mammal on earth that fly," he says.

And

"To this bat, nothing is impossible despite what anyone tells you. It says go BIGGER, go HIGHER... GO PLACES YOU DIDN'T THINK YOU COULD," he tells his Dad, which is just the essence of who Batman is and this Absolute Batman in particular.

At the end, adult Bruce does go somewhere he didn't think he could go. He responds to a request by imprisoned Joe Chill to speak to him.

Brilliant!! The criticisms of this issue as a stall to the main arc of Batman's fight against the Black Mask aided by a British Mercenary named Alfred (heh) is a bit lame for this issue that creates necessary foundation for characters and background history. 10/10.

Comic readers often have their heads up their rears.

Absolute Wonder Woman #004 is next up at third in the stack, narrowly edging Batman only because the storyline felt hotter, and I was unaware that the Batman issue would fill back story.

The Absolute Wonder Woman title that debuted before the end of 2024 ranked fifth in total sales for the year of any comic issue (#1) behind two issues of Absolute Batman, Absolute Superman,  and Ultimate Spider-Man #1.

It's written by Portland-resident Kelly Thompson, whose career I really started to follow since I moved out here and discovered that she lived so nearby. Like several other Portland-based comic creators, I really wish we were friends given how much we have in common.

Like the Superman and Batman books, Absolute Wonder Woman

charts new territory in a total re-design of Wonder Woman's mythology while using the canon of the main DC universe as source material and preserving many characters and concepts while re-thinking others.

   In the ABSOLUTE version of the Wonder Woman story, she was raised in the Underworld, Hell, by her adoptive mother Circe, who came to love her despite her "issues" with the Gods and Amazons. She is described as "wicked" on pages referencing DC characters. But much like the popular Wicked and before it the less popular but excellent Mists of Avalon, the witch who may appear wicked is actually noble and possessed of real motivations for their alleged "evil."

Growing up with Circe in Hell, this version of Diana has both Amazonian prowess and dark sorcery.

When Steven Trevor becomes stranded in Hell, Diana sacrifices her arm in casting a dark spell to free him and return him to the world of men and humans.

Though Diana creates a prosthetic/ robotic arm with the help of Hephaestus, in this issue, to fight the Gargantuan Tetracide creature threatening Gateway City, Diana visits a witch shop run by Etta Candy to get what she needs to cast another spell of dark sorcery to regrow her own flesh and blood arm.

This issue of Absolute Wonder Woman earned a rating of 9/10 by critics and 9.1/10 by users on COMIC BOOK ROUND-UP. Truly, it is an excellent issue and series, and yet the higher rating than the Batman issue is artificially depressed by the inane criticisms I previously mentioned.

Here's a better look at that last panel from the page above, but I can't get good resolution on the dialogue.

With her arm restored, she is off to fight the tetracide which she cleaves in half with her magic sword that she uses magic to make huge.

Meanwhile, Circe goes before Hecate to inquire about the visions she has started having and confronts the goddess about being imprisoned in Hell and saddled raising a child that is not hers.

This comic book is drop-dead brilliant and quite the tour de force for writer Kelly Thompson showing her vast range. Comparing her work on Captain Marvel, the Jeff landshark comics, her own Black Cloak and The Cull, Hawkeye, Birds of Prey, among many others demonstrates her versatility and mastery of many styles, subgenres, and narrative forms. It's highly impressive. Once again, I wish we were friends. Kelly Thompson is in my top five current comic book writers and that word "current" is important. Is Warren Ellis current? Not lately. So, though he's my favorite living comics writer, he's not currently publishing new comics. Yet. 10/10.

Lots of superheroes!! Other than the team of Waid and Mora, which are both fantastic, the coolest thing about the new Justice League Unlimited is that it's full of superheroes!

The original team book -- the All-Star Society -- was just an anthology title to entice readers to buy some of the lesser selling titles who pick up the All-Star Society because they're big fans of the Green Lantern or the Flash. This mindset continued to hold through into the 1980s and maybe even beyond as the group books would often feature heroes either without their own books or those with titles that do not sell well. Thus, over at Marvel, the original Avengers cast is dumped early (issue #017) to feature Captain America with Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver; later, characters like Black Panther, the Vision, the Black Knight, and Hercules are introduced. Over at DC, the Justice League keeps with that anthology feel with stories divided into chapters in which the team splits up for intriguing match-ups, but the characters without titles or low selling titles is similarly a focus with Martian Manhunter, the Atom, Red Tornado, Aquaman, Hawkman, and Black Canary. All of those are my favorites but most did not have their own titles, and those who did suffered from low sales and the titles did not last a long time compared to other long running DC books. (Oh, and Elongated Man!)

