Comic Book Review: Secret Empire #0 - Marvel Comics (2017)

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Daniel Acuna

Captain America is a Hydra agent and now he is putting a plan in place to fully take over the world by strategically taking out the heroes of the world.

This story line started about a year ago and it just doesn't impress me.  I feel like Captain America being an agent of Hydra belongs in the old "What If..." comic book series.  I received this comic book in the Marvel Collectors Corps subscription box which is the reason why I read this comic in the first place.  My copy has Rocket and Groot on the cover which is the reason it's a keeper.  I look forward to this story ending as I've heard it is rumored Marvel will be going in a "back to their roots" type of run in the near future.  I like exploring other sides to characters but Cap being a Hydra agent all along just doesn't do it for me.

Daniel Acuna is an incredibly talented artist and definitely a wonderful choice to be in charge of the visual interiors when it comes to a comic book of this magnitude.  Acuna is tasked with drawing the heroes of the Marvel Universe throughout the entire issue.

I doubt I will be purchasing any of the other comic books in Secret Empire but at least I got to read one of the books to see if it was worth me forking over five bucks an issue.  Seriously Marvel, the cover prices are too much.  Get some advertisers to pay for it or use a less expensive paper stock.

What are your thoughts on Secret Empire?  I'm sure I'm in the minority on this as I have read many friends' posts on social media.  I look forward to reading all of your thoughts whether it be in the comments below, on social media or via email.


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Comic Book Review: Spider-Man #8 - Marvel Comics (2016)

Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Nico Leon
Colors by Marte Gracia

Spider-Man is approached by Jessica Jones and Luke Cage due to Jones being hired by Spider-Man's(Miles Morales) grandmother to see what young Miles is up to.  This verbal exchange happens as Spider-Man is on his way to the Triskellion to meet with Tony Stark.  Spider-Man doesn't know what Stark wants, but if Iron Man calls you, it must be important.

I like the multiple stories happening within Spider-Man's life.  Being spied on by Jessica Jones, meeting with Marvel's biggest heroes and being in the midst of the heroes' Civil War.  This story is fun and is definitely going places.  This is the good part.

The dialogue is a bit cheesy.  There are parts that call out the cheesiness but that's not an excuse.  This book is rated T for teen but the cheese goes well below that.  Luke Cage refers to himself as "badassiest."  Maybe I haven't read enough Luke Cage stories, but I never thought of him as a guy that would talk like that.  I hope the Netflix series doesn't do that.

Nico Leon is a very good artist and conveys the story visually in a nice way.  Facial expressions look great as well as overall body language.  There are a lot of emotions within this story and all were represented extremely well through Leon's artwork.

What are your thoughts on Spider-Man?  Do you like Miles Morales being in the same universe as a live Peter Parker?  Are you keeping up with the Civil War II books?

Please let us know what other comic books you would like Maskerpiece Theatre to review.

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Comic Book Review: Civil War II #1 - Marvel Comics

Every summer the big two comic book companies put on some sort of comic book "event."  Marvel's entry into this foray is Civil War II and I'll admit, I was a bit hesitant on jumping on board.  I actually had issues waiting for me in my pull box at my local comic book shop but I decided to not partake after issue #0.  It wasn't because of the story being bad, it's more because Marvel charges more for comic books than other comic book companies.  I received issue #1 in my Marvel Collector's Corps subscription box and figured I should probably give it a read.

This book delivered.  It's thicker than most comic books so the $5.99 cover price, while steep, is a bit more understandable.  I'm sure this book would have been even better if I had been following the Marvel comics that coincide with it, but you get the idea pretty quick about what's going on.

Ulysses is a character that can see into the future and some feel that's a good thing while others find him dangerous.  Nobody knows him and nobody can get into his head.  Ulysses sees something coming and it turns this whole story on its head.  Lives are lost and the battle lines are about to be drawn.

The art in this book is top notch.  There is so much to enjoy whether it's the action or the expressions on heroes' faces.  This is a well crafted book.  Check out the fun cover I got with it as well(pictured).

The dialogue is good.  The younger heroes are kind of annoying but once you get Tony Stark and Carol Danvers talking, things get much better.  Lots of things are going on and it's a lot of fun.

Should you buy it?  If you like Marvel, maybe.  If you hate buying $6 comics and feel the only way to combat such atrocities is to not buy it, I say stay away.  Wait six months and read it on the Marvel Unlimited app.

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Comic Book Review: A-Force Assemble #1 - Marvel Comics (2016)

This is the first comic book series that I've ever picked up without knowing about the characters from TV or movies. Let me be honest, this is the first comic book I've ever bought myself with the intention of reading it. I bought Mighty Mouse years ago but I've never read it and only bought it because I felt I needed something for the trouble of going to the store with my husband. 

Apparently reading the Battleworld books would have helped to make this #1 make sense but since I didn't do that I did some quick research online and found out what happened. 

Singularity has come to earth and brought the enemy Antimatter with her. She remembers Captain Marvel, She-Hulk and Medusa but they don't remember her...

As a new reader I thought the first book in a series would be a great starting place but this was not the case, it left me with more questions than answers. I was really looking forward to learning about these strong women characters but now I'm hoping the next books will enlighten me. 

I'm not an artist so I can't say if the art was out of this world, I can say that I did like the art and thought the colors were bold and vibrant. I will also say that the art helped bring the book to life and I think that's what comic books are supposed to be, larger than my imagination. Like I said previously the story left me with more questions than answers but I did like that it was easy to follow and flowed very well. I loved that it's storytelling in the simplest form. Unlike a novel where the words have to paint pictures and tell a story the words here are to tell you what's going on in the pictures. 

I look forward to seeing what the next books in this series have to offer as I'm still trying to find my way in the comic book world and refuse to take too much help from family or friends.

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