Secret Invasion Update is a weekly feature that among other things takes a gander at all things Skrully. More directly, we will be talking about the many issues of comics that tie into Marvel’s big summer blockbuster Secret Invasion. Is the series good? Which issues rock the house? Which ones bite the big one? Do you have to read everything that comes out to get the whole picture of the Invasion, or can you just read the main series and be fine? Those are the types of questions that we’ll be tackling with the gusto that you’ve come to expect from the Panteon.

This week we will be covering Mighty Avengers #14, and Incredible Hercules #117.
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Secret Invasion Update is a weekly feature that among other things takes a gander at all things Skrully. More directly, we will be talking about the many issues of comics that tie into Marvel’s big summer blockbuster Secret Invasion. Is the series good? Which issues rock the house? Which ones bite the big one? Do you have to read everything that comes out to get the whole picture of the Invasion, or can you just read the main series and be fine? Those are the types of questions that we’ll be tackling with the gusto that you’ve come to expect from the Panteon.

This week we will be covering Captain Britain and MI13 #1, and Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four #1 of 3.
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Secret Invasion Update is a weekly feature that among other things takes a gander at all things Skrully. More directly, we will be talking about the many issues of comics that tie into Marvel’s big summer blockbuster Secret Invasion. Is the series good? Which issues rock the house? Which ones bite the big one? Do you have to read everything that comes out to get the whole picture of the Invasion, or can you just read the main series and be fine? Those are the types of questions that we’ll be tackling with the gusto that you’ve come to expect from the Panteon.

This week we will be covering Secret Invasion #1 of 8, Mighty Avengers #12, New Avengers #40, Secret Invasion #2 of 8, and Mighty Avengers #13.
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Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Artist: Paul Pelletier
Company: Marvel Comics

Nick: In the immortal words of Bruce Willis, “Welcome to the party, Pal.” I say this because that is exactly what Guardians of the Galaxy is, a tremendous, action-packed extravaganza that pulsates with entertainment and style. Bold words, I know, but I don’t say them lightly.

Randy: I don’t want to oversell Guardians or set the bar too high, but it’s not exaggerating to say that this is a hell of a first issue. Using three narratives (two flashback and one present-day), Abnett, Lanning and Pelletier establish their characters, set up the raison d’etre of the team, foreshadow future events and feature a kickass Continue Reading »

Fat Pants is a monthly Comic Pants feature (well, at least in theory it’s a monthly feature) in which I mull over the last month’s trades and graphic novels in order to let you know which ones I feel are most worth your attention. It is far from a comprehensive list of all the good reads published in the past month, so please feel free let us know in the comments which trades and graphic novels came out in the last month that you, the reader, feel are most worth our attention. So, without further ado, here are the books I think really stood out this month.
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Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Leinil Yu
Company: Marvel Comics

Okay, before we get into the particulars of the issue, the spoilers and the rundown of the Cylo…I mean the Skrull’s secret plan to take over Earth, let’s first get down to the nitty gritty of the situation and answer the $1,000 question that some of you may or may not be wanting to know. Was the opening shot to Marvel’s newest summer blockbuster event either good, bad, or just decidedly ugly? The answer: Compared to the lackluster and slow moving events of House of M and the hit and miss, completely over the top antics of the more recent Civil War, the first issue of Secret Invasion shines. It isn’t perfect by any means. It isn’t a goldmine of goodness that from Continue Reading »

Thor #7
Writer: J. Michael Straczynski
Artist: Marko Djurdjevic
Company: Marvel Comics

Entertainment, thy name is Thor. For me, that’s an odd thing to say. Why? Because for the most part, I haven’t read much of Thor. Sure, there’s been the occasional story here and there, several issues of the Simonson era of course, but for the most part the only stories that I’ve read that deal with the big guy have been when he was on the Avengers’ roster or during several of the bigger crossovers over the years. So really, Straczynski’s interpretation of the character is the first time that I’ve sat up and paid attention. And even though it’s been a rocky and somewhat stalled start, the six issues to date still amount to an Continue Reading »

Writers: Craig Kyle & Chris Yost
Artist: Clayton Crain
Company: Marvel Comics

A few months back in one of our rather lengthy podcasts, amongst a general cacophony of rants, we came to the awesome conclusion that a book starring what would essentially be a Black Ops X-Men team would be something that might be worth reading, if done right. Unbeknownst to us, at pretty much the same time, the guys attending the big Marvel Comics X-Summit were thinking the exact same thing. Was there a little mind-reading involved somewhere? Maybe a bit of telepathy? Who can say for sure, really. What we do know though is that X-Force is back, minus Cable and his ever so lovable band of cronies (Where is Feral, by the way? Shatterstar?), and to call it Continue Reading »

Writers: R.A. Salvatore, Larry Hama, Geno Salvatore & Ryan Schifrin
Artist: Adam Archer
Company: Devil’s Due Publishing

Grab your guns, check your stash of silver bullets and pray that you somehow are able to buckle down and withstand the forces of the night, because if you don’t, then say sayonara to the entire human race, my friend. That in a nutshell is the basis for the story that R.A. Salvatore and Larry Hama, both masters of their own extremely popular genres, have come together to tell. The outcome of said mind-melding is an unabashed adventure romp, one that’s chock full of action and well…You guessed it, more action. A story that blends together the monsters of classic horror, your vampires and werewolves and such, with the somewhat specialized military characters Continue Reading »

Writer: Mark Millar
Artist: Bryan Hitch
Company: Marvel Comics

Fantastic Four. Two words that when put together form the name of one of comicdom’s most prized creations, one that has a long lineage of excellence that ranges from the momentous founding tales of the Lee and Kirby days to the superb stories put forth by John Byrne to the updated and ultimately fun romps of Mark Waid and the more recent adventures of Dwayne McDuffie. There are many more high notes that could be mentioned, a few low ones as well, but seriously, Fantastic Four is a staple of the world of comics, one that’s been around for almost fifty years. It’s also, by the way, one of the hardest books out there to write. Getting a handle of the feel of the book, the general Continue Reading »