These group books featured ever shifting casts that from time to time needed to be re-designed, sometime by vote or by a government official selecting the roster as happened over in Avengers. But one thing that in my memory has never been tried was making EVERY HERO -- or better defined as every individual either with super powers or a costume -- a member of the group. Welcome JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED! All the heroes belong to the league and can be called upon by a central command -- run by Mr. Terrific and Red Tornado -- and dispatched for world-threatening emergencies or problems that the Justice League exists to address. That's brilliant!! Because, you know, the reason so many of those featured heroes I listed are my favorites are because of these group books, such as the Metal Men below.

Coupling Mark Waid's superb conceptualization, plotting, and writing with Dan Mora's excellent artwork, this book is a joy to behold and to read. This title topped my list the month it premiered and it ranked second the next month. Technically, it's third this month, as I am not sure that the Black Canary book would be in the top five if not for the mix up and the need to read it ASAP as I had already read issue three.

Other than the strength of Justice League Unlimited's giant cast, the mysterious adversary -- Inferno -- and a secret spy on the JLU because everyone has access to the Satellite headquarters and can stay there in the living quarters if they wish, such is the case with Airwave, a very lesser known hero with a power who saves the day in issue #1 and is a plant compromised by Inferno to spy on the JLU and do their bidding when needed.

Epic battles and amazing powers and featuring characters not often seen, such Dr. Occult (left). On the other hand, Zatanna was league regular for a long time and a fan favorite, and here she is dressed in her classic look unlike some of the re-designs over the years that were not popular with fans.

AIRWAVE and The Question (Head of Security):

This third issue issue extends the league's battle with Inferno, who, aptly named, has set the Amazon rain forest on fire.

In the end Aquaman is deployed to find the Swamp Thing to use the green to overcome the fires, and then Inferno set a fire attack on him, destroying him.

Things look bleak for our heroes with that cliffhanger setting up the next issue.

Overall, JLU rates 8.9/10 by critics on COMIC BOOK ROUND UP, and this third issue rated 8.8/10.

The lowest score (7/10) claimed the issue was a drop from the previous two issues and that the writing was too simple and did not elevate a lackluster plot.

Though I agree that the issue was a drop from the previous, many critics love the huge cast, great art, and smart plotting that I also loved. I disagree that the plot is lackluster. 

The art cannot be dismissed in how it tells the story and enhances the impact of the concept.

Just look at this gorgeous storytelling!

10/10. I see no reason not give 10/10 unless there's some major flaw.

This post is getting really long, isn't it? If you are still reading, never fear, I am going to keep on this expanded mode for four more comics and then go into a short overview review mode for the rest. Thanks for reading. Tell me what you think.

 

The last of the top five is Ultimate Spider-Man  #13.

This title has been atop my stack or top five since it debuted last year, literally one year ago.

The re-telling of the Spider-Man mythology has been done before in both the original Ultimate Spider-Man (as I mentioned near the start) and even Untold Tales of Spider-Man, one of my favorite comics of the 1990s by Kurt Busiek and Pat Olliffe.

Here the Spider-fan-faithful are treated to what they have been yearning for since Spider-Man's marriage to Mary Jane was reversed and the Spider Girl title in which he was retired and his grown daughter had assumed the mantle was canceled.

I have long argued that longtime fans want the characters to grow up with them. DC went all-in (heh, All-In is there current slogan for a new line of titles) on Clark Kent and Lois Lane being married. 

And though they failed to pay off on Batman (Bruce Wayne) asking Catwoman (Selina Kyle) to marry him, they have explored that possible future in off-shoot stories, such as Tom King's Batman/Catwoman, which indicates to me that maybe it was a story that King planned to tell, and it was a company decision not to tell it. I have never researched that theory to see if there's Internet verification for it. The company did re-introduce Helena Wayne from the future, the grown "Huntress," daughter of Bruce and Selina. And the storyline is not over. They could still start living together, get married, their relationship is not over and is always evolving. It could all be about sales. Maybe the Bat-Cat relationship SELLS, so when another sales boost is needed, there will be forward progress.

Spider-Man is different. Maybe there was a need to keep the character aligned with the movies, perpetually a down-and-out Peter Parker; struggling to make ends meet; letting down his friends, his aunt; romantic life in shambles; and all because his secret life as Spider-Man interferes with having happiness, success, and stability. It's not as if the other characters have stability. That's not interesting. There's no pathos in the mundane, humdrum daily lives we lead. There must be upheaval, risk, and tumult. Like we see to the right in the most recent issue, as without costumes, Peter (Spider-Man) saves his friend and colleague Harry Osborn (Green Goblin) from a velociraptor as Kraven hunts them.

