Nicieza, Fabian
AVERAGE REVIEW SCORE:
3 out of 5
(1 book)
Cable & Deadpool: If Looks Could Kill
(Art by Mark Brooks, Chris Stevens, Patrick Zircher, Shane Law and Udon Studios)
Deadpool is hired by the One World Church to steal an experimental virus which could end racial division by altering the appearance of every human on Earth. Initially suspicious of the Church's intentions, Cable sets out to intervene but begins to see the potential of the virus if control of it was in his own hands.
This is a perfectly solid outing for the title characters, with Cable being his usual sanctimonious self and Deadpool, as ever, caught between common sense and his impulsive nature. Their relationship is also well-done here, with a believable balance of respect and antagonism between the two men.
Unfortunately, where the book falls down is in the implications of its core plot that it never addresses. The massive cultural and ethical ramifications of changing the skin colour of every human being is never really delved into and is instead almost shrugged off as a joke. Now, I certainly don't think this is the medium to address concepts like 'what if every black person was forcibly made white' with the appropriate amount of gravitas, but the fact that this book handwaves the issue aside is actually almost as bad in its implications. I guess what I'm saying is that a superhero comic with a wise-cracking mercenary who keeps making jokes about porn is not the place to introduce the topic of humanity's inherent xenophobia and the countless years of division and strife caused as a result.
3 out of 5
Civil War: Thunderbolts
(Art by Tom Grummett, Dave Ross, Gary Erskine and Cam Smith)
A tie-in to 'Civil War' by Mark Millar, in which the superheroes of the Marvel Universe are violently divided by the Superhuman Registration Act.
So, to start, who are the Thunderbolts? Basically, they're a superhero team comprised of former supervillains all determined, for individual reasons, to show the world they've changed their ways. This leads to an ironic twist of events, which is this book's best element, wherein the Thunderbolts are sanctioned by the U.S Government to gather an army of former villains to help hunt down and defeat the fugitive heroes led by Captain America.
Sadly, despite the book's cover and title, the Civil War element only features in the latter half of the book. There are some poignant moments between the former villains and the so-called heroes, the best being when the Chinese-national Radioactive Man criticised Mr Fantastic and Yellowjacket, but these elements just aren't prominent enought for my liking.
There's another story here, which features in the first half of the book, about the opposing machinations of Zemo and the Grandmaster, but that story is incomplete and just isn't nearly as compelling as the Civil War.
3 out of 5
Collaborations & Anthologies:
Avengers/X-Men: Bloodties (here)
Banshee: The Wail Of The Banshee!/The Phalanx Covenant - Generation Next (here)
Batman: Bruce Wayne - The Road Home (here)
Civil War: X-Men Universe (here)
Deadpool: The Beginning Of The End/Suicide Kings (here)
Marvel Platinum: The Definitive Wolverine (here)
Professor X: Psi-War/The Muir Island Saga (here)
Spider-Man's Greatest Villains (here)
Star Wars: Tales - Volume 4 (here)
Superman: Last Son Of Krypton (here)
The Adventures Of Captain America, Sentinel Of Liberty: First Flight Of The Eagle (here)
Wolverine Origins: Deadpool (here)