Geek YEN! – King Arts Hulkbuster Figure

Yen: verb 1. feel a longing or yearning. That’s exactly how we feel about the stuff we love, but, more importantly, it’s really how we feel about the stuff they make out of the stuff we love. Toys, statues, posters, pogs; we love it all, and we WANT it all. It’s Geek Yen!

Easily the coolest part of the whole damn Age of Ultron movie, The Mark 44 Iron Man Armor, Codenamed: Veronica, and also known as The Hulkbuster Armor was always going to make an awesome figure, but it took the Iron Man memorabilia veterans over at King Arts to get it perfect. Full Diecast; impeccable detail, and there’s an Iron Man figure that goes INTO the Hulkbuster Armor! Shut up and take my money!

Review: Superior Iron Man #3

This year I took a huge step away from Marvel Comics, dropping almost all of the publisher’s titles from my pull-list and adding almost none. One title that WAS added to that list, however, was Superior Iron Man, a twisted take on Tony Stark that I just could not bring myself to skip. As I said in my review of ish #1, I simply adore douchebag Iron Man. Issue #3 of Superior not only took everything that’s been established up a notch or two, but I’m certain that the creators read my ish #1 review, because every problem I had with the series in that earlier issue was addressed to perfection. In a title that is all about taking a risk with a dramatic character change, Taylor and Cinar are (finally) taking huge creative risks, and the result is a wildly rewarding payoff for readers. (NOTE: There will be spoilers!)

Review: Superior Iron Man #1

Marvel’s AXIS is in full effect, and the heroes are villainous, the villains are heroic, with topsy-turvy being the staus quo du jour over at the House of Ideas. Although AXIS is still technically going on, we’re already getting a glimpse of some of the fallout in the aftermath of the event, and that’s pretty much where Superior Iron Man picks up. While there’s a bit of out-of-sequence spoilers that pretty much gives away the end of AXIS, I’m a huge fan of douche-bag Iron Man, and Tony is at his dickish best. There will be spoilers, but here’s our preview if you missed it.

Geeks’ Picks for New Comics: November 12th, 2014

New Comics Wednesday is upon us again, and some of us here at Outright Geekery are running down the top pick on our comic stacks for this week. What are you looking forward to reading this week?

Marvel Shows Off New Superior Iron Man

Avengers NOW! is bringing a ton of changes to the Marvel U. While your Captains America and Thors may be interesting, changes to Iron Man are just plain old fun, and this one looks to be no different. Here’s the skinny.

Do You Know This Avenger?

That’s right folks the segment you didn’t even know you missed is back! JulesTrue is back in action folks and I’m here to bring you the goods! As we all know Earth’s Mightiest Heroes has quite the roster, and you may not know everyone who’s filled that roster. Well thankfully I do! From East Coast to West Coast. From Secret to Uncanny. I’ll be bringing them to you every week right here on OUTRIGHT GEEKERY!

Well I’m at it again folks and this time I’m taking it all the way back with a founding member of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. One of the first major members to get his own silver screen treating. This member has been on and off the team for years dealing with his own issues. But of course you think you know this Avenger, but do you really? It’s time to catch up on ol’ Shellhead and dive into the beginnings of the Iron Avenger!

Avengers NOW!: Are More New Books on the Way?

When Marvel recently announced their latest promotional onslaught revolving around everything Avengers NOW!, most of the buzz surrounded the big changes coming to Captain America and Thor, with most of the push, seemingly, put behind a few new series and a lot of current ones. A closer look at the released teaser image for Marvel’s new branding shows-off a lot of good, a lot of potential, and maybe even a bit of mystery.