Among the many things that makes Ultimate Spider-Man so great and the best of the Ultimate books is that in this universe Peter is married to Mary Jane with two kids. The alternate history has many things the longtime fans always wanted. Uncle Ben is still alive but sadly Aunt May is not. Harry Osborn is sort of a dark hero version of Green Goblin but not a villain or Peter's adversary. Norman is dead. Harry is married to Gwen Stacy. Uncle Ben is in business with J. Jonah Jameson in founding a new newspaper to compete with the Daily Bugle that was bought by the Kingpin and so will not report the truth about him. All great stuff with fantastic writing and great art (mostly Marco Checchetto).

Jonathan Hickman is well known for re-inventing franchise properties at Marvel (Fantastic Four, Avengers, X-Men). And so, here, in what may be a re-made universe from the original Ultimate universe, Peter is given a special high-tech Spider suit and is bitten by the Spider as an adult, married with two kids. So he keeps his new powers and identity a secret, but eventually that all comes out. At first, it's a secret he shares with his daughter May, but eventually, he has to come clean with Mary Jane and his son Richard.

As of issue thirteen, Mary Jane has just found out that the reason Peter has seemed so weird and distant is that it's not Peter but the Spider suit (the "picotech" suit) impersonating Peter and protecting the family because Peter and Harry have been kidnapped by Kraven the Hunter and the new Sinister Six (which so far only includes the Mole Man and Mysterio that we know of).

This issue opens with Spider-Man swinging through the streets, which we quickly learn is Richard wearing the picotech suit styled in the black version that in the main universe turned out to be Venom. (Please not here, not this way, not this suit!)

The suit is able to give him "powers" though not as much as Peter who has been mutated by the irradiated Spider bite (or the bite unlocked his mutation).

Scenes of Richard experimenting with the suit, playing at being Spider-Man, and talking with the suit in the form of his Dad that has been living as Peter are interspersed between scenes of Harry and Peter being hunted in the Savage Land (hence the dinosaurs) by Kraven the Hunter.

Two cliff-hangers close the issue. The first is the one above as a couple of hungry raptors show up to eat Peter and Harry, but we leave them about to be eaten and return to Richard who encounters a fellow teenager, someone slightly older, the Black Cat of this universe and a possible love interest for Peter's son. But she may also be seeking revenge against Spider-Man for her father.

Earlier, we see that Kraven has created a lavish banquet for Harry and Peter to fatten them before the hunt.

Of course, they refuse to eat, and Peter glares venomously at Kraven, who then drops in to the wilderness through a trap door, which was a great and fun surprise. And hunted they are.

 

The entire series has an 8.7 rating from critics and an 8.9 rating from users on COMIC BOOK ROUND-UP. This issue rates 8,9 from critics and 9.11 from users. Three of the seven reviews are 10/10, which seems the right rating for this excellent comic. 10/10.

And that's my top five from January 2025. 

I am inserting two locally bought comics among the next five for the top ten of twenty-five, not counting the added local comics. And I actually grabbed the next six because of the set of three issue of The Amazing Spider-Man.

THE NEXT FIVE [6]

Fantastic Four #028 [Legacy #721]
Iron Man #004 [Legacy #674]
Ultimate Black Panther #012
The Amazing Spider-Man #065 [Legacy #959]
The Amazing Spider-Man #065.DEATHS
The Amazing Spider-Man #066 [Legacy #960]

ADDED

Aquaman #001

Wonder Woman #017 [Legacy #817]

I am not sure how to rank the added issues as I integrate them to the stack as I buy them, but surely these two hit the top of the stack or near it when I brought them home.

I am just going to finish out these expanded reviews of Fantastic Four #028 [Legacy #721], Aquaman #001, and Wonder Woman #017 [Legacy #817]. Then I am just going to write a sweeping and short overview of the rest of the comics because I would be surprised if anybody is still reading at this point. Tell me if you did! But then, I have often said that this blog is my study not necessarily my teaching. Reviewing comics gives me pleasure. If it paid well, I would try to get work doing it.

As I have written about many times on the blog, which is why there is a category devoted to them, the Fantastic Four are among my very favorite comics and surely my favorite Marvel comic. When I came of age and started reading comics, Fantastic Four was one of my very first because the cartoon that ran 1967-1968. If you hunt through my FF category, you can read a lot about why I love them and come across my post about some of my oldest comics, including my first FF issue (#69).

