Marvel's January previews reviewed

Congratulations, Marvel Entertainment! You know officially have so many comic book properties in development for television and film that I have lost track of them all. It was days before I realized that the New Mutants trailer I was hearing people talking about was for a film, not a  TV show, and that New Mutants, the movie, was an entirely different thing than The Gifted, the TV show.  That likely explains all the New Mutants trades in this month's round of solicitations.

What else have they got going on? Let's take a look, shall we...?

AVENGERS #675
MARK WAID, AL EWING & JIM ZUB (W) • PEPE LARRAZ (A)
NO SURRENDER Part 1
AVENGERS goes WEEKLY for the stunning sixteen-part saga that will write the end of an era! The Earth has been STOLEN! The sky burns while mysterious cosmic objects crash down from above, wreaking havoc across the world! The Avengers are the last line of defense between Earth and the mysterious forces threatening to tear it apart. It’s time to ASSEMBLE! The teams you know and love from AVENGERS, UNCANNY AVENGERS, U.S.AVENGERS and OCCUPY AVENGERS come together to face a threat beyond any they’ve faced before in a weekly epic adventure that will define the future of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$4.99


A massive Avengers adventure by all of the Avengers writers, shipping weekly...? I would be very excited about that if I read Marvel comics serially. I love weekly comics, even though they are so often poorly-drawn!

I will look forward to the trade collection, though.

CABLE #153
ED BRISSON (W) • JON MALIN (A/C)
THE NEWER MUTANTS Part 4
EXTERNALS RISING! In the hunt for the EXTERNALS killer, a blast from CABLE’S past is revealed! Have Cable and the New Mutants walked straight into the killer’s trap? And what is BLINK’s role in all of this? Whose side is she really on?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

And what is she wearing?

CAPTAIN AMERICA #697
MARK WAID (W) • CHRIS SAMNEE (A/C)
...
HOME OF THE BRAVE PART Part 3
Kraven the Hunter has a new target – and it’s Steve Rogers! Trapped in unfamiliar territory, stripped of his shield and on the run, Cap must find a way to evade Kraven long enough to save an innocent life – but this time, that might be impossible! And just wait until you see the final page…
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

I'm sure this is going to end up being pretty okay, since Waid doesn't really write bad comics and Samnee is a hell of an artist, but I like what Ryan North and Erica Henderson have done with Kraven in the pages of Unbeatable Squirrel Girl so much I don't know if I will really be able to get into a more serious take on him.

CHAMPIONS #16
MARK WAID (W) • HUMBERTO RAMOS (A/C)
CHAMPION FOR A DAY Part 1
Following their staggering loss in their adventure with the Avengers, the Champions decide to double down on their mission to make the world a better place – but they know now they can’t do it alone! That’s right – it’s time for a membership drive!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

Hooray! I love membership drive issues! I was actually wondering why The Wasp didn't join the other young All-New, All-Different Avengers in forming The Champions the other day, when I read The Unstoppable Wasp Vol. 1, which opens with her hanging out with then-fellow Avenger Ms. Marvel.

Not sure which if any of these young folks will end up joining the team, but I have a few questions.

First, I thought the new Falcon died in the pages of Secret Empire or a tie-in to said storyline...? I guess that's not the case? That's cool. I kinda like him, but I wasn't sure what Marvel would do with him once Sam Wilson took the name Falcon back, as now they have two Falcons.

Second, who is the person in red between the patriotic-looking kid from the pages of The Falcon and Spider-Gwen...?

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #150 & 151
ISSUE #150 – GERRY DUGGAN (W) • MARCUS TO & AARON KUDER (A)
...
ISSUE #151 – GERRY DUGGAN (W) • Mike Allred (A)
ISSUE #151 – Cover by AARON KUDER
THE RETURN OF ADAM WARLOCK Parts 1 & 2
Issue #150 – That’s right – as more and more parties take an interest in the Infinity Stones, a man with serious Infinity experience joins the fray! Plus: Nova Rocket leads the charge against the Raptors!
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$4.99

Issue #151 – Adam Warlock is back! But how? And why? Has he come as a savior? Or is he here to take the Infinity Stones for himself? Find out as the galactic tale of the Infinity Stones’ return enters the next exciting phase!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

Why? Probably because of the after-credits teaser scene in this past summers Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2 movie.

OLD MAN HAWKEYE #1 (of 12)
ETHAN SACKS (W) • MARCO CHECCHETTO (A/C)
...
AN EYE FOR AN EYE Part 1
The super heroes have fallen. The country has been divided into territories controlled by super villains. Among the wastelands lives CLINT BARTON – one of the few Avengers to survive. But it’s been 45 years, and he’s no Avenger. Trying to eke out a living anyway he can, the former HAWKEYE is confronted with a startling discovery: the sharpshooter is going blind. With time running short, Clint realizes there’s one last thing he wants to see: revenge for his fallen comrades-in-arms. Rising-star writer ETHAN SACKS and superstar artist MARCO CHECCHETTO take you back to the Wastelands in a story set five years before the original classic OLD MAN LOGAN.
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

What? Seriously? This is going to become, like, a line of books now...? Sheesh.

Also, shouldn't it be Old Man Clint...?

Reminder: Marcos Martin is the best. Please note that he is only providing the cover to this month's issue of Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man, however, and not the interiors. Those will be drawn by Adam Kubert, who is alright, but is no Marcos Martin.


SPIDER-MAN #236
BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS (W) • OSCAR BAZALDUA (A)
Cover by PATRICK BROWN
SINISTER SIX REBORN Part 3
The Bombshells are back together?! Lana has been through so much and has grown into a hero, but with her mom back in the equation, things look bad for her. Know who they look even worse for? MILES MORALES, SPIDER-MAN! And with Electro in the mix as well…?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

Say, is Marvel allowed to have Bombshells...?


THE UNSTOPPABLE WASP VOL. 2: AGENTS OF G.I.R.L. TPB
Written by JEREMY WHITLEY with STAN LEE & ERNIE HART
Penciled by ELSA CHARRETIER, VERONICA FISH, RO STEIN & TED BRANDT with JACK KIRBY
Cover by ELSA CHARRETIER
ON SALE FEBRUARY 2018
This is it! The Red Room wants Nadia back, and they’ll pull out all the stops to get her. The clock is ticking, and both Nadia and her friend Ying’s lives are in the balance. That means the geniuses of G.I.R.L. are up against their first real science challenge: to outsmart the Red Room! Whatever happens, Nadia’s fate will be forever altered — but can the original Wasp, Janet Van Dyne, help her find a way forward? When they get together, few can resist their sting! Plus: In a classic tale, Janet Van Dyne meets Hank Pym, and a heroic legacy is born as Ant-Man and the Wasp battle the Creature from Kosmos!
Collecting THE UNSTOPPABLE WASP #5-8 and TALES TO ASTONISH #44.
PGS. 120/Rated T+ …$15.99 • ISBN: 978-1-302-90647-4

I just wanted to point out that I just read the first volume of this series, and it is really, really good. I could sort of see why a lot of people might have given it a pass or otherwise slept on it based on Nadia's handful of appearances in some Avengers books and how she and her book might seem superficially similar to a few other books Marvel has been publishing, but I was surprised and delighted about how good it ended up being. If you haven't read the first volume yet, please do so. Then you too will be as excited as I am about the upcoming release of this second volume.