Review: Avengers #29

AVENGERS #29
Jonathan Hickman (WRITER)
Leinil Francis Yu (ARTIST)
Teaser Variant also available
WHAT DID HE SEE?
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$4.99

I’ve been a fan of Jonathan Hickman since I first bought The Nightly News, the writer’s 2006 breakout indy title, and I knew I was on to something. Since then I’ve bought just about everything the guy has written, I have yet to be disappointed, and that includes his amazing run on the premiere Avengers titles. Within the pages of those titles, Hickman has been weaving a high science fiction tale of recurring impending doom brought on by universal incursion after universal incursion centered on Earth. In the early issues of his New Avengers run, Hickman brought the Illuminati into this whole incursion scenario by having Captain America use the Infinity Gauntlet to stave off an impending universe, and then using the same weapon to destroy the gauntlet itself, including all the gems save the Time Gem. The rest of the cabal subsequently kicked Cap out of their little club because the other members knew he couldn’t make the hard choice, namely destroy an entire universe and every living thing in it. So, Doc Strange wiped Cap’s memories, and the universe demolishing continued. Marvel’s latest blockbuster event Original Sin, however, presents a great opportunity for some high drama, as Tony Stark’s secrets come back to haunt him. Captain America remembers!

The Good

I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting much going into this issue. It’s just another tie-in to another Marvel event. So I was pleasantly surprised at how great a book it was. We open with Cap asleep in bed, dreaming of his erased past memories as a member of the Illuminati, the destruction of an entire universe, and the disappearance of the Infinity Gauntlet. This acts as a great way to give readers the whole back-story of Cap’s removal from the Illuminati, as well as a creative method of showing Cap regaining those very difficult memories. His friends, including his best friend, have been lying to him for months, and went as far as erasing the man’s memories. Needless to say, Cap is pissed! He gathers Black Widow and Hawkeye on his way to question Tony face to face, with Thor, Hyperion, and Star Brand meeting up with them later…yeah, Cap brought his biggest guns with him. It really helped communicate just how important this issue is to Cap, and was also a great example of the trust Cap has earned with his allies as they accompany him to confront Iron Man without hesitation. The dialogue between Steve and Tony is spot-on, despite having seen this same brother vs. brother fight so many times before, and Tony’s reveal that Cap’s team of heavy hitters is surrounded by hundreds of suits of armor makes for a terrific fight. While the return of the Time Gem last page reveal came completely out of left field, it wasn’t quite out of place, but the true greatness of this ish was the way Hickman showed the dichotomy between Iron Man and Captain America when it comes to dealing with the universal incursion threat. Leinil Francis Yu is a modern day master, and his artwork was the perfect accompaniment to this gripping tale of betrayal and moral ambiguity.

The Bad

Hickman’s universal incursion story that he’s been spinning within the pages of his Avengers titles was already enormous and complex. With an infinite number of universes, rogue planets from the future, and universe destroying species of all sorts it was already difficult to follow the story sometimes. By the end of this issue #29, however, we’re sent 50 years into the future, presumably due to an exploding Time Gem, adding another layer of WTF? to the entire landscape. I’m all for big stories that take chances with an epic scope, but it may be getting a bit too much. I also had some problems with the whole Tony Stark vs. Steve Rogers morality tale angle that we’ve seen so many times before. It felt way too close to Civil War, Disassembled, and every other time Iron Man and Cap disagreed on how to be a hero.

The Verdict

The Original Sin event has given Marvel the chance to tell some interesting untold stories from Marvel’s past, and, according to the tie-in solicits, that’s the majority of what we’re going to get. The same spider that bit Peter bit someone else, Thor and Loki have a sister, Iron Man and Hulk have some old-school beef, Professor Xavier left a last will and testament, among other things…and we simply had no idea it happened? Yeah, I’m not buying it! But this Avengers #29 tie-in dealt with the whole original sin premise echoing throughout the Marvel Universe in a way that works in current continuity and does so in brilliant fashion. If the rest of the Original Sin tie-in books are half as good as this one it’s going to be a great summer. And Hickman’s entire universal incursion story-line continues to twist and turn with each and every Avengers issue he writes, with a hard left-turn careening off the rails by the last panel of this issue.

Story: 4 Out of 5
Art: 4.5 Out of 5
Overall: 4.5 Out of 5

Outright Geekery’s Top o’ the Lot: Avengers Without Superpowers

From time to time Outright Geekery brings you a slanted and biased opinion on some trivially specific topic of geekery. We call it Outright Geekery’s Top o’ the Lot.