The recent run of issues that have the first family of Marvel comics living in Ben's (the Thing) Aunt Petunia's house in Arizona, which started when the Baxter building of New York spent a year in a pocket dimension and has continued as a better examination of how the FF is a high tech super group and a family that gathers for family dinners and leads as normal of a life as possible between adventures and stopping world-ending threats.

Fantastic Four #028 [Legacy #721] is one of my favorite of writer Ryan North's tenure as it features marriage dynamics between Reed Richards and Susan Storm-Richards.

Reed has been perseverating over a scientific explanation for Doctor Doom's new found magical defenses now that he has Doctor Strange's mantle as the Sorcerer Supreme of Earth and the extra power the title conveys.

Reed is making no progress, and so Sue wisely (she's really the smarter one in lots of ways) detaches him from his makeshift basement laboratory to try a different tactic. What if the Black Knight's magical Ebony Blade will cut through the seemingly impenetrable force bubble Doom has erected around hiw home kingdom of Latveria. Hard to read the dialogue in the image above Sue says "If you recall our wedding, Mister..." (pure evidence that Reed is in the dog house) "...you'll recall how the Black Knight's Ebony Blade once sliced through my force fields as if they were nothing." And so she suggests a jaunt to England to visit their old friend Dane Whitman (The Black Knight) and see if he can be of service.

But look at Steven Cummings' excellent art and composition above. As Sue drags Reed away from his work bench, he remains seated and stretches, begrudgingly allowing his bottom half to eventually catch up, which we might think is a common occurrence for someone with his powers.

Upon arrival, the intrepid couple learns that Dane converted his Ebony Blade along with other ebony artifacts into a giant throne that grant him even more powers. He tells them that what they want that could do the trick is the Fated Blade, but was lost shortly after its forging in the 1300s. After some argument about magic and physics, Dane transports them all back in time to 1915 and World War One torn Europe where and when Dane says exists the best chance to find the blade.

Again it's Sue who convinces Reed to under go the search for the blade.

What a unique story with some of the staples of Fantastic Four comics: guest stars, time travel, relationship dynamics, etc.

My one criticism is that Dane Whitman's characterization is wildly different than any others in his long tenure in various comics, notably Avengers, without a long-running series of his own.

But then I am sure the explanation will be that this "Seige" (throne) made from all the ebony artifacts has affected his personality as well as his sense of reason.

One thing I like is that he refers to both Sue and Reed as "doctors" as it is often overlooked that Sue has an advanced degree in science, not just read.

And of course, they find the sword in a page or two because that's not really the nature of the conflict.

And of course it's a double cross. As Sue begins to suspect subterfuge, Dane uses magic to expel them from the bodies that they were inhabiting that allowed them to function back in the past of 1915.

Obviously, my criticism of Dane Whitman not acting like Dane Whitman was a big clue because it was not Dane Whitman at all.

It was Doctor Doom who had disguised himself as Dane Whitman and used them to find the "Fated Blade." 

"Fate" is an old word for "doom." Truly, the blade is the DOOM BLADE, the only magical weapon that could harm him, which they found for him and now he has destroyed.

Big reveal!!

Doom claims he is not planning anything when Reed asks. He traps them in magic bubbles meant to dispose of them forever, when Reed uses some gibberish equations given him by Dane Whitman, trying to help them despite Doom's influence. And when they return to Earth, they discover that Doom has taken over the world.

There's only two reviews of this issue on COMIC BOOK ROUND UP where it scored 8.5 from critics and 8.9 from users, which I think is low given that my one criticism turned out to be a plot point and part of a double cross.

The two posted reviews are both 8.5 out of 10 with one from AIPT claiming that seems to lose 1.5 simply because Reed resists magical things. The reviewer claims he doesn't believe in magic, which is silly because he knows Doctor Strange, he has seen magic work around him throughout his career, it's more that he thinks that he believes more in science. The criticism seems misplaced since Reed figures out that Dane gave them a magic spell to help them, which he casts to save them.

Seems he does "believe" in magic.

As should we all.

The other review from Nerd Initiative may have dropped the rating 1.5 for "initial silliness" and the reviewer had the same problem with Dane Whitman's characterization, which is then explained. None of which seem worthy of an 8.5 instead of something higher or even a 10/10.

I am biased given how much I love the Fantastic Four, but I do feel that neither reviewer had a -1.5 legitimate criticism. 10/10.

