So...two review, right? Um, that clearly didn't happen...and you'd think I would've learned not to make promises by now. Well, it certainly won't happen again. Promise.
Speaking of Banners, word has it that the whole World War Hulk (and it must be italicized, emboldened, and in a larger font as befits a series that will witness an ungodsly quantity of “Hulk Smash!!!” On a related note, on your next visit to the Underworld do bear in mind that you should never give RHD any whiskey after midnight: he starts to think he is el Green Skinned not-so-friendly-giant and steps on things smaller than he is...like LeftD's first generation harpsiPod. You might notice that this rule bears a striking resemblance to those stated in Gremlins...let's just say someone didn't take as deep a swig from Lethe as they were supposed to and we've never seen a single Zeusdamn royalty from it. Oh, crap, this was a paranthetical thought wasn't it. Um...claptu berata nicto!!!) extravaganza hits sometime soon. Can't honestly say how I feel about this other than a certain sense of well-being that this “major” event doesn't take over the lives of every other comic. Marvel seems to have developed a sense of restraint that, if nothing else, doesn't screw with storylines and creative teams too terribly much. Now if only they could tame that exploitive, buy-every-comic-that-came-out-this- month-if-you-want-any-sense-of-what-the-hell-is-going-on drive. Probably a pipe dream to even pretend that that could happen.
Still, though, I can't get too worked up over World War Hulk if only because I have no idea what the Hulk's deal is these days. Near as I can tell, he never reverts back to Banner, something which I would guess could only weaken the character. Then again who am I to judge? I only eat the souls of the damned, not judge the relative virtues and vices of the Hulk in his rainbow skin-toned incarnations. Honestly, he does deserve a little justice on the various members of the Illuminati, even if they only end up in body casts, not down our way like he so clearly wants. Marvel is about as likely to do lasting damage to any of these guys as they were going to leave el Hulko on an alien planet and out of the mix.
Bringing the Hulk back and all the property damage his presence entails does put the Marvel editors to an interesting test. In the wake of Civil War an emphasis was definitely placed on the role and impact of the empowered individual in the world. The splash pages detailing the damage wrought by the heroes' battle in NYC made this clear. How, then, will the Hulk leveling, say, Iowa, be dealt with? For that matter, how will they handle the aftereffects of Hottie-Ultron and her...its...whatever's assault on the world's weather systems? The odd panel here or there of recovery efforts led by whomever could easily cover this, but I almost suspect that by the comic equivalent of the next day everything will look fine with all the damage undone. Normally I wouldn't care, but Marvel brought this on themselves by launching the Civil War in the first place. They've kinda set a standard for real world effects that they must adhere to unless they want to lose all credibility.
Similarly, I wonder (brought on by LeftD's musings) at the various timescales at work in this newly ordered Marvel. Generally speaking the X-Men run on a different schedule insofar as what happened when in relation to everyone else (like the Fantastic Four), but the net has been drawn in tighter and if Marvel wants to use Wolverine in a number of books, I wouldn't mind the occasional explanation as to when he avenges and when he eXes. I don't expect it will ever be the case that such due diligence will be the standard, but, hey, a hellhound has to have something to complain about, right?
In saying that, though, I think it's important to remember that one of the strengths of the comic genre is the levels of inconsistency. If every book is great – perfect art, iconic and important tales the norm, and a persistently tightly woven universe – I think we'd all get bored pretty fast. Plus, fanboys would lose all contact with other human beings as there'd be nothing left to say, nothing left to dissect; Poseidon knows we can't let that happen...they might start breeding otherwise. In all seriousness, the fact that there are certain “great” writers and certain “bad” writers (who still, somehow, get work?!) means that a weak story arc can be followed by a strong one, a strong one viewed for its importance by comparison to the weak. Being serialized, comics can always come back next month and absolutely blow you away, kick your ass from here to Atlantis (our version of Timbuktu). What other genre gets that second, third, fourth chance? Try writing a novel, failing, and getting that second chance from readers. Not bloody likely, eh? So while I criticize, I'm not suggesting a movement toward perfection. For starters, perfection is kinda in the eye of the hellish beholder and secondly, any art that achieves perfection, an apex of sorts, is a pretty dull one and soon to be dead. So, again, I criticize as a way of giving praise to the noteworthy and damning the execrable...and to hear my own voice (but you already knew that).
Next week, some other random thoughts and maybe a review. Who knows? I sure don't. Until then, I remain your filth-ridden and nausea-inducing-breathed voice of middle-dogged reason,
cenTrale
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