It can’t be easy. With names like Thor, Hulk and The Scarlet Witch sharing bunk space in the Mansion or Tower, having absolutely no superpowers at all has to be a bitch. Getting stuck as third base coach at the annual X-Men/Avengers softball game is bad enough without super-powered tolerance to alcohol meaning there’s NEVER a beer left in the fridge. While the Avenger’s roster makes for a who’s who of flying, shield hurdling, hammer tossing super-folk, OG sifts through to the trivial, and gets to the goods in this week’s Top o’ the Lot: Avengers Without Superpowers.

Honorable Mention: Stingray

Stingray’s story is your basic affair. Genius oceanographer designs and wears underwater battlesuit to study and protect the ocean. Dr. Walter Newell had a whole slew of Silver Age adventures with everyone from Namor to Hulk, but didn’t really come to the attention of the Avengers until Stingray’s ocean headquarters, Hydro-Base (catchy, I know) became a convenient place for the Avengers to have some water adventures. Reserve status and an opportune HQ aside, Stingray barely makes the Lot just for being a bit different, and the pickings were slim. But don’t feel sorry for him…

5. Swordsman

It may have been an on-again/off-again relationship, but Jacques Duquesne, Swordsman, made for some early Avengers comics intrigue back in the day. Was he on the Mandarin’s side? Was he on the Avengers’ side? Was he on his own side? It was kind of all three, but the Avengers finally won Swordsman over. Personally, I think it was the ladies that finally persuaded him. They don’t call him “Swordsman” for nothing. A really big sword and no superpowers to speak of put Swordsman into of the Top o’ the Lot, but just the tip.

4. James “Rhodey” Rhodes/ War Machine

Rhodey wasn’t just Tony Stark’s go-to guy for covering a shift as Ironman after an all-night binger, James Rhodes paved his own way when he donned the War Machine armor and joined the West Coast branch of the Avengers. Although the Ironman flicks have made him a household name, and he’s even getting a brand new comic series come early 2014, I’ll always remember Rhodey as the Ironman nobody wanted. Who’d a thought he’d end up being as cool as War Machine ended being? Not this guy, but the new Iron Patriot overcompensates for something, and ends up smack dab in the Top o’ the Lot.

3. Mockingbird

Barbara Morse gets left out of the discussion far too often, but Mockingbird was one half of the romantic duo that made the West Coast Avengers a thing. Maybe her better half got more of the attention, but the Hawkeye/Mockingbird relationship was one of the first real relationships I remember getting in on back in the day. Yeah, I know she got some Super-Soldier Serum treatment along the way, but the Lot is slanted and biased for a reason, and Mockingbird gets the center spot in the Top.

2. Hawkeye

He may be the quintessential Marvel hero without powers, but not on my list. Despite my own feelings, it’s an easy argument to make for Clint Barton to be at the Top. Does it matter that he wears purple? No. Does it matter that his choice of weapon is ancient? Nuh-uh. Does it matter that he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer? Well, yeah, it does on this list anyways, but the mass appeal of Hawkeye just cannot be denied! Pick your version: The Avengers movie, Ultimate Universe, regular 616. The guy is just plain old cool no matter your preference. The guy never misses, except this time, when he misses the top spot in the Top o’ the Lot.

1. Iron Man

Iron Man isn’t just the most recognized Avengers, and the richest, and the one with the coolest toys, but he’s got the entire package. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist; even if you take all that stuff away, Tony Stark is a deep, troubled and intriguing character. He’s been the outcast drunkard, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and everything in between. There’s nothing he hasn’t done, and nothing he can do if he just had a day or two to work it out. While it pales in comparison to Batman’s 15 minutes to solve any problem (yeah, you knew Batman was going to show up in a Lot about heroes without powers) it’s still enough to put Iron Man at the very Top o’ the Lot of Avengers without powers.

See a mistake? Disagree with the choices? Tell us what you think about this installment of Top o’ Lot, join in the discussion and share your opinion.