Aquaman #001

I love Aquaman.

If you have been reading this post and other comic posts, it seems that I love everyone, but Aquaman is one of my top five DC heroes and probably top ten between the two companies.

Earlier, I commented that Aquaman comics have never sold amazingly well, which I believe is true with no evidence.

Even when the movies came out, I don't think any sales surge for Aquaman was significant.

Once again DC is re-launching an Aquaman title as part of its "All In" line of comics with some new-ish talent at the helm: Jeremy Adams writing, John Timms on art, and Rex Lokus coloring.

The new Aquaman series on COMIC BOOK ROUND-UP rates 8.6 from critics and 8.0 from users, and you know I am going to say that's too low.

Seventeen reviews total of the first issue with a slightly higher rating of 8.7 (critics) and 8.4 (users) with four of the reviews 10/10.

The lowest reviewer of 6/10 came from a critic giving the issue a -4 for the "storytelling being a bit all over the place," which seems a harsh reduction for a criticism with which I strongly disagree. 

The storytelling had a clear through line to a new cataclysmic adventure for the King of the Seas. 

The first page gives a quick introduction to the character, and then Arthur Curry, Aquaman facing a gigantic ocean creature. But that is in our present? The storytelling back ups a year to show off Aquaman's new powers of manipulating water as his wife Mera can do and has taught him to do. The king saves a surface dweller's plane from crashing with these water powers. 

After he saves the plane, we are treated to life as the royal family in Atlantis with his wife and son, the responsibilities of court and his office, and then another monster threatening the surface world.

After defeating it, when he returns to Atlantis, he finds it GONE with a mysterious giant pearl left behind that he takes to the all new Justice League Unlimited satellite headquarters for help from magic experts like Zatanna. Their Investigation leads them to a giant gate, a portal, shaped like the OMEGA symbol. And that's the issue's cliff-hanger.

Straight narrative through line.

Hardly "all over the place."

The symbol is not mentioned in any of the reviews I looked at.

It's clearly the symbol of Darkseid and his connection to the Anti-Life Equation.

What we know of Darkseid is that Superman obliterated him at the launch of the DC All-In line, leaving his consciousness free to roam the cosmos, finding a place in the another dimension, and creating the "Absolute World" of the Absolute comics.

What we will learn in upcoming issues is that this gateway takes Aquaman to another universe where his Atlantis, plus his wife and child, have been taken, and as of issue four, he is still fighting to resolve the situation.

I loved this re-launch of Aquaman, which bring the character back to basics in many ways, presents him with an end-of-the-world scenario to overcome, and introduces some new powers in exciting action sequences. Whole-heartedly 10/10 from me.

Last of the big reviews: Wonder Woman #17 [Legacy #817].

The new series that launched in 2023 has an overall rating of 7.9 (critics) and 7.7 (users), which you know I think is too low.

This issue earns an 8.5 from critics and a 7.8 from users on COMIC BOOK ROUND-UP out of eight reviews with the highest at 9.6.

I give it a 10/10, solely for all the Wonder Girls in this issue.

I am a huge Donna Troy fan. She's the original Wonder Girl, founding member of the Titans, and currently goes just by Donna Troy, I guess.

Tom King's run on Wonder Woman mostly drawn by Daniel Sampere has been outstanding.

A villain called the Sovereign, who is an Illumanti like ruler of the United States, weaponizes the U.S. military against all Amazons and Diana fights their assaults as defensively as possible.

I wrote about her new "catch phrase" of resistance -- "No, Thank You" -- here: Sunday, March 3, 2024

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3302 - "No, Thank You" - Wonder Woman's new catch phrase - Comic Book Sunday for 2403.03.

But when the Sovereign kills her love (and now father of her child) Steven Trevor, she goes on the offensive and she has allies.

Issue Seventeen starts with Diana crushing a wall in anger. The chess game begins as shown on the next page.

First, she send Donna Troy to take out Giganta.

And she's clearly pissed.

Wonder Girl, Yara Flor, takes on Silver Swan.

Diana is processing her grief and caring for her child.

Next, Cassie Sandsmark, Wonder Girl, Angle Man, supposedly these are all allies of the Sovereign, his enforcers.

Meanwhile, Diana starts carving a sculpture of Steven Trevor dressed in a traditional Greek-styled dress.

Working together, ultimately, all three of her Wonder sisters prevail.

The issue ends with Diana's sculpture complete and the Sovereign seated behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office with the president at his side, preparing for Diana's attack, though he is drinking whiskey, and so clearly rattled.

