Author: Alexander Williamson

Superior Spider-Man (2019) #5 Marvel Comics Writer: Christos Gage Artist: Mike Hawthorne As the Superior Spider-Man, Otto Octavius has consistently been one of my favourite characters at Marvel since taking up the mantle, and Gage and Hawthorne’s current run delivers exactly what I want in a book about my favourite villain-turned-hero. The plot for this issue is basic but sufficient, following Otto on his first date with Emma and hijinks, of the variety where Doctor Strange gets involved, ensue.  The one-time Avenger and Sorcerer Supreme team up to deal with a demonic incursion. There’s nothing remarkable about this issue…

Green Arrow (2016-) #49 DC Comics Writers: Collin Kelly and Jackson LanzingArtist: Javier Fernandez This issue sees a showdown between the more-powerful-than-ever Count Vertigo and Green Arrow. It’s a highly emotional issue, as Ollie’s recent tragedy of losing Roy (in Tom King’s Heroes In Crisis) is brought into full focus as Count Vertigo demands Roy personally confront him. It’s a dramatic encounter between Ollie and Vertigo, with reality-warping and hard-hitting moments. As an essentially single extended sequence, it’s well-written and manages to be more interesting than a simple hero vs villain punch-up. The characterisation on display here is the best…

The Wrong Earth #6 Ahoy Comics Writers: Tom Peyer (Main story), Paul Constant (Back-up) Artists: Jamal Igle (Main story), Gary Eskine (Back-up) The Wrong Earth follows 60s TV show Batman expy Dragonflyman of Earth Alpha and gritty Miller-esque Batman expy Dragonfly of Earth Omega, having swapped places in their respective universes. Issue #6 of The Wrong Earth marks the conclusion of the “first season”, with the title returning in 2020, and it is a fantastic issue to end on. Peyer’s deconstruction and subversion of superhero media tropes are intelligent but never stifling. Instead of being a book that’s trying very…

Sparrowhawk #4 Boom! Studios Writer: Delilah S. Dawson Artist: Matias Basla Sparrowhawk follows a girl named Artemisia, who has swapped places with the Faerie Queen of another realm, and her journey back home. The premise of Sparrowhawk’s world is simple: if you kill something, your power grows. In order to return to her world, Artemisia must kill in order to gain the power necessary to make the trip back. The plot for this issue is simple, but effective, as Artemisia confronts a gigantic Guardian Spirit, makes her way further towards the magic mirror that will allow her to return home,…

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #2 Marvel Comics Writer: Tom Taylor Artist: Juann Cabal Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is an absolute joy of a Spider-Man comic and makes it very clear that Tom Taylor is an ideal writer for the wall-crawler. This issue sees Peter clash with and then investigate the mysterious man with super strength from the last issue, while also having to figure out what to do with the two mysterious orange kids that have been left in his bedroom. It’s a well-paced issue that ends on a reveal that makes the reader, as well as Spidey, completely confused. The action…

The Wild Storm #19 DC Comics Writer: Warren Ellis Artist: Jon Davis-Hunt If you haven’t been keeping up, The Wild Storm is Warren Ellis’ new re-invention of the iconic WildStorm imprint, responsible for the characters of Wildcats, Stormwatch, and The Authority, among other things. The Wild Storm follows new versions of these characters as they get caught up in a global conspiracy between ultra secretive spy agencies and rival alien species on Earth. The Wild Storm has been an excellent action-thriller throughout it’s run, leaving the reader with the same questions as the uninitiated characters in this series. This issue…

Batman #63 DC Comics Writer: Tom King Artist: Mikel Janin Despite the notorious events of Batman #50 (if you don’t know, where have you been?), Batman #63 revolves mainly around Batman, Catwoman and… John Constantine, who’s an unexpected addition. The plot follows Bruce and Selina through various snapshot moments while Constantine offers mysterious, cryptic anecdotes and advice to the Caped Crusader, and also reveals some more context for the previous parts of the Knightmares arc. Ultimately, it doesn’t feel very substantial and lacks the more surrealist aspects that made the first two Knightmares stories more interesting reads. There’s a couple…

Low Road West #5 Boom! Studios Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson Artist: Flaviano This is the last issue of the series Low Road West, a series about a group of teenagers who find themselves stranded in the Oklahoma dust bowl mid-evacuation after a nuclear strike. As the conclusion to the story, Low Road West #5 feels like it falls a little flat. The previous issue’s set up of the main characters being a “pantheon” with their own individual roles (Propher, Scholar, Trickster, Scholar) doesn’t feel like it has much of a pay-off. There’s the climactic boss fight with the Godslinger that…

A Walk Through Hell #7 Aftershock Comics Writer: Garth Ennis Artist: Goran Sudžuka Much to everyone’s surprise, A Walk Through Hell is a comic featuring lots of religious themes and also offering socio-political commentary, something Garth Ennis definitely hasn’t done before. That being said, A Walk Through Hell is a brilliant horror comic about two FBI detectives sent to investigate the disappearance of two agents in a warehouse, and how it ties into a horrific case from their past. A Walk Through Hell stands as one of Garth Ennis’ more mature comics, scrapping his signature gross-out-style humor and over…

Venom #10 Marvel Comics Writer: Donny Cates Artist: Ryan Stegman Donny Cates’ Venom has proven itself as one of Marvel’s best current titles on the strength of its storytelling and art, giving us a very well written rendition of Eddie Brock. This issue largely focuses on Eddie’s backstory that had been teased in earlier issues, so this issue is a little light on symbiote action and far more about giving further context to Eddie and his relationship with his father. It’s a reasonably unconventional origin story for a character who is essentially a superhero at this point (at worst,…