Fantastic stuff.

Fantastic art.

Love the writing. 10/10.

Look at this art!!

Love the from below shot of Yara preparing to take down the Silver Swan (left) as much as the poised for more battle in jungle cat pose of Donna Troy (right).

So much great stuff.

Iron Man #004 [Legacy #674]
Ultimate Black Panther #012
The Amazing Spider-Man #065 [Legacy #959]
The Amazing Spider-Man #065.DEATHS
The Amazing Spider-Man #066 [Legacy #960]

Okay, speeding up now. I was excited for the relaunch of Iron Man, and it topped my stack in October as I reported way back near the beginning of this huge post, but it has dropped, despite this issue continuing to feature Rori Williams (Ironheart) and Scarlet Witch.

Ultimate Black Panther #012 keeps flirting with the top ten, where it is this month. I adore Black Panther, and this re-do has less baggage and a fresh start. This issue with his battle with Khonshu was one of the best of the run so far, along with the introduction of this universe's Sorcerer Supreme and the X-Men's Storm.

The Eight Deaths of Spider-Man story has been an interesting off-shoot of Doctor Doom's new role as Sorcerer Supreme enlisting Spider-Man for a world ending magic battle that Doctor Strange can no longer handle and that is right for Peter as he suffers all the time, that's Spider-Man's thing, so dying eight deaths embodies that "with great power comes great responsibility" thing.

I love the cover of issue #66  [Legacy #960]. I have this theory that showing characters kissing on the covers of comics spikes sales, and I am not alone in this theory as I have found an article that targets this idea, which will cover in a different post.

Is this the re-kindling of Peter's romance with Felicia or is it simply her being encouraging, getting him on track to endure more suffering in this ordeal and prevail? Time will tell.

The Uncanny X-Men #008 [Legacy #708]
The Uncanny X-Men #009 [Legacy #709]
Superman #022 [Legacy #865]
Detective Comics #1093
Titans #019
Magic Order Season Five #004

I am not sure how Uncanny X-Men hit so high in the stack in the next batch because I have found the issues sort of um-yeah, though I do love Gail Simone as a writer, so I have faith. I am not crazy about the new mutants they have introduced, but I am giving them more time to be defined.

Superman has been great and should have been rated higher. I adore anything Dan Mora draws as he has soared into my top five current working artists. I love the Superwoman (Lois Lane) story, and I am curious how long they will let her have powers as I fully expect it's not a permanent change. In this or a recent issue, we learned that Doomsday is actually the Time Trapper who always plagued the Legion of Superheroes. Interesting twist but not sure yet if I like it.

I had dropped Detective Comics to save money when it was always falling to the bottom of my stack, but when I saw Tom Taylor and Mikel Janin joining forces for the title, I started buying it again. Again, this one could rank much higher. Fantastic. Fell in love with Janin on Nightwing years ago and was sad when he did not have a long run on the new Justice Society book.

I felt that Titans dropped in quality after Tom Taylor and Nicola Scott left, Scott with issue six and Taylor with issue fifteen. It's been a bit on the upswing lately, and this issue was the start of that.

I LOVE the Magic Order, and even though Millar has decimated his cast through the "seasons" of the book, Cordelia Moonstone has always been my favorite character so with her the sole surviving member of the original cast, I am good with that, though I miss the dynamics of all the other magicians.

LAST BATCH

Moonknight: Fist of Khonshu #004 [Legacy #244]
Metamorpho the Element Man #002
Wolverine #005 [Legacy #397]
Exceptional X-Men #005
West Coast Avengers #003
Challengers of the Unknown #002
X-Men: Xavier's Secret #001
Nexus: The Scourge #002 (#001 in Back Log - I just waited until I had both)

I dropped Moonknight: Fist of Khonshu to save money as it had dropped to the bottom of the stack and so often into the back log, which is what does not get read each month. I do like the cast, especially Tigra, and there's some interesting things, but generally it's not a book I rate highly.

I am surprised that I like Metamorpho the Element Man as much as I do, though I should not be as it is written by Al Ewing, another favorite writer. Wolverine is a book that I added on impulse, and it is doing just enough to keep me from dropping it, which is the same with Exceptional X-Men and West Coast Avengers. If

Challengers of the Unknown was not a mini-series, I would drop it. X-Men: Xavier's Secret was lame.

But  Nexus: The Scourge #002 (and #001 in the back log) only fell to the bottom because I figured the issue would take time to read, which is sometimes why I let things go to the bottom. It was really good and whetted my appetite to go re-read my old Nexus books and maybe get more.

EXTRAS BOUGHT LOCALLY FOR REVIEW

Batman #157 [Legacy #922]

Action Comics #1083

Ultimates #009

X-Men #010 [Legacy #310]

Ultimate Wolverine #001

Werewolf by Night #007

Aquaman #001

Wonder Woman #017 [Legacy #817]

Of the added, I had dropped Batman because I was unimpressed with Chip Zdarsky's run and it had fallen to the back log. I caught up and re-added it. Not bad. Not great. But I was getting ready for Hush 2, which I reviewed here:

Sunday, March 30, 2025

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3694 - Batman - HUSH 2 - Reviews - Comic Book Sunday for 2503.30

Action Comics #1083 continues the excellence of the Superman books though re-started my subscription of it for other writers than John Ridley, who did this one. But I did like the issue.

Once I caught up, Ultimates soared up my stack, and this issue Ultimates #009 continues the interesting revisiom of the Marvel universe in this new Ultimate universe, here with Luke Cage.

I feel similarly to X-Men #010 [Legacy #310] as to how I felt about Uncanny X-Men. This issue was okay, but I think all the X books lack focus.

I bought Ultimate Wolverine #001 and have not subscribed.

However, I love Werewolf by Night #007, and it always ranks high in my stack when I bring it home. It is the ONLY Marvel book that does not come with a digital edition, which makes no sense. Why??

The monster comics of the 1970s were favorites, and the Werewolf book probably my favorite after The Tomb of Dracula.

I may write about this separately, later:

SPECIAL PURCHASE

Power Fantasy vol. 1

Whew.

That's all.

Did you read to the end?

Thanks for tuning in.

The full lists, weekly lists, and cover/art gallery next.

Reading Order
Comics arrived 2502.06

Black Canary: Best of the Best #002 (top of the stack because I already read #3)
Absolute Batman #004
Absolute Wonder Woman #004

Justice League Unlimited #003
Ultimate Spider-Man #013
Fantastic Four #028 [Legacy #721]
Iron Man #004 [Legacy #674]
Ultimate Black Panther #012
The Amazing Spider-Man #065 [Legacy #959]
The Amazing Spider-Man #065.DEATHS
The Amazing Spider-Man #066 [Legacy #960]
The Uncanny X-Men #008 [Legacy #708]
The Uncanny X-Men #009 [Legacy #709]
Superman #022 [Legacy #865]
Detective Comics #1093
Titans #019
Magic Order Season Five #004
Moonknight: Fist of Khonshu #004 [Legacy #244]
Metamorpho the Element Man #002
Wolverine #005 [Legacy #397]
Exceptional X-Men #005
West Coast Avengers #003
Challengers of the Unknown #002
X-Men: Xavier's Secret #001
Nexus: The Scourge #002 (#001 in Back Log - I just waited until I had both)

SPECIAL PURCHASE

Power Fantasy vol. 1

EXTRAS BOUGHT LOCALLY FOR REVIEW

Batman #157 [Legacy #922]

Action Comics #1083

Ultimates #009

X-Men #010 [Legacy #310]

Ultimate Wolverine #001

Werewolf by Night #007

Aquaman #001

Wonder Woman #017 [Legacy #817]

FINAL MAILING LIST

The following items are awaiting your pickup:

        1          $4.99        Absolute Batman #4 Cvr A Nick Dragotta

        1          $4.99        Absolute Wonder Woman #4 Cvr A Hayden Sherman

        1          $4.99        Amazing Spider-Man #65

        1          $4.99        Amazing Spider-Man #66

        1          $3.99        Amazing Spider-Man 65 Deaths

        1          $5.99        Black Canary Best of the Best #2 (of 6) Cvr B Leirix Li Csv

        1          $4.99        Black Canary Best of the Best #3 (of 6) Cvr A Ryan Sook

        1          $3.99        Challengers of the Unknown #2 (of 6) Cvr A Sean Izaakse

        1          $4.99        Detective Comics #1093 Cvr A Mikel Janin

        1          $3.99        Exceptional X-Men #5

        1          $3.99        Fantastic Four #28

        1          $3.99        Iron Man #4

        1          $3.99        Justice League Unlimited #3 Cvr A Dan Mora

        1          $4.99        Magic Order V #4 Cvr A Buffagni (Mr)

        1          $3.99        Metamorpho the Element Man #2 Cvr A Steve Lieber

        1          $3.99        Moon Knight Fist of Khonshu #4

        1          $4.99        Nexus Scourge #2 (of 2) Cvr A Shannon

        1          $9.99        Power Fantasy TP VOL 01 (Mr)

        1          $4.99        Superman #22 Cvr A Dan Mora

        1          $3.99        Titans #19 Cvr A Pete Woods

        1          $4.99        Ultimate Black Panther #12

        1          $4.99        Ultimate Spider-Man #13

        1          $4.99        Uncanny X-Men #8

        1          $4.99        Uncanny X-Men #9

        1          $3.99        West Coast Avengers #3

        1          $4.99        Wolverine #5

        1          $6.99        X-Men Xaviers Secret #1

        Total:   $132.73

Happy New Comic Book Day!

 

The following comics will be available for pick up on Wednesday, January 8th.

 

If you have any questions please call us at 269-349-8866 or reply to this email. Thanks!

The following subscription(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1 $4.99 Absolute Batman #4 Cvr A Nick Dragotta

1 $4.99 Amazing Spider-Man #65

1 $4.99 Nexus Scourge #2 (of 2) Cvr A Shannon

1 $4.99 Ultimate Black Panther #12

1 $4.99 Uncanny X-Men #8

1 $4.99 Wolverine #5

Total: $29.94

Fanfare

4308 S. Westnedge Ave.

Kalamazoo, MI 49008

269-349-8866

comicpull@fanfareland.com 

Fanfare

Tue, Jan 14, 5:02 PM (3 days ago)

to me

Happy New Comic Book Day!

 

The following comics will be available for pick up on Wednesday, January 15th.

 

If you have any questions please call us at 269-349-8866 or reply to this email. Thanks!

The following subscription(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1 $3.99 Challengers of the Unknown #2 (of 6) Cvr A Sean Izaakse

1 $3.99 Exceptional X-Men #5

1 $3.99 Titans # 19 Cvr A Pete Woods

Total: $11.97

The following special order(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1 $3.99 Amazing Spider-Man 65 Deaths

Total: $3.99

Fanfare

4308 S. Westnedge Ave.

Kalamazoo, MI 49008

269-349-8866

comicpull@fanfareland.com 

I LIKE COMICS 2501.17

Batman #156 [Legacy #921]

Action Comics #1082

The New Gods #002

Nightwing #122

Nice House by the Sea #005

Ultimates #008

Ultimate Wolverine #001

Werewolf by Night #006

Space Ghost #009

Happy New Comic Book Day!

 

The following comics are available for pick up Wednesday January 21st.

 

If you have any questions please call us at 269-349-8866 or reply to this email. Thanks!

The following subscription(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1 $4.99 Amazing Spider-Man #66

1 $4.99 Detective Comics #1093 Cvr A Mikel Janin

1 $3.99 Fantastic Four #28

1 $3.99 Iron Man #4

1 $3.99 Justice League Unlimited #3 Cvr A Dan Mora

1 $4.99 Magic Order V #4 Cvr A Buffagni (Mr)

1 $3.99 Metamorpho the Element Man #2 Cvr A Steve Lieber

1 $4.99 Superman #22 Cvr A Dan Mora

1 $4.99 Ultimate Spider-Man #13

1 $4.99 Uncanny X-Men #9

Total: $45.90

The following special order(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1

1 $6.99 X-Men Xaviers Secret #1

I LIKE COMICS 2501.23

Aquaman #001 (2025)

Wolverine: Revenge #004 (Red Band)

Black Canary Best of the Best

Wonder Woman #017 [Legacy #817]

Happy New Comic Book Day!

 

The following comics will be available on Wednesday, January 29th.

 

If you have any questions please call us at 269-349-8866 or reply to this email. Thanks!

The following subscription(s) have arrived for you:

Qty Price Description

1 $3.99 Moon Knight Fist of Khonshu #4

1 $3.99 West Coast Avengers #3

Total: $7.98

The following special order(s) have arrived for yo u:

Qty Price Description

1 $4.99 Absolute Wonder Woman #4 Cvr A Hayden Sherman

1 $9.99 Power Fantasy TP VOL 01 (Mr)

Total: $14.98

Fanfare

4308 S. Westnedge Ave.

Kalamazoo, MI 49008

269-349-8866

comicpull@fanfareland.com 

COVER GALLERY

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2504.13 -10:10

- Days ago: MOM = 3573 days ago & DAD = 228 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I post Hey Mom blog entries on special occasions. I post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day, and now I have a second count for Days since my Dad died on August 28, 2024. I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of Mom's death, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of her death and sometimes 13:40 EDT for the time of Dad's death. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.